Peru – Environment & Climate Change

In 2019 the SNMPE (Sociedad Nacional De Mineria Y Petroleo Y Energia) developed a general human rights policy model for its members, which is based, on the OECD Guiding Principles and Guidelines, and integrates a risk-based due diligence approach (OECD, 2020b, p. 23). It has also established a national dialogue platform for mining (Mining for All), which provides guidance on how to receive complaints and respond to community demands, as well as a communication platform, which presents its environmental and social projects and their contribution to the SDGs (COM-Unity). – page 33

CHAPTER III DIAGNOSIS AND BASELINE: ACTION AREAS

3.2. Conclusions of the specific issues

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

The State has assumed a set of international environmental obligations related to the EIA, which has resulted in internal regulations to strengthen public policy to protect the environment and related rights in the context of investment projects. Within the framework of the National Environmental Impact Assessment System, the competent public entities have made progress both in the production of common general guidelines and by type of project for the preparation of EIAs, as well as in the mechanisms to ensure an adequate quality of information for the socio-environmental baselines and the content of the EIAs. The Executive Branch has the challenge of articulating its various governing bodies in order to have ever greater legitimacy and trust on the part of indigenous peoples and other groups with respect to the fulfillment of its role of promoting, supervising, monitoring, and defending the human rights related to this function. In this task, it is essential to count on the active and adequate participation of indigenous peoples, other groups, and citizens in general. – page 49

Large-scale agriculture

The agro-export sector represents one of the country’s main economic activities, with palm oil, cacao, asparagus, sugar, and quinoa agroindustries standing out. In this regard, there is a considerable national and international regulatory framework regarding labor and environmental issues and the rights of indigenous peoples in the context of these activities, which could be strengthened in accordance with various international regulations. Along these lines, as pointed out by the Working Group on Business and Human Rights and the Ombudsman’s Office, as well as the ILO’s special regular monitoring bodies and the OECD country report, state institutions and public policy, in general, should be strengthened to ensure greater effectiveness, in accordance with international standards, especially in areas such as social and environmental sustainability, labor rights and decent work, and prior consultation, among others.

Mining

The prevention and management of the environmental impacts of mining activity require improvements, such as better quality information on socio-environmental baselines and strengthening the administrative and legal capacity of the competent environmental oversight entities.

On the other hand, Peruvian legislation has made progress in dealing with environmental mining liabilities; however, problems persist in rehabilitating environmental liabilities generated by informal and illegal activity. Complaints of heavy metal contamination deserve timely attention, a good example being the work of the Temporary Multisectoral Commission on the matter. – page 50

Hydrocarbons

Peruvian legislation has made progress in addressing the problem of environmental liabilities; however, there are difficulties in rehabilitating environmental liabilities inherited from past operations, so it is essential to consolidate a comprehensive management system for environmental liabilities. – page 51

Table 8: NAP strategic guidelines and objectives, and alignment with the axes of the Peru Vision 2050

Axis 2. Sustainable management of nature and measures to address climate change. – page 54

Strategic guideline No. 2: Design of public protection policies to prevent human rights violations in the business environment.

Objective No. 3: Review, design, and adoption of national plans and programs to guarantee human rights in the framework of business activities.

37.

Action: Follow-up on social commitments assumed in dialogue processes during social conflicts.

Background: There is a need to standardize criteria and establish mechanisms to follow-up on commitments, including voluntary socio-environmental commitments, within the framework of multisectoral dialogue processes.

Indicator: Development of a protocol for monitoring commitments. – page 81

39.

Action: Produce a guide on soil studies and soil capacity in the regions of the country from the agricultural sector.

Background/Indicator: Measures to assess the social and environmental sustainability of agroindustrial projects need to be strengthened by conducting national studies on soil and soil capacity in the different regions and an evaluation of how large-scale plantations have been carried out. – page 82

44.

Action: Strengthen the right to transparency and access to information, taking into account the GP-RBC approach.

Background: It is required that platforms such as SINIA continue with the function of disseminating documentary, geographic and statistical information, in order to strengthen access to environmental information so that it is timely, articulated, georeferenced, updated, reusable, interoperable, so that this helps to narrow the existing information gaps.

Indicator: Number of National Reports on the State of the Environment disseminated through SINIA. – page 84

45.

Action: Expressly incorporate the GP-RBC approach in actions related to climate change, biological diversity, and environmental land use planning in the next National Environmental Action Plan and the National Environmental Policy.

Background: The issues of climate change, biological diversity, and environmental land-use planning should be expressly associated with the issue of business and human rights. In this way, related public policy measures would encourage companies to take into account the issues arising from these issues in their due diligence processes throughout the supply chain and address negative environmental risks and impacts. Although climate change, biodiversity, and environmental land use planning are topics addressed in the National Environmental Action Plan 2011-2021 and the National Environmental Policy, it would be appropriate to incorporate the GP-RBC approach in the next public policy of this nature.

Indicator: National Environmental Action Plan, including or expressly contemplating the GP-RBC approach in actions related to climate change, biological diversity, and environmental land use planning. – page 85

46.

Action: Evaluate the aspects of the GP-RBC approach that need to be considered in the mechanisms for citizen participation in order to adopt the corresponding improvements, within the framework of the National Environmental Impact Assessment System.

Background/Indicator: The quality of the information collected for the baseline, the predictability of its methodology, the participation of the parties involved, access to environmental information, among others, must be known in order to ensure that vulnerable groups participate in the environmental impact assessment process under equal conditions and in an environment of greater trust. – page 86

Strategic guideline No. 5: Design and strengthening of mechanisms to ensure that those affected by human rights violations have access to judicial, administrative, legislative, or other means of redress.

Objective 1: Strengthen mechanisms at the state level to redress human rights violations in the corporate sphere.

89.

Action: Disseminate information on how to access the Intersectoral Mechanism for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders.

Background Prepare a report on the situation of environmental defenders.

Indicator: Report on the situation of environmental defenders in Peru. – page 121

Objective 2: Strengthen the judicial and extrajudicial systems to redress human rights violations in the corporate sphere.

93.

Action: Create and implement a permanent training program for justice operators regarding administrative offenses and crimes in labor and environmental matters.

Background: There is a need to implement a training program for justice operators regarding administrative offenses and crimes in labor and environmental matters so that they have greater operational capacity and the processes related to these issues are resolved in compliance with international standards of the right to due process.

Indicator: Creation and implementation of a training program. – page 123