The video provides a view of the current environment of Patagonia threatened by the expansion of a mining project.
dusk in a desert is like walking through the Milky Way, massive towers of sand turn purple and pink, the coolness of the air feels like you’re in a vacuum, then the desert starts to wake up, animals crawl out of the sandstone, and the stars peer down like they are trying to scream something to the movement below, as the life scavenges for food and water, the desert breathes a deep hum, feeling the movement of life [WE’RE IMPROVING LIVES AROUND THE WORLD, NOW AND FOR GENERATIONS TO COME] but under the galaxy on earth are layers of coal, iron, steel, pumped out of the ground, leaving deep inks of coal piles of black sand, sand seeping into the water, the lifeline, of the rez, massive pits, the trash left, the scraps given to a nation to deal with, to a desert to try and breath in
and then again, the Atrato snakes through Colombia, weaving together a path of one of the most biodiverse life forces in the world, a river that once flooded over to refresh the ecosystems, cleaning itself out, splitting across forests of green that hide life from the sun, [THROUGH THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES, WE’RE IMPROVING LIVES AROUND THE WORLD, NOW AND FOR GENERATIONS TO COME] the river is now stagnant, no longer flooding, with a sheer gloss of oils, tearing up the skin of the communities, seeping so deep into people babies are coming out damaged from the mercury of the river
and the air that was once crisp in the Kalahari desert that once ribbed the sand, waiting to be drenched by rains, hiding meerkats and gemsbok that flock around the vaults of water hidden sun the in between of sand [EVERY DAY, OUR VALUES SHAPE THE WAY WE BEHAVE] became infected by particles of black rising out of the deep holes made by them, and the black filled the air, filled the breath of life, expanding into the lungs of the people, restricting their ability to breathe.
and now you’re here. In Patagonia, waiting to repeat.
Interjections are from the websites of South 32 mining and parent company BHP Billiton. Landscapes capture instances of their projects and impacts on the Navajo Nation; Columbia, and South Africa. South 32 will begin mining in Patagonia. Their creation of roads to begin the process can be seen here:
Some other sources:
https://www.reuters.com/breakingviews/bhp-bombshell-puts-south-african-mining-hole-2024-05-06/
https://www.mining-technology.com/news/catholic-church-sues-south32-south-africa-lung-disease/
https://www.epa.gov/navajo-nation-uranium-cleanup/aum-cleanup
