Multisectoral analysis of socio-environmental conflicts related to mining in Peru (2020-2025)

Cotrina-Teatino M.A.; Marquina-Araujo J.J.; Alvarez-Tandaypan P.J.; Murga-Peña C.J. · Resources Policy (2026) · DOI: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2026.105960

Resumen

While the literature on ecological distribution conflicts and mining contention has extensively documented environmental resistance in extractive territories, the post-pandemic Peruvian case reveals a broader and more heterogeneous set of socio-environmental conflict dynamics. This study analyzes how and why these conflicts have diversified between 2020 and 2025, aiming to characterize their territorial, institutional, and economic dynamics based on a original database built from records provided by the Ombudsman's Office. A total of 732 cases are examined, 471 of which are directly related to metallic and non-metallic mining. Using a multiscalar approach, the study combines spatial, sectoral, and conflict trajectory analyses. The findings reveal that conflicts aiming to halt extractive projects are in the minority; instead, “coexistence conflicts” predominate, where mobilization is directed toward renegotiating economic benefits, compensation, and territorial recognition. Moreover, many conflicts arise in territories without active mining operations, revealing redistributive disputes that transcend the extractive enclave. The study shows that environmental injustice does not necessarily translate into open resistance and that current conflict dynamics reflect unequal and contingent relations that shape modes of integration into the extractive model.

Instituciones: Universidad Nacional de Trujillo