What happened on October 8 and 9 in Ecuador’s Río Blanco area was not entirely unexpected. On August 12, a group of inhabitants decided to take “de facto” measures — such as setting up a tent at the entrance of Junefield mining company’s camp — with the goal of stopping the beginning of the exploitation of copper and gold reserves in the mountains in southern Ecuador’s Azuay Province. For two months they occupied the area, despite the growing tension between them and the miners. It was a situation that could explode at any moment. During the cold night of October 8 and into October 9, this tension came to a head, with allegations from both sides of attacks. Members of the community say that for 24 hours, they were harassed by the mining company’s private guards, as well as the police, who were in the area with the goal of preventing clashes. “They threw stones at our roofs; it was a permanent harassment,” said one of the protesters in a video posted to social media, showing images of the dwellings that were affected. The mining company also claims its people were attacked with stones. The Secretary of the Interior, César Navas, posted photos on social media of two injured police officers. An operation to quell the violence began immediately, and two inhabitants of Río Blanco were arrested. The community members say that one of them is a minor. The Public Ministry of Ecuador is currently investigating the incident. All of this is occurring at a decisive moment for the Río Blanco mining project. A source of controversy for a decade due to its location in the páramos – restricted, alpine ecosystems that exist above the tree-line but below the permanent snowline – critics worry about the project’s potential effects on the water sources that supply rivers in the region. This controversy has grown in the past year, with the extraction of gold and silver reserves set to begin by the end of 2017. Divided opinions Some adjacent communities support the project. “If you go towards Río Blanco, be careful. Those people are violent,” said a man who worked on the construction of a house in the middle of the páramos in the Cochapamba community, 3,200 meters above sea level. He interrupted his work to tell Mongabay Latam that “they are the people who don’t let us work. They make problems for mining. They’re hurting us.” In August, there was an alleged episode of violence around the mining camp, for which the Public Ministry received a complaint from the mining company’s representatives. After that, a woman from the community was injured near the mining camp. For the most part, mining activity is supported by residents of the community of Cochapamba but rejected in Río Blanco. Photo by Marlon Puertas The journey to the Río Blanco community —which belongs to the parish of Molleturo in the Cuenca administrative region — is reminiscent of times when mules were the only mode of transportation. There’s a narrow dirt road, which sits at the foot of a mountain on one side with a steep cliff on the other. The road is sprinkled with stones, natural obstacles which, combined with the fog, slow down the journey. On a detour that links the port city of Guayaquil to Cuenca, the journey is around 12 kilometers (7.5 miles). On the way to Río Blanco, messages criticising the mining project are written on rocks in the mountains. Photo by Marlon Puertas Cochapamba is both in the middle of this route and in the middle of the controversy. Here, community members largely support the Chinese-owned mining company. They have a striking difference in opinion with the community members of Río Blanco, who mostly oppose the company. During discussions between the mining company and area residents, a group of people from Río Blanco told Mongabay Latam that they received job offers, offers for public works, and offers for basic public services. The community members say that these offers never materialized, and they now demand that the company leave the area. According to Río Blanco resident Rubén Durazno, “they offered us health centers, services. Even the doctors didn’t show up.” Magdalena Fajardo adds that “they even painted the sky to convince us. Time passed, and nothing.” The páramos of Río Blanco is more than 3,000 meters above sea level. Photo by Marlon Puerta At least a dozen rural community members expressed their concerns to Mongabay Latam during a visit to the area. Among them was Rubén Cortés, who explained that they fundamentally depend on their crops in the area. “We sow, we eat it ourselves, and we can’t sell it because it’s difficult to transport,” Cortés said. “The water comes from the mountain, and right now it’s drying out. Seventy percent is already dry, the roads already opened up, we closed our eyes to the water, and then the animals drank the water from the natural springs; before, there was a single pocket of water, about four years ago, now it’s still there but it’s still only a little. Eight months ago, the situation became more intense. The mine entrance is already open; the tunnel is already made.” Cortés said that for a time, Río Blanco community members worked for the mining project. “Now we don’t want anything,” he said. “The community already woke up, and the resistance will continue because they lied to us. They said there wouldn’t be contamination and there is, and now we’ve realized it. We went to other mines to see how they are, and there isn’t any mine that isn’t harmful.” The Río Blanco community is about 3,555 meters above sea level and lacks some basic services. The water consumed there comes from natural sources. Photo by Marlon Puertas Several rural community members, including Tomás Guamán, say that mining has divided the people in the area. “I have seen so many injustices, many conflicts between families. Instead of socializing, they come to make everybody fight,” Guamán said. Juan Criollo said they will continue with their cause: “Mining isn’t convenient. Where are future generations going to live? Because of this, we ask for support. Not all is well. They offer work, money, gold; but we want our freedom, our nature.” The community members claim that the fighting isn’t just between them, but also includes other Ecuadorians, especially those who live on the coast and receive water from the páramos. “We’re fighting for everyone,” said local resident Mónica Durango. The Vice Governor of Azuay, Cecilia Alvarado, claimed that what is occurring in Río Blanco isn’t an isolated incident, but rather an international strategy that mining companies use wherever they operate. “The companies harass the villages, and then they end up saying that the community is the criminal,” Alvarado said during the Public Hearing of the Páramos, a meeting promoted by the organization Ecological Action. The meeting was held on October 12 in Cuenca, and included representatives from communities, civil organizations, and authorities to try to solve the problems in Azuay Province. While the central government granted the concessions, local and regional governments like the municipality of Cuenca and the province of Azuay have issued resolutions against the mining. This was because they said that mining in the páramos would imply the contamination of the water sources that supply water to the nearby cities. The province of Azuay banned metalic mining in the páramos in October 2016, and the municipality of Cuenca did the same in January 2017 during a political campaign. For Rafael Correa’s administration — which lasted until May 24 — and for that of current president Lenin Moreno, these bans don’t come with any legal obligation. “[The mayor of Cuenca, Marcelo Cabrera] knows that he doesn’t have constitutional abilities and that mining is already prohibited near water sources,” Correa said shortly after the municipal resolution. A history of exploitation Mining in Río Blanco is not a new problem. In 1998, the International Minerals Corporation (IMC) began feasibility studies that were concluded in 2006 and later updated in 2009. According government figures from August 2016, the project would generate about $200 million for the State.