At CIMIT 2024, SMI-ICE-Chile’s General Manager presented the integrated water supply systems tool as a possible way to address water shortage in this important mining region.
CIMIT 2024 “Innovating for a Sustainable Future,” brought together regional authorities, industry leaders, experts from the scientific world and community representatives to learn about the main topics setting the tone for the regional mining sector: water challenges, lithium production and the lithium market, inclusion of women in mining, job opportunities, local talent, mining royalties, etc.
In this context, SMI-ICE-Chile General Manager Francisca Rivero spoke about “Addressing water scarcity by integrating complex systems,” sharing the Centre’s Intelligent Water Supply Systems Tool for Arid Areas with the audience.
“This project, developed three years ago at the request of Mitsubishi Corporation’s Chilean subsidiary, was carried out in the Atacama Region, and we believe that it can offer a differentiating approach and contribute to the sustainable development of the Tarapacá Region,” commented Rivero.
She referred to the challenge that Chilean mining faces in terms of production and sustainability. On the one hand, the energy transition offers a huge opportunity due to the growing demand for critical metals like copper and lithium, where Chile is one of the main global producers. However, producing more requires more water, a very scarce resource in this extremely arid area and, therefore, one of the most critical aspects for processing these key minerals.
Rivero explained how an integrated water supply system could help address this challenge. “Our proposal,” she stated, “uses a water planning tool to optimize the water supply networks, to move towards an integrated system and reduce the excessive consumption of vulnerable water sources in fragile ecosystems.
“This means,” she continued, “moving towards an integrated system, for example, with desalination plants that meet the needs of multiple players. It also means seeking consensus and building shared outlooks based on the diverse interests in the territory. This project brought together mining companies, water use organizations, public-sector agencies and local farming representatives, key actors we surveyed to build differentiated scenarios with water sources and demand nodes, spatial optimization that allows informed decisions to be made regarding the best water supply system based on environmental and economic analysis.
“The interesting thing,” she highlighted, “is that this tool was co-designed and implemented through dialogue with all key actors to build the most solid governance systems possible.
“Through tools like this, we can give water a relevant role in regional planning, given its importance for the mining industry in Chile and particularly in the Tarapacá Region. Furthermore, the tool allows us to generate information beyond what is available today and, above all, to visualize a future with shared infrastructure instead of individual supply.
“The Tarapacá Region has a lot to say about this challenge,” she concluded, “and for us at SMI-ICE-Chile, the next step is to collaborate with the different actors to make this tool a public asset available to all interested parties.”
