Ejido Members "completely shut down" Canadian Mine in Guerrero
mexicosolidarity.com
Carrizalillo community members don't understand why the Mexican government allows the Canadian corporation to continue committing environmental offenses for which Los Filos mine was previously shut down.

This article by Sergio Ocampo originally appeared in the December 12, 2025 edition of La Jornada, Mexico’s premier left wing daily newspaper.

Chilpancingo, Guerrero. Members of the Agrarian Council of the Ejido of Carrizalillo, in the municipality of Eduardo Neri, reported that the assembly decided to “completely close” the Los Filos mine, owned by the Canadian company Equinox Gold, after eight months of remaining in a camp outside the facilities due to not reaching agreements for the continuation of the operation of the deposit, which is located on their lands.

The decision, they said, also involves suspending “the irrigation system of the acidified solution that we have been responsibly managing” to avoid the environmental damage that an acid spill into the Balsas River would cause.

In a letter addressed to the head of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat), Alicia Bárcena; the agrarian attorney Víctor Suárez; the attorney for Environmental Protection, Mariana Boy Tamborrell; and the head of the Coordination Unit for Extractive Activities of the Ministry of Economy, Fernando Aboitiz, they pointed out that they are still waiting for a response in favor of their rights from the federal government and asked to be received by the authorities.

“It is a fact that for the past eight months the company has managed the conflict by making us believe that it is in a negotiation process, which, we have pointed out, offends us because of the deceitful stance with which it treats us. We insist that there are several flagrant and illegal acts of the company’s conduct that we do not understand why they have not been sufficient to bring it to order,” they stated.

They also considered that since there is no action related to the continuity of the project, the firm is obliged to begin the process of rehabilitating its lands, which they assume are activities attached to the mine closure and, they assure, should have begun at the end of March.

“These issues are in the hands of the Ministry of Economy and Semarnat, and we think it is appropriate to ask them if we will agree to this act of justice or not.”

Ejido members from Carrizalillo are still waiting for a favorable response from the federal government

Referring to the closure carried out last October by the Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (PROFEPA) on five areas of said mine – dedicated to the extraction of gold – for having ignored corrective measures imposed since May, the ejido members considered that this decision means that the company “has committed environmental crimes”.

However, they indicated, “the company justifies its failure to address the issues raised by Profepa by citing impediments on our part to its entry, which makes no sense because it can resolve at least three of the issues without entering the ejido and has not done so.”

Regarding the areas “of attention related to entry into our ejido, we have delivered the proposal to both you and the company, which has not been considered by the firm even for discussion.”

They added that the company presented them with an option “where it is clearly observed that, having no legal requirements or consequences from the government for the illegal acts it commits, it has the luxury of offering us handouts… it is a rent of 50 pesos per day per hectare and limits it to a duration of only one month.

“That is to say, it does not even make a proposal to address the remediation according to the schedule of activities for this and the maintenance authorized by PROFEPA, activities that of course cannot be addressed in one month of work.”

The members of the agricultural committee said they did not understand “why the company is allowed to continue committing the environmental offenses for which it was partially shut down and is not sanctioned and permanently closed.”

“We also do not understand why they are not being forced to implement the closure and post-closure program once we have requested it, given the company’s refusal to discuss an agreement for continuity.”

On April 1st, Equinox Gold reported that it indefinitely suspended operations at its Los Filos mine, after the land access agreement it had with the community expired on March 31st.

The transnational company announced in a statement that the long-term agreements with the towns of Carrizalillo, Mezacala and Xochipala were “essential to provide the necessary economic and investment conditions to continue.”

The members of the Agrarian Council of the Carrizalillo ejido announced at the time that they remained open to dialogue to avoid any type of conflict; however, they indicated that the minutes for renewing the lease contracts for their lands used by the mine included a reduction in payments, with which they did not agree.

Carrizalillo Ejido’s Letter to the Mexican Government

Good afternoon, greetings from the Carrizalillo ejido’s agrarian council. We begin by informing you that we have just completed eight months of being camped out due to the lack of agreements regarding the continuation of mining operations at the Los Filos project, operated by Equinox Gold. Since then, we have been awaiting a response from the Mexican government, responsible for regulating this activity, that supports our rights.

It is a fact that for the past eight months the company has managed the conflict by leading us to believe that it is in a negotiation process, which we have pointed out to the company is offensive due to the deceitful stance with which it treats us. We insist that there are several blatant and illegal acts by the company, and we do not understand why these have not been sufficient to bring it to order.

Since there has been no action taken regarding the continuation of the project, the company is obligated to begin the process of rehabilitating our lands. We assume these activities are part of the mine closure and post-closure process, which should have been announced and initiated more than eight months ago. These matters are in the hands of the Ministry of Economy and the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat), and we believe it is appropriate to ask them whether we will comply with this legal action.

The closure of the company signifies that it has committed environmental offenses related to environmental impacts. However, the company’s failure to address the issues identified by Profepa is “justified” by citing obstacles to our access, which makes no sense because at least three of the issues can be resolved without entering the ejido (communal land), and it hasn’t done so. As for the remaining issues, it is the company itself that is preventing us from reaching a solution to the sanction imposed by Profepa.

Regarding the issues related to access to our ejido, we have submitted a proposal to both you and the company, which the company has not even considered for discussion. For its part, the company presented us with a proposal—already shared with you—which clearly demonstrates that, lacking any legal recourse or consequences from the government for its illegal activities, it feels entitled to offer us handouts. The company’s proposal is a rental fee of 50 pesos per day per hectare, limited to a one-month rental period. In other words, it doesn’t even address the remediation work according to the schedule of activities authorized by Profepa (Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection), activities which, of course, cannot be completed in a single month.

We do not understand why the company is allowed to continue committing the environmental violations for which it was partially shut down, instead of being sanctioned and permanently closed. Nor do we understand why it is not being compelled to implement the closure and post-closure program, given our request and the company’s refusal to discuss an agreement for continued operations. In fact, considering the company’s legal non-compliance, we do not know what is preventing the execution of the guarantee (in the amount of money) related to the mine closure and post-closure plan and program, nor why administrative detentions have not been carried out and a contentious administrative lawsuit initiated before the Federal Court of Administrative Justice, now that more than 30 business days have passed since the closure began.

We are informing you that, as of today, our assembly has decided to completely shut down the mine’s operations. This entails closing the acidified solution irrigation system, which we have been responsibly managing to prevent environmental damage. However, if the company is allowed to continue freely violating environmental regulations, we, despite our deep concern for the environment, want to make it clear that it can never supersede our right to life—a right that no agency has forcefully prioritized or recognized as a constitutional obligation.

Given this situation, we feel we cannot continue to stand idly by, passively waiting to see if anything will happen to the impunity with which the company operates. If the company has permission to trample on our human and environmental rights, we believe it is necessary for you to tell us directly so that we can take the appropriate measures. We respectfully request that you make some time this week to meet with us at your offices.

Sincerely,

Mesa Agraria del Ejido de Carrizalillo

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