- In Chile’s Valparaíso region, researchers say a proposed large-scale open-pit copper mine threatens a recently recorded Andean cat population and its habitat.
- The Vizcachitas project, owned by Los Andes Copper Ltd., is located on a rich copper deposit and has been presented by the company as a solution to help meet the demands of the global green energy transition.
- Government officials and courts have decided the project is compatible with the presence of the Andean cat, while community members and conservationists raise concerns about the potential impacts on this rare feline species.
- The Putaendo municipality and local organizations have requested that the Ministry of Environment in Chile declare the affected area a protected area to safeguard the Andean cat and other endemic species.
Researchers are raising concerns about the creation of a large-scale open-pit copper-molybdenum mine in Chile’s Valparaíso region, which they say will destroy the habitat of the recently recorded population of Andean cat, an endangered species and one of the rarest felines in the Americas. To protect its habitat, members of the affected Putaendo community and local organizations want to declare the site a protected area.
“This particular area has remained virtually untouched by human intervention for a long time,” Arón Cádiz-Véliz, a biologist at the University of Concepción in Chile, told Mongabay over a video call. “It’s also home to a high diversity of flora and fauna, many of which are in danger of extinction.”
The Vizcachitas project, owned by the Canadian company Los Andes Copper Ltd., is located on a rich copper deposit and has been presented by the company as a solution to help meet the demands of the global energy transition. Government officials and courts have decided that the project is compatible with the presence of the Andean cat; however, conservationists remain concerned and continue to highlight issues in the assessment.
The project is located in the Andes Mountains, within the Rocín River Valley, the main hydrological basin of the mountain range, which makes it critical for local flora, fauna and communities, including the Putaendo commune and several newly discovered endemic species, such as the Haplopappus colliguayensis plant species and the Andean cat (Leopardus jacobita).
The Andean cat
The Andean cat was first recorded by researchers using camera traps in the Rocín River Basin on Jan. 30, 2020, according to a paper published in Oryx. Later that year, in October, a local farmer found an Andean cat in a walnut orchard in a rural area of Putaendo, and, several days later, a camera trap once again captured footage of the species in the valley.
“It is clearly a unique species that is a symbol of the Andes Mountain range, and its presence indicates the health of the mountain’s ecosystem,” said Rodrigo Villalobos Aguirre, the director of the NGO Seeking Andean Wild Cats. “It is a rare species with a low population, which also makes it highly sensitive to changes in its habitat.”
Nicolás Lagos Silva, a country co-coordinator for the Andean Cat Alliance (AGA) in Chile, told Mongabay via email that given the cat’s endangered status and its deep cultural significance for many Andean communities that consider it sacred, the discovery of the species near Putaendo was highly significant. “Conserving the Rocín population is crucial to help maintain connectivity and genetic exchange between other populations of the species located farther north and south of this region,” he said.
According to Cádiz-Véliz, mining will affect one of the mountain cat’s food sources. “The mining company is trying to establish operations in an area with a high presence of vizcachas [Lagidium viscacia], mammals that are the main food source for the Andean cat,” he said. “So, if this entire area is affected, it will obviously directly impact the Andean cat populations that feed on this species.”
After the cat’s population was recorded in 2021, researchers submitted a report to the country’s Ministry of Environment about the potential risks the mining project poses to the species. This led to a preliminary injunction on March 18, 2022, that suspended the company’s drilling program for a year. However, the company was able to resume operations on July 20, 2022, subject to certain conditions, after the court decided the project was compatible with the presence of the species.
Cádiz-Véliz told Mongabay that the Putaendo community, along with municipal authorities, has filed legal claims against the Environmental Assessment Service (SEA) and environmental courts, alleging that the company should have submitted its project under an Environmental Impact Study (EIA), which is more comprehensive than the company’s current Environmental Impact Declaration (DIA). This is because the affected area includes a recently recorded population, species threatened with extinction and a high level of endemic flora and fauna.
“The purpose of conducting these assessments before any development begins is crucial: if a species of high conservation value like the Andean cat is found, authorities can require the company to modify its plans, implement specific monitoring programs, or establish compensation, restoration, or mitigation measures to ensure the species is not harmed by the project,” Lagos said.
On April 17, 2017, several individuals and the Putaendo municipality also filed charges against the company. Mauricio Antonio Quiroz Chamorro, Putaendo’s mayor, told Mongabay via WhatsApp that when Los Andes Copper first arrived, it carried out unauthorized drilling and water withdrawals, which, according to denunciations by individuals, included in a claims report by the Environmental Superintendency, impacted the habitat of native flora and fauna and altered the area’s waterways.
Los Andes Copper and the Ministry of Environment in Chile did not respond to Mongabay’s requests for comment by the time of publication.
However, on Oct. 9, 2025, an environmental court rejected six claims filed against the approval of the company’s Las Tejas pre-feasibility mining drilling project, which means it can begin mining prospecting activities. The allegations relate to deficiencies in the analysis of potential impacts on water resources, flora, fauna (including the Andean cat), the lifestyles and customs of local people and other related issues.
As the court rejected the six claims, concluding that the company’s environmental declaration was conducted appropriately and the community’s concerns were duly considered, it has given the company permission to drill 350 holes across 73 new platforms and 51 preexisting platforms over the next two years.
Still, researchers, local organizations and Putaendo residents say they are concerned about the risk that mining will have on the area’s endemic species, the Rocín River Basin and the area’s glaciers.
To protect the Andean cat and other endemic species, the Putaendo municipality and local organizations have requested that the area be declared a protected area under the legal status of a Multiple-Use Conservation Area (ACMU). The proposal aims to protect the Putaendo mountain range’s water network, including the Rocín River, its tributaries, wetlands and other bodies of water, covering a minimum area of 248 hectares (613 acres).
Banner image: The Andean cat (Leopardus jacobita), an endangered species and one of the rarest felines in the Americas, in the central Andes of Chile. Image courtesy of Rodrigo Villalobos.
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Citations:
García, N., Cádiz-Véliz, A., Villalobos, M., & Morales, V. (2024). Taxonomic novelties in Haplopappus (Asteraceae, Astereae) from Chile. PhytoKeys, 237, 201-218. doi:10.3897/phytokeys.237.114461
Silva, B. S., Vargas S. P., Sapaj-Aguilera, G, Riffo R.P. (2021). New records of the Andean cat in central Chile—a challenge for conservation. Oryx, 55(3):331-331. doi:10.1017/S0030605321000181
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