On February 26, Ecuador’s National Assembly passed the “Organic Law for the Strengthening of the Strategic Mining and Energy Sectors” by a narrow 77–70 vote. In force since March 2, the law fundamentally changes the environmental-licensing regime for mining projects, and environmental and Indigenous organizations are pushing back hard.
What changed
The central change replaces the “environmental license” — a permit granted after detailed review — with a “simplified authorization” (autorización simplificada). The environmental-impact-assessment window shrinks from 18–24 months to 12–15. Critics call it a hollowing-out of environmental review in all but name. In an Ecuador rich in silver, lithium and copper, the government’s aim to accelerate foreign investment is explicit: it labels mining a “strategic sector.”
An IMF arrangement in the background
What pushed the reform along is Ecuador’s arrangement with the IMF. To break excessive dependence on oil revenue, expanding mining investment and output is explicitly required. The clash between a government prioritizing fiscal stability and a civil society defending environmental protection and Indigenous rights surfaced all at once with this law. That the vote came down to just seven margin speaks to how divided the assembly is.
The cost the Galápagos and Indigenous peoples pay
The environmental NGO Amazon Frontlines warns the new law reaches Indigenous territories in the Amazon basin and the waters around the Galápagos. Replacing the license with a simplified authorization risks more permits issued without independent checks, and the Galápagos — a UNESCO World Heritage site — is not explicitly exempted. In neighboring Peru’s Madre de Dios, mining-driven deforestation rose 62% between 2020 and 2025. Whether review is being “made faster” or “neutralized” is a question decided less by the text than by how it is applied — and the answer is still to come.
Whether you “speed up” environmental review or “neutralize” it, the difference is razor-thin.
References
- Amazon Frontlines — amazonfrontlines.org
- Business & Human Rights Resource Centre — business-humanrights.org
- Peoples Dispatch — peoplesdispatch.org
- Ecuador Brief — ecuadorbrief.com
※ This article is the author’s commentary based on public information. Please confirm the latest figures, dates and procedures with governments and primary sources. Quotations are kept minimal and sources are cited.