ABSTRACT
This chapter introduces the context and debates around large-scale mining, focusing on four aspects: colonial continuities, technological innovation, legal pluralism and corporate social responsibility, and socio-environmental impacts. It presents the two case studies: the Mopani Copper Mines in Zambia and the proposed Tampakan copper-gold mine in the Philippines, both owned by the Swiss company Glencore/Xstrata. The chapter considers the histories of colonial resource exploitation, the characteristics of the affected ecosystems and the local population, as well as the institutional context prior to a given investment. It illustrates two very different ways in which power coalitions between states and corporations, local populations and international campaigns can influence local common-pool resources (CPR) management. The degradation of CPRs in the mining areas increases the pressure on fisheries and wildlife from migrants seeking an income in other regions, including the ecologically sensitive Kafue floodplains.
