This was confirmed by the testimony given by the representative of the local territories and member of the group of monitors, Vicente Ferreyra. He acknowledged that, during the two years of the process, there were tense moments of discussion with the company, which "respected the position of our people" and recalled that there were strong warnings for employees of the contractors, some of whom were also removed. This even included members of the Guaraní communities, because "we cannot allow them not to comply with the rules."
The results were positive and beyond the circumstantial problems that occurred, there was coordination at different levels and "today I can say that we started well, we ended well," said the leader, who highlighted the respect for the territory and the customs and traditions of the Guaraní nation.
Diego Román, Director of the Bolivia Business Unit, highlights that the success of this process reflects the way our company acts, framed in policies and standards that emphasise establishing long-term relationships with the community and detecting and mitigating risks constantly in a process of due diligence.
Marco Mendoza, one of the heads of the study, highlighted the degree of participation of the Guaraní community and the company's respect for its representative organisations. "It has been shown here that dialogue is possible and that it is possible to work without confrontation. It is a recognition of the indigenous peoples and the participation of women in this process must be highlighted," he said. He is also convinced that this type of practice is a path to business sustainability.
Community training for young people
The socio-environmental monitoring included representatives—mostly young people—from five regional capitanías, who were previously trained to carry out an adequate technical task, aimed at monitoring compliance with the commitments made by the company at the time of the project's formulation.
Lorena Terrazas affirmed that this experience strengthens the organisational capacity of the communities and the involvement of new actors who become leaders, whose contribution with local vision and monitoring allows corrective elements to be introduced and ensures these projects are implemented, mitigating their environmental impact.
The fieldwork began in 2013 and concluded in 2015. At the end of the seismic work, the process was closed and a certificate of conformity was signed by the CCCH, after the monitors corroborated that the company complied with the remediation work and the necessary actions to mitigate the impact of an extractive activity that allowed new horizons of development to be visualized in the Caipipendi Contract Area.
Today, indigenous socio-environmental monitoring is a standard practice of the CCCH and Repsol is extending it to the municipalities. In addition, the company's experience serves as the basis for a manual that is being developed for the sector.