Impacts of Extractive Regime on an Andean Ecosystem: Borax Mining and the Spoliation of Yareta in the Ascotán Salt Flat (Chile, 1880-1915)

Abstract

Since the late nineteenth century, the Salar de Ascotán in northern Chile has been transformed into a key borax extraction zone, becoming integrated into global mining circuits following the War of the Pacific (1879–1884). This process unfolded along four main dimensions: (1) postwar territorial reconfiguration; (2) exploitation of natural resources; (3) corporate gains through tax exemptions; and (4) unrestricted access to ecosystems, leading to the devastation of the yareta (Azorella compacta). This case exemplifies a form of ecological subsidiarity, where the unlimited exploitation of ecosystems was redefined to meet the growing global demand for minerals.