The Chamber of Deputies approved the reform of the Glacier Law with 137 positive votes

The Chamber of Deputies approved the reform of the Glacier Law with 137 votes in favor, 111 against and 3 abstentions, in a key vote for the country's productive direction. The initiative, promoted by the Government of Javier Milei and backed by the governors of mining provinces, updates regulations in force since 2010 that for years generated legal obstacles and uncertainty for the

development of strategic investments.

The law redefines which areas should be protected under specific technical criteria, limiting the category to those glaciers and periglacial zones that perform an effective water function. In this way, the ambiguity of the past law, which had indiscriminately extended restrictions, is abandoned, even in territories with no real impact on

the water system.

One of the main axes of the reform is the strengthening of federalism. Based on the new regulations, the provinces —constitutional owners of natural resources—will be responsible for determining, based on technical-scientific studies, which areas should be protected and which can be used for productive activities.

Within this framework, the possibility of carrying out mining and hydrocarbon activities in periglacial zones that do not function as testable water regulators is enabled. However, the law maintains strict restrictions in areas identified as sensitive, where the exploitation, pollution and installation of industrial infrastructure continue to be prohibited

.

In addition, all activities will be subject to Environmental Impact Assessments, which reinforce controls and ensure that any productive development is carried out under clear environmental standards. The reform also updates the functioning of the National Glacier Inventory, which must be reviewed every five years with information provided by the provinces to improve

its accuracy.

The ruling party maintains that the initiative does not imply environmental flexibility, but rather a correction of a rule that, under broad interpretations, ended up blocking million-dollar investments in key regions such as the north and Cuyo. In particular, projects related to copper and lithium had been paralyzed by the lack of clear definitions

.

The debate also exposed the resistance of environmental and left-wing sectors, who in the last few hours staged protests in front of Congress

, including acts of vandalism.

With this amendment, Argentina seeks to align its legislation with international standards, effectively protect water resources and, at the same time, enable the development of strategic sectors that can generate employment, exports and foreign exchange income.