PRESENTACIÓN DE AMICUS CURIAE

This amicus curiae brief, submitted by AIDA, CIEL, and Earthjustice to the Supreme Court of Justice of Panama, argues that the approval of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the Barro Blanco Hydroelectric Project violated international human rights and environmental standards. The brief contends that the State of Panama failed to conduct an adequate consultation process, failed to obtain the free, prior, and informed consent of the Ngäbe people, and approved an incomplete and improperly supervised EIA.

• The Barro Blanco Hydroelectric Project, developed by Generadora del Istmo S.A. (GENISA) on the Tabasará River, is expected to cause irreversible changes to the Ngäbe-Buglé comarca, including the flooding of homes, schools, and cultural sites, and the forced relocation of indigenous families.
• The public consultation process for the project was inadequate because it consisted of a single forum held on February 8, 2008, which was conducted only in Spanish despite the presence of Ngäbe and Buglé people whose native language is not Spanish.
• The consultation forum was physically inaccessible to many affected persons, as it was held in the district of Tolé, approximately 50 kilometers (about two hours' travel) from the Comarca, despite recommendations from the ANAM Regional Administration of Chiriquí to hold a forum within the Comarcal area.
• The State of Panama failed to obtain the free, prior, and informed consent of the Ngäbe people, which is required under international law for large-scale projects that have a profound impact on indigenous territories and resources or involve the displacement of communities.
• The approved EIA was deficient because it did not provide sufficient information on the areas adjacent to the Ngäbe-Buglé Comarca, leading to an insufficient analysis of environmental and social impacts and differentiated risks for those areas.
• The approval process for the EIA was marred by procedural irregularities, including the acceptance of unsolicited complementary information from GENISA and the failure of the ANAM to grant Sectoral Environmental Units (UAS) the legal timeframe to submit observations.
• The brief asserts that the State of Panama is the ultimate party responsible for ensuring the right to consultation and cannot delegate this duty to a private company like GENISA.
• The project's impact on the Tabasará River basin threatens the subsistence of indigenous and peasant communities who rely on alluvial soils along the river for their economy.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (n.d.). PRESENTACIÓN DE AMICUS CURIAE. https://www.ciel.org/Publications/BarroBlanco_Amicus_29Aug2013.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. PRESENTACIÓN DE AMICUS CURIAE. n.d. https://www.ciel.org/Publications/BarroBlanco_Amicus_29Aug2013.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=PRESENTACIÓN DE AMICUS CURIAE |url=https://www.ciel.org/Publications/BarroBlanco_Amicus_29Aug2013.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{centerforinternationalenvironmentallawndpresentacin, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{PRESENTACIÓN DE AMICUS CURIAE}}, publisher = {Center for International Environmental Law}, url = {https://www.ciel.org/Publications/BarroBlanco_Amicus_29Aug2013.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }