Codelco opens citizen participation for lithium exploration in Salar de Pedernales

The Environmental Assessment Service (SEA) of the Atacama Region notified this Thursday the start of a 20-business-day citizen participation process within the framework of the Environmental Impact Declaration (DIA) of the project “Lithium Exploration and Brine Reinjection Tests at Salar de Pedernales,” whose owner is Codelco. The call was published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile on August 13, 2026, by virtue of exempt resolution No. 202603001100, of August 3, 2026, of the SEA. During that period, any natural or legal person may submit written observations on the project.

The notice, identified with reference CVE 2852139, is signed by Francisco Salinas Herrera, regional director (acting) of the SEA of Atacama, and is framed under article 94 of DS No. 40/2012, of the Ministry of the Environment, Regulation of the Environmental Impact Assessment System, as well as article 30 bis of Law No. 19.300, on General Bases of the Environment.

The Regional Directorate of the SEA estimates that the project generates environmental burden, since it belongs to the type of initiatives that produce social benefits while causing negative environmental externalities in nearby localities during their construction or operation, in accordance with the sixth paragraph of article 30 bis of Law No. 19.300.

What the project consists of

According to the official text, the initiative contemplates mining exploration activities through exploratory drilling and brine pumping and reinjection tests, with the aim of identifying the potential of the lithium resources present in Codelco’s mining properties in the Salar de Pedernales. The project will provide sufficient and relevant information for the study and development of future projects, as well as obtain further background on the geology and hydrogeology of the salar.

Among its main characteristics, the following are indicated:

• 114 drilling platforms.
• Exploratory drilling and brine pumping and reinjection tests.
• Focus on the lithium resources of the owner’s mining properties in the Salar de Pedernales.
• Generation of geological and hydrogeological background for future stages.

Deadline and participation channels

Observations may be submitted in writing to the SEA within 20 business days counted from the publication of the notice, that is, starting on August 13, 2026. The full text of the resolution may be consulted at the following points:

• Regional Directorate of the SEA Atacama, Yerbas Buenas 295 street, Copiapó.
• Website www.sea.gob.cl.

Legal framework of the call

The opening of the process is based on Article 30 bis of Law No. 19.300 and Articles 94 and 95 of Supreme Decree No. 40/2012, which regulate the right of any natural or legal person to submit observations during the environmental assessment of projects that generate social benefits along with negative environmental externalities. The call was notified by the Ministry of the Environment through the Environmental Assessment Service of the Atacama Region.

The citizen participation stage is one of the central instances of the project’s environmental processing, as it allows citizens to learn about the scope of the lithium exploration and submit their comments before the SEA rules on the EID. In a salt flat of high public and environmental interest such as Pedernales, the outcome of this process may condition the development of future lithium projects in the Atacama Region and the management of their impacts on nearby localities.

Source: Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile, No. 44,524, August 13, 2026, Section I (General Rules), p. 1 (official reference: CVE 2852139).