Last week, El Salvador became the first country to ban all metal mining activities nationwide. The bill passed in a unanimous vote. The new law places an immediate and permanent ban on all metal mining, including exploratory activities, barring a two-year transition period for small-scale artisanal gold mines. The law is the culmination of years of campaigning and local action and of a 9-year moratorium on mining. In 2008, El Salvador denied a permit to El Dorado (now a subsidiary of OceanaGold), which then sued the country and lost. It is now expected that attention will be turned to pressure OceanaGold to pay the millions awarded to El Salvador in legal costs. For the full story, see https://news.mongabay.com/2017/03/el-salvador-becomes-first-country-to-…