A thousand people protest against the presence of the Israeli company ICL in Bages

BarcelonaThe residents of Bages have organized this weekend to demand that the company ICL –Israel Chemicals Limited– leave the territory. A thousand people spent the night in a camp in Callús as part of a mobilization driven by Revoltes de la Terra to denounce the environmental and social impact of this company that has been exploiting the region's salt mines since 1998. The intention is to stay for the entire weekend.

The organizers held workshops and talks, as well as a slow march. In the afternoon, however, actions intensified when a group of activists dismantled sections of the train tracks that transport material from the Súria mine to the port of Barcelona. In parallel, a thousand people also occupied the salt heap of El Cogulló, in Sallent. This is the second major mobilization by Revoltes de la Terra in a year, following the encampment in Mont-roig del Camp against the project for an electric battery factory.

The protest days aim to place the environmental and social conflict arising from mining at the center of the debate. According to the organizers, mountains of salt heaps continue to accumulate despite court rulings ordering their restoration, and they warn that this is causing the salinization of the river. The action also aims to denounce ICL's ties with Israel and defend the Palestinian people. La Júlia, spokesperson for Revoltes de la Terra, explained in statements to ACN that the mobilization aims to "make manifest a latent conflict in Bages that has been silenced and normalized" and make it "uncomfortable" to force changes. According to her, the objective is to stop what they consider "an environmental disaster" resulting from mining activity.

Call for boycott

The organizers defend that the meeting aims to mark a turning point: "Enough with polluting the territory," said the spokesperson, who also linked the protest to the denunciation of business relations with Israel and called for "taking action" through measures such as boycotts.

This Saturday, parades were called from Sallent and Santpedor – in tribute to local ecological struggles –, as well as a march on the C-16 that included about twenty cars and bicycles. The organization highlighted the turnout, with people coming from all over Catalan territory and abroad. A thousand people camped in Callús, but more people joined throughout the day, so the organization estimates that, in total, more than 3,000 people participated.

The multinational ICL, one of the main companies in Central Catalonia, was known for many years as Iberpotash. It later adopted the name of the parent company based in Tel Aviv. However, mining activity in the area dates back more than a century, when the mines were state-owned. In 2020, the Sallent mine closed, and since then, activity has been concentrated in Súria, at the Cabanasses mine. Currently, this operation employs about 1,100 direct workers and nearly 3,000 indirect ones. The company annually markets around 1.4 million tons of salt – intended for both industrial uses and de-icing – and one million tons of potash for fertilizers, which it exports through the port of Barcelona, where it has its own terminal.

Mining activity has run parallel to several legal proceedings and convictions for environmental offenses, especially related to the salinization of aquifers and rivers.