Argentina’s Congress passed legislation on Thursday that relaxes regulations protecting glaciers, a move aimed at encouraging mining investments but drawing sharp criticism from environmental groups. The bill, championed by President Javier Milei, was approved in the lower house with 137 votes in favor, 111 against, and three abstentions, following Senate approval in February. Milei is expected to sign the measure into law in the coming days.

The new legal framework reduces protections for glaciers and adjacent periglacial areas—frozen ground that helps regulate water flow—allowing for expanded mining activities targeting copper, gold, silver, and other metals. Mining sector representatives estimate that the regulatory changes could attract more than $30 billion in investments over the next decade, with around 70% earmarked for new metal extraction projects.

President Milei and his party have endorsed the reform as a “significant improvement” that balances environmental concerns with economic development. In a statement shared on his social media account, Milei emphasized the need to move away from policies that previously hindered investment, job creation, and growth.

However, the legislation has prompted a strong backlash from environmental organizations, which announced plans to challenge the law through the courts. Groups such as Greenpeace and the Environment and Natural Resources Foundation criticized the legislative process, arguing that lawmakers disregarded public concerns about potential water contamination and ecosystem damage. They have called for citizens to join a public class-action lawsuit, contending that the reforms threaten water access and the fragile ecosystems surrounding Argentina’s glaciers.

Opposition legislators also decried the law as unconstitutional, asserting that it undermines crucial environmental protections. They point to Argentina’s 2010 glacier protection law, which imposed a comprehensive ban on mining activities in glacier and periglacial zones to safeguard water resources and fragile habitats. The current reform narrows those protections by reserving conservation measures only for glaciers and landforms with “specific hydrological functions,” leaving individual provinces responsible for determining which areas qualify.

Argentina is home to close to 17,000 glaciers, spanning over 3,200 square miles across the Andes and South Atlantic islands. Experts warn that climate change is accelerating glacier retreat, heightening concerns that loosening protections could jeopardize water security in the country’s arid regions and threaten the steady supply that sustains vital river systems. Scientists emphasize that glaciers act as natural reservoirs, and weakening safeguards may exacerbate risks to water availability long term.

The evolving legal landscape highlights ongoing tensions between economic interests tied to mining and the imperative to protect critical environmental resources in a region vulnerable to climate impacts.