The Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Patricia Orantes, reported that 27 environmental licenses have been annulled in Guatemala, in addition to the filing of 208 complaints with the Public Ministry (MP) related to environmental crimes.
The information was provided during the press conference “La Ronda” this Monday, July 6, where the Guatemalan official presented a reorganization of the ministry aimed at curbing environmental impunity, accelerating the evaluation of investments, and tightening control over permits that, as she explained, had been granted without meeting requirements or used improperly.
According to the Minister, the ministry has submitted 208 complaints for environmental crimes and reported a 380% increase in inspections of the public and private sectors to verify compliance with the obligations included in the licenses.
Orantes maintained that this is the first time, since the ministry’s founding, that environmental licenses have been suspended or canceled under these conditions. The 27 annulled licenses are equivalent to 0.1% of the total issued by the institution.
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High-impact projects
The minister stated that the ministry reduced the analysis and approval times for projects with high environmental impact by 60%. While in 2023 the process could take up to 180 days, it is now resolved in an average of 84 days, nine above the legal deadline.
The Minister of Environment, Patricia Orantes, participated in the press conference La Ronda held this Monday, July 6, at the National Palace of Culture.
For low-impact licenses, the reduction reaches 80%. In those cases, the process is completed two days before the five-day legal limit.
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Orantes presented this reduction in times as part of a change in the management model. According to him, the goal is to combine transparency, agility, and compliance with the law in environmental authorization processes.
The minister also rejected criticisms regarding an alleged exclusion of projects due to the tightening of standards. She assured that the opposite occurred: environmental compliance increased and license applications grew by 18% from 2023 to 2024, with an additional projection of 13% from 2024 to 2025.
That increase, he added, is also reflected in licenses linked to chemical products and hazardous substances. In that segment, demand rose by up to 50%.
More inspections and resolved cases
Orantes stated that one of the ministry’s priorities is to ensure an environment free of corruption. In that vein, he noted that today there are 25 times more reports of corruption than in the previous administration, a figure he interpreted as a sign of the institutional effort to eradicate irregular practices in internal processes.
The official maintained that the environmental licensing system was found in a state of abandonment and instrumentalization, but that it is now being sought to be converted into an effective tool for the protection of nature. Mining is one of the social triggers in community sectors of Guatemala.
“We focus on protecting our natural heritage and the citizen’s right to a healthy environment, mainly through three axes of action: combating environmental impunity, facilitating both public and private investment, and making management transparent to eradicate corruption,” explained Orantes.
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In the balance presented, the minister also indicated that inspections derived from citizen complaints rose 217%. At the same time, resolved complaints increased 300% compared to previous periods.
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According to Orantes, that greater responsiveness increased the population’s trust in the institution to the point of tripling it. According to his explanation, that improvement produced a greater flow of complaints and citizen feedback.
The minister summarized the portfolio’s mandate as the pursuit of ecological balance and the prevention of pollution. She also stressed that the institution operates with barely 1% of the Ministry of Education’s budget, although she stated that results are already being observed from new measures and more rigorous environmental control.
As a synthesis of the change he is trying to promote, Orantes stated: “Instead of operating informally, without environmental permits, individuals and companies are regularizing themselves and participating more actively”.
