Compensable ecosystem services will be determined based on technical support from the relevant environmental authority (Art. 7) and would include, for example, erosion and sediment control (Art. 3). The Decree further directs MADS to issue directives regarding the identification, location, and prioritization of these strategic areas (Art. 4), as well as the design and implementation of PES schemes (Art. 9, par 3).
On May 14, 2013, the Ministry of Mining issued Decrees Nos. 933 and 934 (the "Decrees"), regulating the application process for mining concessions and areas excluded from mining concessions. Decree No. 933 provides a mechanism to formally approve the high percentage of mining activity in Colombia that takes place without a mining title. Decree No. 934 gives exclusive control over the location of concessions to Colombia's national mining and environmental authorities and prohibits local governments from making these determinations using routine zoning instruments.
The Decrees partially replace an amendment (Law No. 1382) to Colombia's Mining Law that had been judicially invalidated. Law No. 1382 both prohibited mining on several types of land, including national parks and wetlands designated under the Ramsar list, and expanded the scope of activities for which an environmental impact assessment was required. In 2011, Colombia's Constitutional Court declared Law No. 1382 void on the basis that it violated the constitutional right of indigenous Colombians to consult on legislation affecting land use and resource extraction in areas inhabited by their communities. Recognizing the environmental value of some provisions, however, the Court delayed the revocation of Law No. 1382 for two years.
In national parks: any activity not associated with conservation, recreation, environmental education, and research; any activity which will cause significant deterioration of the environment; and any hunting, fishing, industrial, resource extraction, hospitality, livestock-rearing, or agricultural activities (Art. 3).