Identification and Prioritization of Sustainability Criteria from Communities near Mining Projects in the Coquimbo Region, Chile

Mining plays a key role in economic development but faces increasing challenges in reconciling sustainability with social expectations in the territories where extractive activities operate. In regions with a strong mining presence, incorporating community perceptions has become essential for guiding sustainable development strategies. However, systematic evidence to prioritize these dimensions at the local level remains limited. In this context, the present study identifies and ranks critical sustainability factors from the perspective of communities located near mining projects in the Coquimbo Region, Chile. To structure the decision problem, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was applied. This multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) method integrates qualitative and quantitative judgments through pairwise comparison matrices processed using Expert Choice software, based on a hierarchical structure of criteria, subcriteria, and decision elements associated with social, economic, and environmental dimensions. The results indicate that the criterion with the highest global priority was “Improvement in health, social cohesion, and quality of life” (36.3%), followed by “Economic development” (20.3%) and “Local development and social participation” (15.7%). Among the most prioritized actions were “Construction of health facilities” (15.5%), “Promote the hiring of local labor” (8.7%), and “Protection and continuous monitoring of aquifers” (6.3%). Sensitivity analysis confirmed the stability of the model, suggesting that the proposed framework can support the systematic incorporation of community perceptions into the planning of mining sustainability strategies.