A farmworker from Cajamarca, Maxima Acuña, won the legal battle against U.S. based Newmont Mining Corporation after…fighting for her land in…Peru. Acuña and her family built their home on property they purchased in 1994. The property sits next to the Blue Lagoon of Celendin and was considered a prime location for a mining project called Conga, under the authority of Newmont, or…[‘Yanacocha’]. Yanacocha began their battle to obtain the land in 2011, when Acuña firmly stood her ground and refused. This Wednesday, the Appeals Court of Justice of Cajamarca ruled in favor of the Cajamarca family, making Acuña a local and international hero. If the court had ruled the case in the favor of Newmont, an open-pit mining project would have left contaminating waste running into the lake and water-ways, a huge empty pit, and mineral resources that leave 70% of its hazardous waste in the process in the environment…