Since the beginning of June, hundreds of people, mostly children, have gotten drunk in the Chilean cities of Quintero and Puchuncaví. The reason: pollution from local industries. The drama is nothing new: many cases of poisoning have been reported in this region known as Chile’s Chernobyl.

(17) On Friday, Codelco, one of the largest companies in the region, announced that it will close its copper smelter due to a recent gas leak. Between 6 and 8 June, 105 cases of poisoning were recorded in this area, about 140 km from the Chilean capital.

The victims, most of whom were children, had a variety of symptoms: dizziness, headaches, breathing problems, burning eyes, and nausea. The origin is at the peak of the sulfur dioxide concentration in the air, which occurred on the morning of June 6. The incident caused schools to be closed for days.

A week later, new poisonings were reported in Quintero. According to the mayor, about 260 children were hospitalized on 15 June. The next day, the local press reported 20 more cases.

The problem is repeated in this region with a population of approximately 50,000. In 2018, more than 1,700 people in the industrial park area sought health care due to poisoning.

The area is home to coal-fired power plants, copper and oil refineries, and chemical factories. The high levels of pollution emitted by these industries have given rise to the nickname “Chilean Chernobyl”, given by Greenpeace to one of Chile’s five environmental “victim sites”.

child victims

Gladys Olivares, 56, a teacher at a school in Puchuncaví, says that on June 6, ten of her students fell ill with headaches, stomachaches and dizziness during class.

“I had a headache too. I told the principal, but they were not taken to the ER because they could take care of the most serious cases there. In the end, the school was closed for three days,” Olivares recalls.

The teacher, who has lived in the city for 24 years, says that children are used to experiencing the symptoms of poisoning as a part of their daily lives.

“The children here have a lot of headaches, but they get used to it. They only complain when they feel very bad, for example when they vomit. On the other hand, some of them have cognitive problems such as intellectual disability or learning difficulties.

He said that adults are not free from the consequences of exposure to pollution.

“Many of them suffer from high blood pressure. I have kidney problems, chronic rhinitis, allergies, and I had to have it removed because I had an ovary. One of my 54-year-old colleagues died of cancer in December. He did the tests in 2011 when we went, he had less heavy metals in his blood than I did. But we all quit, we know we’re going to die of cancer. The industries here make money at the expense of our health”, Gladys Olivares .

The copper factory will be closed

For years, residents and local officials have condemned pollution in the area and the failure of the government to take action to reduce it. But this Friday (17), the region received good news about pollution: and state company Codelco, the world’s largest producer of copper, announced the closure of a smelter located in “Chernobyl of Chile.”

“We don’t want any more victims (environmental) areas. Today, hundreds of thousands of Chileans live in our country who suffer the severe environmental degradation we have caused or consented to. [isso] It embarrasses me,” said Chilean President Gabriel Boric.

Boric said Codelco’s decision was made “in light of repeated cases of poisoning that occurred in the foundry operation”.

But the news was badly received by workers and unions, who feared unemployment.

Boric assured the foundry’s 350 employees from Santiago that all employees had to move from the foundry to other positions. But unions at the state-owned company announced on Saturday that they are “preparing” for a national strike.

“Our movement will continue as long as the government and Codelco board insist on closing Ventanas and authorize resources for the continuity of Codelco foundries as competitive and sustainable units,” the Copper Workers’ Federation said in a statement.

with incoming information Chloe Lauvergniergives France24