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La Oroya, Peru
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Site Description
La Oroya is a city of 30,000 in the Central Andean region of Peru, about 109 miles from the capital, Lima. Though the location brings to mind images of pristine mountain vistas, La Oroya is actually a gritty industrial town that sprang up around a complex of metallurgical plants. For this reason, the city center is just footsteps away from the smelter, and pollution is a fact of life.
The La Oroya production facilities were built in 1922. They then went through a complicated process of nationalization and subsequent privatization, with ownership changing hands several times. This turbulent history has made remediation of the area more difficult because there are few clearly defined stakeholders for the environmental contamination. Currently, the site is owned by Doe Run Peru, a subsidiary of a U.S.-based company. At the time of the purchase in 1997, Doe Run agreed to modernize the plants and bring emissions down to acceptable levels by 2006. In February 2004, the company requested a five-year extension on its obligations.
There are three main processing plants: a copper circuit, a lead circuit, and a zinc circuit. La Oroya also produces 36 million ounces of silver a year. Many of the steps involved in smelting and refining these metals generate large amounts of toxic byproducts, such as sulphur dioxide, lead, arsenic, cadmium, and antimony. These substances contaminate air and soil during the manufacturing process, and also pollute water via industrial effluents and contaminated rainwater.
Limited testing has revealed lead, arsenic and cadmium soil contamination throughout the town. Numerous studies have been carried out to assess the levels and sources of lead and other metals still being deposited in La Oroya. However, all of these studies were focused on outdoor contamination.
Plant workers are exposed to the toxic pollutants by breathing the air and dust while at work. Other residents are affected through dust and contaminated water and food. Children are particularly susceptible because they are more likely to play in soil and put their hands in their mouths without washing.
A study commissioned by Doe Run Peru in 2000-2001 showed the average lead levels in the blood of 1,198 residents were 2.5 times above World Health Organization limits (38.7 micrograms/deciliter in La Oroya versus 10 micrograms/deciliter). An earlier study commissioned by the Ministry of Health showed that 99 percent of 346 children studied had lead poisoning, and 67 percent had lead levels so high that they should have been medically treated..
Both animal and human studies have demonstrated that lead can impair learning and behavior in children and adults as it affects the nervous system -- even at low levels. Neurological symptoms have been reported in workers with blood lead levels of 40 to 60 micrograms/deciliter (ug/dl), and it is known to cause slower nerve conduction in peripheral nerves in adults at blood lead levels in the range of 30 to 40 ug/dl.
Children are more sensitive than adults to adverse health effects of lead. Blood lead in concentrations of between 5 and 10 ug/dl are associated with neurobehavioral problems, hearing impairments, and inhibited hemoglobin synthesis in children. Blood lead levels of 10-20 ug/dl have been shown to result in a 4 to 5 point decrease in IQ tests and changes in children’s brain activity. Neurotoxin effects of lead are a great concern because they are irreversible even after blood lead levels are reduced. Death from lead poisoning may occur in children who have blood lead levels greater than 100 ug/dl.
Blacksmith Institute's support, in technical cooperation with Occupational Knowledge International (OK International), enabled our partners at the Asociación Civil Labor to address gaps in the existing site assessments. Asociacioón Civil Labor tested indoor lead dust levels to determine lead contamination in over 40 homes and one school. Approximately 85 percent of the homes tested exceeded the US EPA acceptable dust lead levels and many were 10 times the standard.
