Human Rights

March 21 2007 Toxic Pollution, Human Rights

AIDA and Participating Organizations Submit La Oroya Petition to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 21, 2007 Press s: Astrid Puentes, AIDA (+5255) 52120141 [email protected] Luis Eduardo Cisneros (+511) 422-2720 [email protected] Martin Wagner (510) 550-6700 [email protected] Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to Examine Responsibility for Violations at La Oroya, Peru Children breathe sulfur dioxide pollution at 300 times level permitted by WHO Lima, Peru, Washington, D.C. — Public health and environmental organizations from throughout the Western Hemisphere today announced the filing of a petition with the human rights division of the Organization of American States in Washington, D.C. The petition accuses the Peruvian government of doing little to halt contamination from a metallurgical complex that is impacting the lives and health of the citizens of La Oroya, Peru. The petition’s filing was announced at a press conference in Lima, Peru this morning by Carlos Chirinos of the Sociedad Peruana de Derecho Ambiental (SPDA), Astrid Puentes of the Interamerican Association Environmental Defense (AIDA), Earthjustice, and the Centro de Derechos Humanos y Ambiente (CEDHA). The petition claims the Peruvian government failed to place pollution controls on the metallurgical complex that operates in La Oroya, a situation that tramples on the human rights of the town’s citizens. Located in the city of La Oroya, some 175 kms from Lima, the complex has been operating for 80 years. Doe Run Peru, a subsidiary of Doe Run Company of St. Louis, Missouri, USA owns the complex. Recent monitoring of air quality – performed by Doe Run itself – has shown that daily average sulfur dioxide levels are between 80 and 300 times the maximum level permitted by the World Health Organization. The Blacksmith Institute even declared the city of La Oroya one of the Top Ten Most Polluted cities in the world. The petition asks the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to recommend that the Peruvian government implement urgent measures to halt the grave violations against the health and lives of the citizens of La Oroya. Learn more about the conditions in La Oroya by watching a short film: http://www.youtube.com/v/gY6WXa9aKrM More Background http://www.aida-americas.noticiadealagoaida-americas.noticiadealagoas.com/en/project/doerun_en Read a copy of the petition here (in Spanish).

November 21 2005 Human Rights, Toxic Pollution

Inter-American Commission on Human Rights Asked to Prevent a Public Health Crisis in La Oroya, Peru

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 21, 2005 Inter-American Commission on Human Rights Asked to Prevent A Public Health Crisis in La Oroya, Peru March 2005 study finds 99 percent of town’s children poisoned by lead SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA – The Interamerican Association for Environmental Defense, along with participating organizations Earthjustice and the Center for Human Rights and Environment, asked the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) on behalf of a group of La Oroya residents, to take action to protect the right to life and health of residents of La Oroya, Peru. The population in La Oroya is seriously affected by contamination from the operation of a lead and copper smelter. Specifically, the organizations asked that the Commission demand that the government of Peru: Provide adequate health examinations and medical attention for the citizens of La Oroya Implement educational and health programs Ensure appropriate evaluation and monitoring of the “Environmental Management and Mitigation Plan” proposed by the company Effectively control air emissions from the complex Evaluate the contamination levels in homes Take additional measures needed to ensure that the blood lead levels of La Oroya residents meet international health standards. The need to take action on behalf of this Andean city, located 175 km east of Lima, stems from the extreme amount of contamination that the smelter generates, particularly lead, arsenic, cium, and sulfur dioxide. Since 1999, the Government of Peru has known that almost all the children living near the complex suffer from lead poisoning, yet has taken no action to remedy the situation. A March 2005 study again showed that 99 percent of the children tested had blood lead levels vastly exceeding the limits established by the US EPA and the World Health Organization. “We are looking to lower the high levels of lead and other contaminants such as cium, arsenic and sulfur dioxide in the city. These generate serious public health problems, including high levels of respiratory illness such as asthma and bronchitis,” affirmed Earthjustice attorney Martin Wagner. According to Romina Picolotti, CEDHA President, ”instead of protecting the health of its citizens, the Peruvian government has delayed the implementation of measures to control the contamination, and has failed to enforce health and environmental laws.” “This lack of action has increased the risk to health, life, and physical integrity suffered by citizens in La Oroya”, added Fernanda Doz Costa, attorney with CEDHA. In April 2005, a Peruvian court ordered the State to take measures to protect the population, but this order was appealed and no action has been taken. "There can be no doubt that the severe injuries caused by the contamination in La Oroya violates the residents’ fundamental human rights,” said Earthjustice attorney Martin Wagner. “Action by the Inter-American Commission could protect thousands of children and other victims from further injury.” : Carlos Chirinos, +511-422-2720 ([email protected]) Romina Picolotti, CEDHA +54 (351) 425-6278 ([email protected]) Astrid Puentes, AIDA +52 (55) 5212-0141 ([email protected]) Martin Wagner, Earthjustice +1 (510) 550-6700 ([email protected])

April 14 2005 Human Rights, Toxic Pollution

Judge Orders Measures to Protect Public Health in La Oroya

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 14, 2005 Judge Orders Measures to Protect Public Health in La Oroya In April of 2005, a Lima civil court ordered the Peruvian Ministry of Health (MINSA) and the General Directorate for Environmental Health (DIGESA) to take steps to alleviate a public health crisis in La Oroya, Peru, a city where the Doe Run company of Missouri operates a large multi-metal smelter. The court ruled that MINSA and DIGESA have failed to carry out the government’s duty to protect the population in La Oroya. In spite of numerous studies showing a severe health crisis in the city, the government has taken no action to protect public health. The Doe Run smelter emits large amounts of toxic heavy metals and sulfur dioxide into the environs of the city. According to a recent study by the company and health authorities, the contamination is so severe that 99.9 percent of the children in the neighborhood closest to the smelter—La Oroya Antigua—have blood lead levels that far exceed the permissible levels recommended by the World Health Organization.

February 08 2004 Human Rights, Toxic Pollution

Health Risks in La Oroya are Higher Than Expected: Lead and Lead Compounds Classified as Carcinogens (Spanish text)

PARA PUBLICACIÓN INMEDIATA: 8 de febrero de 2005 os: Carlos Chirinos, SPDA, +51-4211394, [email protected] Eliana Ames, LABOR, +51-2616515, [email protected] Anna Cederstav, AIDA, +1-510-550-6748 (EEUU) RIESGO DE SALUD EN LA OROYA ES MAYOR DE LO PENSADO: PLOMO Y COMPUESTOS DE PLOMO CLASIFICADOS COMO CANCERÍGENOS. LIMA, PERÚ – El 31 de enero de 2005, el Departamento de Salud y Servicios Humanos de los Estados Unidos publicó el Informe Semestral sobre Cancerígenos, el cual incluye por primera vez el plomo y todos los compuestos con contenido de plomo como sustancias que probablemente causan cáncer en seres humanos. Este informe enlista las sustancias cancerígenas en dos categorías, aquellas “conocidas como cancerígenas para el hombre,”y aquellas “con probabilidad razonable de ser un cancerígeno para el hombre.”Debe resaltarse en este Informe la inclusión del plomo y de los compuestos del plomo en la categoría de “probabilidad razonable de ser un cancerígeno humano”. Esta nueva clasificación de plomo y todos los compuestos de plomo se ha basado en datos epidemiológicos de estudios en humanos y en evidencia sustancial de estudios en animales experimentales. Por ejemplo, se demostró que la exposición al plomo aumenta la presencia de tumores en los riñones, el cerebro, el sistema hematopoyético y los pulmones en ratas y/o ratones (IARC 1980, 1987). Todavía no se entienden completamente los mecanismos por los que el plomo causa cáncer, pero los estudios realizados en seres humanos que estuvieron expuestos por su ocupación al plomo, han sugerido que el plomo daña los cromosomas o el ADN, lo cual puede causar cáncer (ATSDR 1999, NTP 2003). El plomo es liberado en el ambiente predominantemente por procesos industriales. Dentro de estos procesos, las fundiciones de plomo por sí solas son actualmente la fuente principal de las emisiones de este metal pesado, contabilizando más del 78% de todas emisiones de plomo en 2001 en los Estados Unidos (EPA 2003). Además de incluir el plomo y sus compuestos en la clasificación de sustancias con “probabilidad razonable de ser un cancerígeno para el hombre”, en noviembre de 2004 la Agencia de Protección Ambiental (EPA) de los Estados Unidos anunció el inicio de un proceso de recopilación de información necesaria para revisar los estándares de calidad de aire respecto del plomo. El estándar actual de los Estados Unidos de 1.5 ug/m3 como promedio anual, el que sirvió de base a los estándares fijados para el Perú en 2003, no ha sido revisado en más de veinte años, por lo que no toma en cuenta la información científica más reciente y esta alejado de los estándares internacionales. De hecho, el estándar de la Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS) es de 0.5 microgramos de plomo por metro cúbico en el aire, siendo hasta tres veces más estricto que el de los Estados Unidos. Estas ultimas dos acciones del gobierno de los Estados Unidos evidencian la rigurosidad necesaria con la que se viene asumiendo el tema del plomo, debido al alto riesgo que este conlleva para la salud humana. En contraste, en el caso peruano resulta particularmente preocupante la situación de ciudades como La Oroya y otras poblaciones ubicadas en áreas de influencia minero metalúrgicas en donde se producen concentrados de plomo, por las altas concentraciones de este contaminante, que claramente representan un riesgo para las personas. No hay duda entonces de la urgencia de implementar medidas eficientes para evitar el aumento del riesgo para la salud humana, incluso la posibilidad de sufrir cáncer, que enfrentan las personas que viven y trabajan en estos lugares.