Press Center

May 15 2009

Costa Rican Court Orders Expropriation Of Land Slated For Tourism Development In The Leatherback Marine National Park

For immediate release: May 14, 2008 Press contacts: Rolando Castro, Attorney, CEDARENA Gladys Martínez, Attorney, AIDA (506) 2837080, [email protected] (506) 2837080, [email protected] COSTA RICAN COURT ORDERS EXPROPRIATION OF LAND SLATED FOR TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN THE LEATHERBACK MARINE NATIONAL PARK SAN JOSÉ— On May 5th, the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice of Costa Rica ordered the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE) to begin expropriating private lands slated for tourism development within the Leatherback Marine National Park (LMNP) in Guanacaste. This decision follows a lawsuit filed in March 2005 by AIDA and its participating organizations in Costa Rica, the Center for Environmental Law and Natural Resources (CEDARENA), and Justice for Nature (JPN). The complaint alleged that the National Environmental Technical Secretary (SETENA), the Municipality of Santa Cruz, the Ministry of Finance, and MINAE violated the constitutional right to a healthy and ecologically balanced environment by not protecting the LMNP and the nesting sites of the leatherback turtle located therein. This is a very important precedent in Costa Rica and the hemisphere, given that tourism development is proceeding at an unprecedented pace throughout the Americas. The Municipality of Santa Cruz and SETENA had issued construction permits within the park, ignoring the impacts that tourism development would have upon the leatherback turtles. With this decision, these permits are now invalid. “We hope that the Municipality and SETENA have received a clear message that they must take extreme caution with regard to national parks, and not approve projects that endanger what the parks were created to protect,” stated Rolando Castro, an attorney for CEDARENA. “Construction and operation of tourist sites within the LMNP would aggravate existing threats to the beach,” he added. Leatherback turtles are animals from the Jurassic age that have been declared an endangered species on the international level. They require particular nesting conditions that can be easily disturbed by the presence of human beings and construction lights. Hence, the development of tourist sites can severely affect the turtles’ reproduction, and consequently, their survival. The Leatherback Marine National Park has become the most important nesting site for this species in the Western Pacific Ocean. “MINAE should immediately heed this order to prevent the destruction that has occurred at other Costa Rican nesting beaches, such as Flamingo and Tamarindo,” affirmed Gladys Martinez, AIDA attorney. “All authorities within the Costa Rican government have an obligation to protect this species, which is part of our common patrimony, in addition to being a tourist attraction and hence a valuable economic resource for the country,” she added.

January 08 2009

Constitutional Court Orders Change in Environmental License for Baba Dam, Ecuador

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT ORDERS CHANGE IN ENVIRONMENTAL LICENSE FOR BABA DAM, ECUADOR FOR IMMEDIATE PUBLICATION: CONTACTS: Silvana Rivadeneira (593 3) 2 459822 Astrid Puentes, AIDA (5255) 5212-0141 [email protected] [email protected] Quito, January 8, 2009 - The Constitutional Court of Ecuador ordered the country's Ministry of Environment to review and reformulate the environmental authorization granted to Baba's Multi-purpose Project (PMB), and the Attorney-General to audit the procedures and the approval of the environmental impact evaluations. According to the court's decision, there are risks of severe, irreparable damage to the Ecuatorian biodiversity that weren't properly assessed, in accordance with the conclusions of the Inter-American Development Bank experts. This resolution from Ecuador's highest court is a consequence of the lawsuit promoted by ECOLEX in May, 2007, which was rejected by the initial judge. ECOLEX then appealed to the Constitutional Court, insisting that it consisted in a violation of the human rights to a safe environment, to water, to property, to work, and to food, among others. Last June AIDA and the international organizations International Rivers and FIAN International supported the appeal through an amicus curiae document, denouncing the violations to international environmental standards and human rights, all of those binding the State of Ecuador. In addition to that, experts from the US organization ELAW also had mentioned serious mistakes in the study. The Constitutional Court's decision effectively recognized that the lack of a adequate evaluation violated the previously mentioned rights, as well as the principle of environmental caution. Silvana Rivadeneira, from ECOLEX, stated that "the decision is a great triumph to the affected communities and to the country, since it reinforces that the environmental protection is also a matter of national interest." The PMB would have implied in the flooding of more than 2.500 acres of important ecosystems at the province of Los Rios, affecting the river populations of the Baba Quevedo Vinces river and the habitat of endangered species such as the rascón bird, the small deer and chaleco's ant-eating bear. The project was authorized by the Ministry of Environment in November 2006 and it is being executed by the company Hidronación S.A., which took it over after the Brazilian Odebrecht was expeled from the country by the Ecuatorian government. In September 2008, AIDA, Earthjustice and ECOLEX, FIAN International and International Rivers requested for the international credits from the Clean Development Mechanism (a tool from the Kyoto Protocol to help fight climate change) not to be granted to the PMB. "The Baba project is an example of unclean energy and it could worsen the climate change, the court's decision confirms its lack of sustainability", said Monti Aguirre from International Rivers. "It is very significant that the court issued such decision a few days after the World Conference on Climate Change in Poland" mentioned Astrid Puentes, co-director of AIDA. "Given the negative effects for the environment, the people and the climate change caused by the hydroelectric dams - the very reason for which we supported such demand - the order to completely evaluate Baba's project is outstanding news. We will be following the review closely, and we expect this decision to serve as a precedent for the hundreds of hydroelectric powerplants that are currently ongoing in the Americas with flaws very similar to those present in Baba.

June 19 2008

AIDA Supports Legal Action Against Baba Dam (Spanish Text Only)

Para publicación inmediata Contactos: Astrid Puentes (México) Natalia Landivar (Quito) Monti Aguirre (Berkeley, EEUU) (5255) 55212-0141 (593) 2 22 24 962 (1-510) 848-1155 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Organizaciones Internacionales apoyan amparo contra Proyecto Multipropósito Baba ante Tribunal Constitucional de Ecuadorpara proteger derechos humanos y ambiente QUITO, MÉXICO, BERKELEY, 19 DE JUNIO DE 2008-- La Asociación Interamericana para la Defensa del Ambiente (AIDA), presentó un amicus curiae (escrito de amigo de la corte) ante el Tribunal Constitucional de Ecuador, suscrito por International Rivers y FoodFirst Information and Action Network (FIAN) International, apoyando la demanda de Amparo Constitucional interpuesta por afectados del Proyecto Multipropósito Baba. Las organizaciones internacionales argumentaron violaciones a los derechos humanos y al ambiente en la aprobación del proyecto, por lo cual se unen a los demandantes para solicitar la suspensión de su ejecución. “Existen sinnúmero de experiencias donde la implementación inadecuada de mega-represas ha generado daños irreversibles, es necesario aprender de ellas” aseguró Astrid Puentes de AIDA. “La producción de energía no puede implementarse a costa del ambiente y de los derechos humanos, más aún cuando existen alternativas que ni siquiera se han evaluado y que a la larga, podrían evitar mayores costos para los países” puntualizó. El Proyecto Baba, que incluye la construcción de una represa que inundará más de 1,000 hectáreas, fue aprobado por el Ministerio de Medio Ambiente en noviembre de 2006 sin los estudios de impacto ambiental y sociales integrales que se exigen en la legislación nacional e internacionalmente. Estos estudios son de vital importancia, pues el proyecto afectará importantes zonas y tierras de cultivo, impactando seriamente la vida de cientos de personas que dependen de la pesca y la agricultura. Además, se dañará seriamente el hábitat de biodiversidad endémica y en peligro de extinción, como el ave rascón, el venado pequeño y el oso hormiguero de chaleco. “Tenemos la confianza que el Tribunal considerará los estándares internacionales en su decisión” mencionó Monti Aguirre de International Rivers. Dentro de los derechos afectados con este proyecto se incluyen el derecho a la calidad de vida, a la alimentación y a la vivienda, al ambiente sano, al debido proceso y a las garantías judiciales, y a la consulta previa, consagrados en la Constitución Ecuatoriana, en la Convención Americana, el Convenio 169 de la OIT, el Pacto Internacional de Derechos Económicos, Sociales y Culturales y el Protocolo de San Salvador, entre otros. “Buscamos aportar argumentos ante el Tribunal Constitucional evidenciando que la aprobación del proyecto ignora normas internacionales ambientales y de derechos humanos, lo cual puede generar responsabilidad internacional del gobierno ecuatoriano” aseguró Natalia Landivar de FIAN ECUADOR. “Confiamos en que se fallará de acuerdo a las normas” agregó.

June 02 2008

Costa Rican Court Reinforces Protection of Leatherback National Marine Park: Declares Ruling Allowing Construction in Park Unconstitutional

SAN JOSÉ, Costa Rica, June 2, 2008 – On May 23rd, the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice of Costa Rica repealed a municipal zoning regulation because of its impacts on the most important nesting zone for the leatherback sea turtle in the Eastern Pacific Ocean: the Leatherback National Marine Park (LNMP). The court resolution confirms that the park is necessary to guarantee protection of the leatherback turtle, an internationally declared endangered species, and therefore development within the park must be prevented. The court ruled in favor of the plaintiff, the Leatherback Trust, which filed suit in July 2006 against the zoning regulation for the Cabo Velas district of the city of Santa Cruz in the province of Guanacaste. In filing this suit, the Trust was advised by the Environmental and Natural Resources Law Center (CEDARENA), with the support the Interamerican Association for Environmental Defense (AIDA) regarding applicable aspects of international law. Only two weeks ago, the same court ordered the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE) to begin expropriating private lands inside the park due to the impact of private developments on the leatherback turtles. This decision resulted from a case brought by CEDARENA, AIDA, and the Costa Rican organization, Justice for Nature (JPN). The zoning regulation that the court annulled in the May 23rd ruling allowed the City of Santa Cruz to issue construction permits inside the park, ignoring the serious impacts that such operations can have on leatherback turtles. “As is well known, leatherbacks require special nesting conditions and thus people’s presence and lights from construction operations on nesting beaches seriously impacts the turtles,” declared Mario Boza, biologist for The Leatherback Trust. The LNMP was created to preserve the conditions necessary for the turtles’ reproduction, but the zoning regulation disregarded this intention. “We are very pleased with the court decision in Costa Rica because it sets a precedent that builds hope for the conservation of this species,” declared Astrid Puentes, Legal Director for AIDA. “We hope that this decision will be replicated in other countries in the region,” added Puentes. The court’s decision is retroactive, so it should cancel all the permits granted and constructions operations initiated under the regulation. “With this decision the court is not only protecting Costa Rica’s ecological balance, as established in article 50 of the Costa Rican Constitution, but also ordering the country to comply with its commitments to international agreements,” declared Rolando Castro, a lawyer with CEDARENA. Press Contacts Rolando Castro, Attorney, (506) 283-7080 [email protected] CEDARENA Gladys Martínez, Attorney, AIDA: (506) 283-7080 [email protected]

April 09 2008 Human Rights, Toxic Pollution

Doe Run Smelter in La Oroya, Peru, Loses Environmental Certification

FOR IMMEDIATE PUBLICATION: April 9, 2008 Press Contacts: Perry Gottesfeld, Executive Director OK International 415-362-9898 [email protected] Anna Cederstav, Ph.D. AIDA and Earthjustice 510-550-6700 [email protected] DOE RUN SMELTER IN LA OROYA, PERU, LOSES ENVIRONMENTAL CERTIFICATION Lima, Peru – Doe Run Peru, which operates one of the largest metal-smelters in the hemisphere, has lost its Environmental Certification in a highly unusual move taken by the company’s independent third-party auditors. TUV Rheinland initially granted the certification less than two years ago, but revoked it March 11, 2008 citing non-compliance with Peruvian environmental laws and the lack of adequate pollution prevention measures. The loss of the certification comes on the heels of a $234,000 US fine imposed last year against Doe Run Peru for several serious violations of environmental laws in Peru. This week, Peruvian authorities released a report detailing those violations, including noncompliance with the standards for lead and particulate matter. Doe Run Peru obtained the environmental certification under ISO 14001 in 2006 calling it a “significant milestone in delivering on our commitments to our communities, our employees and the environment." The Doe Run Company’s web site calls the ISO certification an “internationally recognized symbol of a company’s dedication to superior quality, customer satisfaction and continuous improvement.” Nevertheless, a number of studies conducted by the government as well as international health experts have shown that almost all of the children living in the area surrounding Doe Run Peru’s smelter have unacceptably high levels of lead in their bodies. Many are severely exposed and require immediate medical treatment. “TUV Rheinland acted responsibly in taking this unprecedented action to underscore the need for Doe Run Peru to do more to protect public health in La Oroya” said Perry Gottesfeld, Executive Director of Occupational Knowledge International (USA). “Revoking the certification should send a strong message to Doe Run that they have much more work to do,.” said Anna Cederstav, Staff Scientist with AIDA and Earthjustice, and author of the book La Oroya Cannot Wait. “Nevertheless, we are still concerned that, if paid enough, another certifying body will agree to provide Doe Run with a similar certification.” she added. In 2006, several organizations filed a petition with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the Organization of American States, seeking a recommendation that the Peruvian government implement urgent measures to halt the grave violations against the health and lives of the citizens of La Oroya. Last year, the Commission agreed and requested that the state implement such precautionary measures. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 120 million people are overexposed to lead (approximately three times the number infected by HIV/AIDS) and 99 percent of the most severely affected reside in the developing world. Lead affects both children and adults and causes brain damage, metal retardation, and other learning disabilities in children. In addition to lead, the population of La Oroya is also exposed to extreme levels of other harmful contaminants, including arsenic, cadmium, and sulfur dioxide.

April 02 2008 Large Dams

Threats from Proposed Dam in La Parota, Mexico, Challenged in Amicus Curiae Legal Brief

AIDA and other international and Mexican organizations submitted a legal brief (Amicus Curiae) to the Collegiate Tribunal of Guerrero in Acapulco in support of a constitutional lawsuit brought by CECOP and the Mexican Center for Environmental Law against the Federal Commission of Electricity (CFE) and other authorities. The lawsuit alleges that the Mexican authorities failed to consult with affected parties and adequately evaluate the environmental impacts of the construction of La Parota dam. Approval of the hydroelectric project disregards national laws, as well as international human rights and environmental laws, including those that protect the rights to a fair trial and economic, social and environmental rights. Among other things, the project’s major human rights violations are a lack of information provided to those affected by the dam and gaps in the comprehensive environmental impact study, which is designed to evaluate damages the dam will cause, measures to prevent impacts, as well as alternatives to the project. Considering these flaws and the human rights violations of people affected by the La Parota megaproject, we appealed to the Collegiate Tribunal of Guerrero, arguing that it should make use of its power, accept the arguments of the Amicus, and cancel all work related to the construction of the La Parota dam until the Mexican government completely complies with local people’s demands and applicable national and international laws. AIDA will continue pursing this paradigmatic case because it is an example of how infrastructure development can cause severe environmental damages and human rights violations in the hemisphere.

September 05 2007 Human Rights, Indigenous Rights

Human Rights Body Calls on Peru to Protect Citizens from Contamination by American-Owned Smelter

For immediate release: September 5, 2007 PRESS CONTACTS: Astrid Puentes, AIDA (+5255) 52120141 [email protected] Martin Wagner, (510) 550-6700 [email protected] Human Rights Body Calls on Peru to Protect Citizens from Contamination by American-owned Smelter Oakland, CA; Lima, Peru – The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) has asked the government of Peru to take immediate steps to protect the health of inhabitants of La Oroya, Peru, who suffer severe health impacts due to contamination from a smelter owned by American billionaire Ira Rennert. Rennert’s company, Doe Run Peru, owns and operates the smelter. La Oroya residents suffer health problems related to emissions of lead, arsenic, cadmium, sulfur dioxide and other pollution from the smelter. In 2006, the Blacksmith Institute identified La Oroya as one of the ten most polluted places in the world (http://www.blacksmithinstitute.org/ten.php). The Commission ordered Peru to conduct comprehensive medical examinations to determine the extent of the injury to local people and to provide medical treatment to those who need it. The Commission acted in response to a petition submitted by lawyers from the Peruvian Society for Environmental Law (SPDA), the Inter-American Association for Environmental Defense (AIDA), Earthjustice, and the Center for Human Rights and Environment. The petition was filed on behalf of a group of La Oroya residents claiming that Peru’s failure to control the smelter pollution violates their human rights, and especially those of the most vulnerable population – the children impacted by the severe lead contamination. “Controlling contamination from the smelter is crucial to protect the rights and lives of these people,” said Astrid Puentes of AIDA. “The Commission’s action confirms that neither Peru nor the company have taken adequate steps to protect health and human rights in La Oroya,” she added. Since 1999, the Government of Peru has known that almost all the children living near the complex suffer from lead poisoning, yet has failed to remedy the situation. A March 2005 study showed that 99 percent of the children tested had blood lead levels vastly exceeding the safe limits established by the US EPA and the World Health Organization. “We are celebrating, with the hope that we will finally have positive results for the protection of the health of our children, and ourselves,” said one La Oroya petitioner, who, like all the petitioners, has asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation by company workers. “In calling on Peru to protective the people of La Oroya, the Commission is indicating its support for people throughout the hemisphere who are threatened by extreme toxic contamination,” said Earthjustice’s Martin Wagner. “The Commission is acknowledging that this kind of pollution violates human rights, and that international law thus requires governments to prevent such tragedies and to take steps to remedy them when they happen. The Commission’s request is based on its interpretation of Peru’s international legal obligations, and it is the government’s responsibility to satisfy those obligations.” “We hope to see the transparent, effective, and rapid implementation of these precautionary measures by Peruvian government authorities” declared Carlos Chirinos, from the SPDA. “The government has moved far too slow in addressing this health crisis,” he added. The Commission’s decision is a preliminary step in its consideration of the petition from the residents of La Oroya. “The Commission has clearly decided that the people in La Oroya cannot afford to await the outcome of the full petition process,” said Wagner. “No matter what the details of its final decision, the Commission is obviously convinced that rights are being violated and the government must act now.”

August 28 2007

Federal Judge Suspends Construction of the La Parota Hydroelectric Project!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 28, 2007 CONTACT: Claudia Gómez-Portugal, (5255) 5268-3323 ext. 23, [email protected] Federal Judge Suspends Construction of the La Parota Hydroelectric Project! Mexico DF. August 28, 2007 - On August 14th, a federal judge in Acapulco, in the state of Guerrero, ordered the temporary suspension of all work related to the La Parota Hydroelectric Project, in response to an accion de amparo (similar to an injunction) filed by small-scale farmers in the Community of Common Goods of Cacahuatepec. The farmers are represented by the Mexican Center for Environmental Law (CEMDA). The judge granted the suspension to prevent irreversible damage to the farmers’ constitutional rights to a healthy environment, a fair trail, and adequate judicial protection . The judge also accepted the amparo on the grounds that these rights could be violated by the environmental impact assessment authorization granted by SEMARNAT, and the water concession for the Papagayo River granted to the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) by the National Water Commission to construct the hydroelectric project. Once completed, this dam will tower more than 700 feet high and have a capacity of 30 megawatts. It will flood approximately 41,000 acres of land, affecting more than 25,000 small farmers. “The suspension of La Parota is an important precedent in Mexico, because it places protection of the environment ahead of a very large infrastructure project, and enables the public interest to be protected,” asserted Xavier Martínez Esponda, a CEMDA lawyer. “Constructing the dam would cause grave and irreversible damage to the low and medium deciduous forests, impacting hundreds of threatened and endangered plant and animal species. It would also affect the quality and quantity of water in the Papagayo River, in addition to impacting the communities in the region,” he noted. In the amparo, the farmers allege that both the General Law of Ecological Equilibrium and Environmental Protection (LGEEPA) and the National Water Law (LAN) are unconstitutional because they do not allow the affected communities to participate in the procedures to grant the authorizations. This, in turn, violates their individual constitutional rights which grant that no one can be deprived of their life, liberty, property, possessions or rights without a fair trial. In this case, the authorities granted the environmental impact authorization and water concession without notifying the communities, despite the fact that these decisions would affect their lands and their right to water. “The goal of the injunction is to permanently suspend the unconstitutional construction of the dam. If the dam is constructed, the farmers would lose their lands, be displaced from their town, and additional irreversible social and environmental harm would take place. Therefore, this legal action attempts to prevent, as occurs in many cases, the development of a large-scale infrastructure project without adequate compensation and indemnization,” explains Astrid Puentes Riaño, Legal Director of AIDA. Past projects implemented by CFE have not included fair compensation, and when they were granted, did so long after the damages occurred. This injunction brought suit against eight government authorities, including the President of the Republic, the Federal Congress, the National Water Commission, the Secretary of the Environment and Natural Resources, and the Federal Electricity Commission. The decisions of each of these authorities are directly involved in the illegalities and violations of rights alleged in this legal action.

April 24 2007 Toxic Pollution, Human Rights

IACHR Forwards La Oroya Human Rights Petition to Peruvian Government for Comment

For immediate release: April 24, 2007 PRESS CONTACTS: Astrid Puentes, AIDA (+5255) 52120141 [email protected] Martin Wagner, Earthjustice (510) 550-6700 [email protected] Carlos Chirinos (+511) 422-2720 [email protected] U.S. Smelter's Pollution Now Human Rights Issue for Peru IACHR to Examine Peru’s Responsibility for Contamination from Doe Run Corp. Facility WASHINGTON DC, LIMA – The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (a division of the Organization of American States) forwarded a petition alleging human rights violations to the Government of Peru, giving them two months to respond. The petition asserts that severe contamination from a smelter owned by U.S.-based Doe Run Corporation, and lack of effective pollution and human health controls by the government, gravely threaten the rights of the residents of La Oroya, Peru, including their rights to life, health, and integrity. “This first step by the IACHR is good news,” assured Carlos Chirinos, an attorney with the Peruvian Society for Environmental Defense (SPDA), an organization that has been associated with the case since its inception, and one of the lawyers representing the community. “It shows the strength of our petition, and is a positive step in the process to identify the government’s responsibilities.” The IACHR determined that the petition, prepared by Earthjustice, the Interamerican Association for Environmental Defense (AIDA), the Center for Human Rights and Environment (CEDHA), and Peruvian lawyer, Carlos Chirinos, met the Commission’s procedural requirements and forwarded it to the Peruvian government last week. According to the Commission’s rules, after this two-month period the IACHR will take into account Peru’s comments in evaluating the admissibility of the case, determining whether the contamination violates human rights, and the resulting responsibilities of the Peruvian government. The Commission is simultaneously evaluating a request by these groups for precautionary measures to address the urgent health threats to the citizens in La Oroya. “We are now waiting for the government’s comments on the petition, as well as a decision by the Commission on the request for precautionary measures. These measures could help considerably to provide effective protection for the people’s human rights in La Oroya,” added Astrid Puentes of AIDA. The precautionary measures requested include: adequate diagnosis and medical treatment for the persons represented, education programs and efficient access to information, effective emissions and contamination controls, an evaluation of contamination in key areas of the city, and implementation of adequate clean-up measures. According to Martin Wagner of Earthjustice, the goal of the precautionary measures is “to improve human rights conditions for the people we represent in La Oroya, and ensure that those responsible take definitive action to control the contamination.”

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 Contacts: 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.org/en/project/doerun_en Read a copy of the petition here (in Spanish).