In 1997 the American corporation Doe Run established one of its metal smelting companies in a little town called La Oroya, located in the high sierras of Peru. La Oroya has been a metal smelting town since 1922 and has faced contamination for decades due to the heavy toxic gases pumped out daily through an enormous chimney that dominates the city. Most children in La Oroya have harmful levels of lead and other metals in their blood, and many face a high risk of developing lung cancer, in addition to other respiratory ailments, skin conditions, and digestive disorders. Other effects may include growth deficiency, slow mental development and even death. According to La Oroya's Health Ministry, 99% of the children have triple the maximum limit of lead in their blood as allowed by the World Health Organization. After being sued a number of times on a national and international level, Doe Run promised to meet Peruvian standards on the emissions of lead, arsenic and particulate matter by 2006. However, no environmental progress was made, and Doe Run asked for an extension until 2009. Meanwhile, the people in La Oroya continue to suffer from the polluted air and, though improvements may be in progress, the contamination continues to create generations of suffering.
Photos by Jessica Pons.
For more information about each photo, click "Show info" at the top of the slideshow.
Jessica Pons is passionate about telling stories. Her curiosity about human interactions led her organically into photojournalism, a tool to understanding. She hopes to create images that will inspire people to reflect upon themselves and the complexity of human nature. A first generation American, raised partly in Argentina, Jessica wants to further explore international issues. She will graduate this year from San Francisco State University with a BA in Photojournalism. Visit Jessica's website at www.jessicapons.com.
