The un/making of La Oroya, Peru into one of the World’s Most Polluted Places
At the turn of the 21st Century, the smelting city of La Oroya, Peru became one of the world's most polluted places. Its potent levels of heavy metals like lead, cadmium, and arsenic drew the attention of international NGOs like the Black Smith Institute, which sought to make the city into a toxic place of global ill repute. Many denizens of La Oroya did not appreciate this newfound international infamy and fought back to defend their revered city, the so-called metallurgic capital of Peru. This essay contends with the un/making of a global toxic place that is also a beloved place.
The un/making of La Oroya, Peru into one of the World’s Most Polluted Places
At the turn of the 21st Century, the smelting city of La Oroya, Peru became one of the world's most polluted places. Its potent levels of heavy metals like lead, cadmium, and arsenic drew the attention of international NGOs like the Black Smith Institute, which sought to make the city into a toxic place of global ill repute. Many denizens of La Oroya did not appreciate this newfound international infamy and fought back to defend their revered city, the so-called metallurgic capital of Peru. This essay contends with the un/making of a global toxic place that is also a beloved place.