Fundición Ventanas is a copper smelter plant in
Quintero
Quintero is a Chilean city and commune in Valparaíso Province, in the Valparaíso Region, 30 kilometers north of Valparaíso. The commune spans an area of . It was the first port in the country, created during the expedition of Diego de Almagr ...
,
Valparaíso Region
The Valparaíso Region ( es, Región de Valparaíso, links=no, ) is one of Chile's 16 first order administrative divisions.Valparaíso Region, 2006 With the country's second-highest population of 1,790,219 , and fourth-smallest area of , ...
,
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
.
It is owned by
Codelco
Codelco (''Corporación Nacional'' ''del'' ''Cobre de Chile'' or, in English, the National Copper Corporation of Chile) is a Chilean state-owned copper mining company. It was formed in 1976 from foreign-owned copper companies that were nationali ...
.
The plant produces a significant amount of
sulfuric acid
Sulfuric acid (American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphuric acid ( Commonwealth spelling), known in antiquity as oil of vitriol, is a mineral acid composed of the elements sulfur, oxygen and hydrogen, with the molecular formu ...
. Its emissions of
sulfur dioxide
Sulfur dioxide (IUPAC-recommended spelling) or sulphur dioxide (traditional Commonwealth English) is the chemical compound with the formula . It is a toxic gas responsible for the odor of burnt matches. It is released naturally by volcanic activ ...
, an atmospheric contaminant, is within the limits allowed by Chilean environmental law but below international standards.
[ According to Codelco's ]CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
André Sougarret one of the problems of Fundición Ventanas is that on a third of the year's days meteorological "condictions are adverse for the dispersal" of its gas emissions.[
In June 2022 the government of Chile announced that a closure process for the plant was to begin.][ Its workers have protested against the closure.][ There is no consensus on where to build a new larger and more modern plant in replacement. ]Antofagasta Region
The Antofagasta Region ( es, Región de Antofagasta, ) is one of Chile's sixteen first-order administrative divisions. The second-largest region of Chile in area, it comprises three provinces, Antofagasta, El Loa and Tocopilla. It is bordered t ...
or Atacama Region has been proposed by Chilean industry scholars as viable replacements.[ Others have argued for keeping smelting in Valparaíso Region given the existence of nearby mines.][ While some argue the replacement plant should be near the coast, inland ]Chuquicamata
Chuquicamata ( ; referred to as Chuqui for short) is the largest open pit copper mine in terms of excavated volume in the world. It is located in the north of Chile, just outside Calama, at above sea level. It is northeast of Antofagasta and n ...
and El Salvador
El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...
have also been proposed as alternatives.[ The president of the National Mining Society (Sonami), Diego Hernández, estimates the construction period for a new smelter plant to be 5 to 7 years.][
]
See also
* Pollution in Quintero and Puchuncaví
References
{{coord missing, Chile
Buildings and structures in Valparaíso Region
Ventanas
Mining in Chile