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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Words and photos by Camilo Freedman in San Salvador

‘Live sick or flee’: pollution fears for El Salvador’s rivers as mining ban lifted

Protesters whose faces are in shadow hold up placards with a skull and crossbones and the Spanish words for 'metal mining' in a march in darkness
A march against metal mining organised by the Catholic church in March 2017. The pioneering legislation led to mining multinationals launching lawsuits against El Salvador, one of which was only dismissed after seven years. Photograph: José Cabezas/Reuters

Vidalina Morales realised that something was wrong with the water not far from where she lived in 2004. A toxic red stain spreading through the San Sebastián River in El Salvador seemed to contaminate the environment and worried residents.

As part of a campaign to protect her home and the environment, Morales, 54, visited mining projects near the river to learn about the risks the extractive sector posed. “I was shocked by the extent of the destruction of their environment,” she says.

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