Images of Coal Mines in Cesar

Loading Coal onto Orihueca train


Piles of Waste rock


Piles of Waste rock

Visiting Coal Mining Communities in Cesar

Today we visited the communities of El Hatillo, Plan Bonito and Boqueron in Cesar, located in the vicinity of La Francia, El Descanso and Calenturitas mines. On our journey from Valledupar we passed kilometres of African Palm. Slowly, these gave way to a more arid, dusty landscape, with piles of rock waste from the mines in the area, which have completely encroached these communities, literally suffocating them with coal dust.

We witnessed poverty and a lack of social investment in basic services: The dilapidated school has a few old desks, there are no health services, the water is not potable, and there is no municipal rubbish collection. Instead, we were welcomed by piles of rubbish at the entrance of the village, which has become a makeshift tip. This is in stark contrast to the mineral riches being extracted less than a mile away, and loaded onto the trains that run through Orihueca. One cannot help wondering where the royalties went that should, first and foremost, be benefiting these communities.

The mining operation has taken a toll on people's health, who reported respiratory illnesses, itchy and swollen eyes, and an high incidence of miscarriages. Formerly a fertile, agricultural community, where lemons and mangoes grew in abundance, the contamination means nothing grows on this land anymore. People also lost access to land which they used for farming and hunting due to the expansion of the mines; fishing is also no longer possible.

The mines plan to expand further. People are currently living in fear, desperation and uncertainly, since they will have to leave their village soon. The deadline is theoretically in 10 day's time, and they have no idea where they will end up living, or what kind of compensation they will receive. These people have been totally neglected by the state, and nobody has been adequately informed of their legal rights. They will most likely receive payouts based on the current value of the land, which has become completely contaminated as a result of the mining operations, and will struggle to find a suitable alternative to live. In past evictions in La Guajira, people have ended up living in shanty towns outside larger settlements like Riohacha or Barrancas, losing their livelihood and right to live in a dignified manner.


Arriving in El Hatillo


House in El Hatillo


School playground with piles of wasterock in background

The Coal Train in Orihueca, Magdalena

Members of the Colombia Solidarity Campaign accompanied a delegation organized by FIAN, Arbeitsgruppe Schweiz Kolumbien (ASK) and Paz y Accion Social (PAS) to visit the village of Orihueca, in the department of Magdalena, in the Zona Bananera so famously depicted by Gabriel Garcia's Marquez's novels. Local residents, whose homes are along the same railway line that was used to transport bananas to the port of Santa Marta during the era of the United Fruit Company, now face a severe deterioration in their quality of life due to constant freight trains transporting coal from Glencore, Vale and Drummond mines in the neighbouring Cesar department.

The coal trains run approximately every 20 minutes day and night right outside people's doorsteps. Each carriage of the train carries approximately 70 tonnes of coal, and a train has between 90 and 140 carriages. There are severe effects on the health of these residents due to coal dust and noise of the trains. Vibrations of these freight trains also caused structural damage to houses in the vicinty of the railway line. Accidents have happened: a child on a bicycle was killed when crossing the line, which does not have any type of warning system or barrier to warn that a train is coming. The fact that the line has been slightly elevated also means that homes next to the line are prone to flooding after strong rains. Given that the line is 270Km long, a similar story repeats itself along numerous other settlements that are bisected by the line.

Complaints by residents have been met with deaf ears by Fenoco, the railway operator jointly-owned by the three mining companies concerned. Amid concern that expansion of the coal mines will lead to more trains, when communties threatened to block the railway line to raise awareness of the issues they are facing, a sinister leaflet was distributed to members of the community by Fenoco.

Such a blatant disregard for health and safety and lack of respect for human life would be unthinkable in the United Kingdom or Germany (where much of the coal transported ends up being burned in power plants), and such a chaotic setup contrasts sharply with impeccably-organized Switzerland (where Glencore is from). Such a modus operandi would be unacceptable in any European or North American country, so why should this happen in Colombia? Why aren't the supposed royalties being spent to at least resolve some of even the most basic issues?