© PDI Press Office
Thousands of shrimp and other crustaceans once again washed up on shore in Coronel, after a nearly identical incident in southern Chile last week drew worldwide media attention and prompted an investigation by local officials. Coronel spokesperson Cristian Acosta told The Santiago Times that the new wave of dead shrimp washed up Tuesday afternoon, covering up to a mile of the beach and turning it red. The number of shrimp is roughly the same as the first mass stranding last week.
For many fishermen in Coronel, about 330 miles south of Santiago, this second mass incident is proof that the strandings are not a result of natural causes but have to do with nearby power plants Bocamina 1 and 2 - owned by the country's leading electricity generator company Endesa - and the Santa María plant controlled by the power company Colbún.
Acosta said this second incident has prompted the population to be more aware of the situation and accuse the power plants of wrongdoings.
"We are preparing a prosecution but we will wait for the results from the PDI [Chile's Investigative Police]," Juan Gutiérrez, head of the local fishermen's union, told The Santiago Times.
Colbún's press release, however, maintains that the occurrences are a result of upwelling - a natural phenomenon caused when oxygen and nutrient-rich water is displaced by oxygen and nutrient-poor water - and states that the power plant Santa María "complies with all regulations and authorizations necessary for its operations."
Pablo Gazzolo Gómez, communications manager at Colbún, said the company is waiting on conclusions from an independent scientific investigation into the matter, but that initial evidence still indicates that it is a natural phenomenon.
Already, the conservation organization Oceana for South America has urged the government to put a temporary stop on the power plants while the investigation develops, but this has not happened.
"The coal-fired power plants are creating huge costs for local communities in respects to the environment, economy and health," wrote Alex Muñoz, Oceana for South America vice president, in a press release sent last week. "Measures should be taken much more deeply and urgently to replace them with clean sources like the sun and the wind, which are especially abundant in Chile."
According to Danilo Quiroga, a PDI deputy, preliminary conclusions will be available within 30 days after the start of the investigation.
Quiroga said officials went to the beach last week to take samples and examine the quality of the water and again arrived at the area this week to take photos and measurements.
The initial conclusions of the investigation will verify if the phenomenon is naturally caused or is caused by contamination, as some locals fear.
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