Pollution turns one side of divided Paraguayan lagoon purple

A lab technician said that the color of the water is due to the presence of chromium

Published: August 06, 2020 14:35 AP and Compiled by Christian Borbon, Senior Web Editor

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Limpio, Paraguay: The Cerro Lagoon in the Paraguayan city of Limpio is sharply divided into two parts: one purple, one blue. One part emits a foul odor, the other doesn't. Image Credit: AP

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The lagoon was split by construction of an embankment and roadway to carry trucks to and from local factories. Image Credit: AP

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Several months ago, people began noticing that the water had changed on one side of the roadway and that fish and birds were dying. They went to local environmental authorities who took water samples. Image Credit: AP

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Francisco Ferreira, a technician at the National University Multidisciplinary Lab who took samples, said Wednesday that the color of the water is due to the presence of heavy metals like chromium, commonly used in the tanning of animal skins to produce leather. The Waltrading SA tannery stands on the lagoon's banks. Image Credit: AP

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"We will do the analysis (of water samples taken) and I will pass my report to the Legal Department," Rosa Morel, an inspector with the Ministry of the Environment and Sustainable Development, told local ABC media outlet. Image Credit: AP

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"There is a tannery and it is definitely the tannery that pollutes." Image Credit: AP

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Morel said on a previous visit experts found a pipe, presumably from the tannery, dumping untreated waste into the lagoon. She said authorities' main demand is that the company build a treatment plant for the waste. Image Credit: AP

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The company has declined to speak to the media about the issue, ABC reported. | Marcelo Coronel and Francisco Ferreira take samples from the Cerro Lagoon where the water is colored in Limpio, Paraguay. According to Ferreira, the water's color is due to the presence of heavy metals like chromium, commonly used in the tannery process. Image Credit: AP

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