Work Begins on Chinalco Peru Water Treatment Plant


N.A. Water Systems, a subsidiary of Veolia Water Solutions & Technologies, recently broke ground for a $25-million project to design and build a water treatment plant at the Minera Chinalco Peru S.A. Kingsmill Tunnel water treatment plant site east of Lima, near the border of Junin Province. N.A. Water Systems partnered with Cosapi S.A. Ingenieria Y Construccion, a Peruvian engineering and construction company.

Historical mining sites in the area fill the 11.2-km Kingsmill Tunnel continuously with acidic mine drainage containing metal contaminants that discharges directly into the Yauli River. Minera Chinalco Peru S.A. is cleaning up the historic pollution prior to initiating operations in the area because “it’s the right thing to do,” according to a Chinalco spokesperson.

HDS (High Density Sludge) technology is being employed, applying a sludge recirculation process to create a crystalline sludge that is claimed to minimize waste volume, lower disposal costs and reduce environmental impacts.


As featured in Womp 09 Vol 01 - www.womp-int.com