Cerrejón
Cerrejón is a large open-pit coal mine in Northern Colombia owned by Glencore. At Cerrejón, low-ash, low-sulphur bituminous coal from the Cerrejón Formation is excavated. At over 690 square kilometres (270 sq mi) the mine is one of the largest of its type, the largest in Latin America and the tenth biggest in the world. Cerrejón is divided into three sections, North Zone, Central Zone and South Zone. Total proven reserves are estimated at 503 megatonnes. In 2016, the mine produced 32,683,315 tonnes (32,167,132 long tons; 36,027,188 short tons).
View of Cerrejón | |
| Location | |
|---|---|
Cerrejón Location of Cerrejón in La Guajira | |
| Location | Albania, Barrancas, Hatonuevo |
| Department | La Guajira |
| Country | Colombia |
| Coordinates | 11°05′22″N 72°40′31″W |
| Production | |
| Products | Low-ash, low-S bituminous coal |
| Production | 32,683,315 t (32,167,132 long tons; 36,027,188 short tons)/year |
| Financial year | 2016 |
| Type | Open-pit coal mine |
| Greatest depth | 180 m (590 ft) |
| History | |
| Opened | 1985 |
| Owner | |
| Company | Glencore (99.9 %) |
| Website | Official website |
In June 2020, lawyers for the local Wayuu community lodged a request to the United Nations special rapporteur for human rights and the environment for work to be immediately halted over environmental and human rights concerns. In September 2020, several UN independent human rights experts called for the mining operations to be temporarily suspended, citing the serious damage to the environment and the negative effects on the health and other rights of the indigenous peoples who live in the area due to the spread of coal dust and water pollution.