Central Highlands - Peru - page 632

Forty kilometers up in the hills from Tarma, peaceful San Pedro is the production center
for the country's finest tapices (tapestries). Most of the village is involved in making these
high-quality woven wall hangings, depicting moving scenes from rural Peruvian life. You
can watch locals weaving in workshops round the Plaza de Armas: it's one of Peru's best
opportunities for witnessing handicraft production - and purchasing the results .
The Casa del Artesano (Plaza de Armas; 9am-7pm) is one of the largest work-
shops. On the same street, down from the plaza, basic hospedajes offer rooms. Colectivo
taxis from Tarma (S5, one hour) serve San Pedro regularly.
About 28km up on the way to San Pedro (just passed the village of Palcomayo) you'll
pass the Gruta de Huagapo , a huge limestone cave that ranks among Peru's largest sub-
terranean systems. A proper descent into the Gruta de Huagapo requires caving equipment
and experience: tourist facilities consist only of a few ropes. The cave contains waterfalls,
squeezes and underwater sections (scuba equipment required). It is possible to enter the
cave for a short distance but you soon need technical gear.
MINING OR UNDERMINING? THE ISSUES WITH
THE ALTIPLANO'S MINERAL WEALTH
Mining is Peru's numero uno source of income, and the Central Highlands accounts for a sizable chunk of it. But
with the affluence that the extraction of zinc, lead, silver, copper and gold brings (Peru ranks within the world's
top four exporters for each) questions, concerning the distribution of that wealth, and the detriment that extraction
brings to the environment, are raised. And Peru's major mining centers are some of the poorest and most polluted
places in the country, if not the continent. Mining or mineral processing is the economic lifeblood of Cerro de
Pasco (one of South America's main zinc and lead mines) and La Oroya (the Highlands' main ore smelting cen-
ter).
Yet it could also be the ruination of these cities. Contamination rates are high: La Oroya recently featured in a
Blacksmith Institute list of the world's worst polluted places. While Doe Run, the company which own the La
Oroya smelter, shut down production after this list was compiled, there have since been clamors to restart opera-
tions from residents despite their awareness of the risks.
Huelgas (strikes) over working and living conditions are also regularly reported, but as poignantly in evidence
are the conditions people are prepared to endure to keep their jobs in this industry. Nowhere is this more evident
than Cerro de Pasco, where the pit owned by Volcan Compañia Minera is in the middle of the city (it is ironically
referred to as Peru's biggest Plaza de Armas). Not only do nine out of 10 children have above- average levels of
minerals in their blood (according to research by the US-based Centers for Disease Control) but, with the majority
of available water supplying the mine, running tap water is only available for limited hours. A significant percent-
age of the city's population lives in poverty. But there is a more imminent danger. Houses cluster around the rim,
and subsidence from the ever-present hole outside the properties is a problem. In 2008, Volcan was allowed to buy
a portion of the historic city center. With the pit now poised to eat up the heart of Cerro de Pasco, Peruvian con-
gress passed a bill proposing an audacious and costly solution to the problem: relocating the entire city some