Located high in the Peruvian Andes, right below La Bella Durmiente (“Sleeping Beauty”) glacier, is the town of La Rinconada. Over 30,000 people spend at least part of the year in this unique town, and they are all there for one reason: gold.
The existence of La Rinconada is entirely due to the nearby gold mines. Every year, these mines attract thousands of hopeful miners, who attempt to extract the precious ore, whether legally or illegally. Over the past few decades, the settlement has experienced substantial growth, reflecting the skyrocketing price of gold since the early 2000s. The town center is located at 16,000 feet (5,000 m) above sea level, making La Rinconada the world’s highest permanently inhabited settlement (and not much lower than Mount Everest’s Base Camp). And despite La Rinconada’s proximity to the equator, the extreme elevation means that the area has an alpine tundra climate, with the average annual temperature just 34.3 °F (1.3 °C).
In addition to La Rinconada’s geographic distinctions, the town has gained notoriety for the lack of basic services, high rates of crime and poverty, and dangerous levels of pollution. The town is sometimes referred to as la ciudad sin ley del Perú (“the lawless city of Peru”). There are limited sewage and waste management systems, intermittent electricity, and a contaminated water supply due to the mining industry’s use of toxic chemicals, such as mercury. The extreme elevation means that residents breathe in far less oxygen than they would closer to sea level, and hypoxia is a major health problem.
A dangerous existence in the world’s highest settlement:
- Many of La Rinconada’s miners toil under the harsh cachorreo system, in which they work for a mining company without payment for up to 30 days, followed by a day or two when they can take home as much ore as they can carry. While this system sometimes leads to a rich payday, it may also equate to an entire month without formal compensation.
- Due to the widespread belief that their presence would anger the spirit of the mountain, women are not permitted to work underground. Instead, many labor as pallaqueras, sifting through rocks that have been discarded outside the mine entrances in the hopes of finding a small amount of gold. Many women also work in the town’s gold shops, bars, and brothels.
- Most of the gold from La Rinconada is sent to refineries abroad. Although there have been various efforts to improve the labor and environmental situation in La Rinconada over the years, the constantly rising price of gold has made compliance difficult, as more unregulated mines and operators proliferate.
- Gold consumers across the world can contribute to better living and working conditions in La Rinconada and similar mining areas by insisting on buying jewelry that has been certified by nonprofit organizations such as the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM), Fairtrade International, or the Responsible Jewellery Council.
