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[00SCI-GLAC]

Where Glaciers Melt, the Rivers Run Red

As the glaciers of South America retreat, the supply of freshwater is
dwindling and its quality is getting worse.

Dark red pools of meltwater from acid rock drainage on Pastoruri peak
in the Cordillera Blanca, a Peruvian mountain range containing the
world's largest concentration of tropical glaciers.

Where Glaciers Melt, the Rivers Run Red

As the glaciers of South America retreat, the supply of freshwater is
dwindling and its quality is getting worse.

Dark red pools of meltwater from acid rock drainage on Pastoruri peak
in the Cordillera Blanca, a Peruvian mountain range containing the
world's largest concentration of tropical glaciers.Credit...

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By Mitra Taj

Photographs and Video by Marco Garro

Reported from the Cordillera Blanca in Peru, with support from the
Pulitzer Center.

  * Nov. 19, 2024

Leer en espanol

Dionisia Moreno, a 70-year-old Indigenous farmer, still remembers
when Shallap River, nearly 13,000 feet up in the Cordillera Blanca,
brought crystal clear water brimming with trout to her village,
Jancu. "People and animals alike could drink the water without
suffering," she said. "Now the water is red. No one can drink it."

At a glance the river looks like a casualty of mining pollution; Peru
is a major producer of copper, silver and gold, and the waters near
abandoned mines often run a shade of rust. But the culprit is climate
change. The Cordillera Blanca mountain range harbors the world's
largest concentration of tropical glaciers, which are particularly
sensitive to rising temperatures and are a major source of freshwater
in Peru.

For thousands of years, the glaciers were replenished with ice in the
winter. But they have shrunk by more than 40 percent since 1968,
uncovering rocks that, when exposed to the elements, can trigger
chemical reactions that leach toxic metals into the water and turn it
acidic.

The process, known as acid rock drainage, "creates a cascade reaction
that pollutes water sources," said Raul Loayza, a biologist at Peru's
Cayetano Heredia University who researches water quality in the
Andes. "It's a big problem and is getting worse and worse."

ImageA portrait of Dionisia Moreno, who stands over a bucket with
water and a long hose extending from it, with tall mountain peaks
behind her.
Dionisia Moreno washing her food with water from mountain canals.
Glacial retreat has exposed rocks that turn the waters vital to
Indigenous communities acidic and toxic.
Image
Alipia Cruz and her children Jeyson, 9, and Ruth, 11, draw water from
their well in Cacapaqui village for consumption. Ms. Cruz said the
spring water now tastes sour and members of her family suffer from
stomach aches.

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