Suelo emponzonado

Global Witness reports that Veolia is discharging untreated toxic leachate from a landfill into protected wetlands in Colombia, with sediment analysis showing mercury levels 25 times higher than safety limits. The report links this pollution to congenital malformations in the local population and the degradation of the San Silvestre swamp, which provides drinking water for up to 300,000 people in Barrancabermeja. While Veolia denies causality and claims its internal controls show no mercury, independent experts argue the company's sampling methods were flawed. The document also highlights the extreme danger faced by environmental defenders in the Santander region and argues that the EU's Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive is essential for holding such companies accountable.

• Secretly recorded videos and drone footage show Veolia employees using electric pumps to discharge untreated liquid pollutants, known as leachate, from a containment pool into protected wetlands, often while the plant's treatment system is not operational.
• Sediment analysis conducted in September 2024 downstream from the landfill revealed high concentrations of heavy metals; specifically, mercury levels were 4.25 mg/kg, which is 25 times the safety limit of 0.17 mg/kg established by Canadian guidelines.
• The pollution affects a hydrological network including the caño Moncholo and quebrada El Zarzal, eventually reaching the San Silvestre swamp, which provides drinking water for 200,000 to 300,000 inhabitants of Barrancabermeja.
• Local medical reports from Dr. Yesid Blanco indicate an increase in congenital malformations, such as infants born without brains or with Job's syndrome, which are believed to be linked to the landfill's toxins.
• Veolia denies the allegations, claiming its internal tests show no mercury and that the area's pollution is due to other industrial activities; however, independent expert Flaviano Bianchini states Veolia's tests were insufficient because they sampled soil instead of sediment and lacked the necessary frequency.
• Environmental defenders in the Santander region, including Dr. Blanco and Leonardo Granados, have faced death threats from paramilitary groups, forcing some into exile.
• The report argues that proposed amendments to the EU's Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive would weaken the ability of victims to hold companies accountable in European courts for environmental and human rights violations in their value chains.

APA

Global Witness (2025). Suelo emponzonado. https://globalwitness.org/es/campaigns/land-and-environmental-defenders/suelo-emponzonado/

Chicago

Global Witness. Suelo emponzonado. 2025. https://globalwitness.org/es/campaigns/land-and-environmental-defenders/suelo-emponzonado/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Global Witness |title=Suelo emponzonado |date=March 2025 |url=https://globalwitness.org/es/campaigns/land-and-environmental-defenders/suelo-emponzonado/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{globalwitness2025suelo, author = {{Global Witness}}, title = {{Suelo emponzonado}}, institution = {Global Witness}, year = {2025}, month = mar, url = {https://globalwitness.org/es/campaigns/land-and-environmental-defenders/suelo-emponzonado/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }