{"id":35609,"date":"2023-12-13t18:59:47","date_gmt":"2023-12-13t18:59:47","guid":{"rendered":"\/\/www.getitdoneaz.com\/?p=35609"},"modified":"2024-06-06t15:15:41","modified_gmt":"2024-06-06t15:15:41","slug":"alto-maipo-hydropower","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/\/www.getitdoneaz.com\/story\/alto-maipo-hydropower\/","title":{"rendered":"looking back on alto maipo: hydropower and controversy in the chilean andes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

as glacial retreat bankrupts an ambitious hydroelectric project, residents reflect on the conflicts leading to its construction.<\/h3>\n\n\n
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the caj\u00f3n del maipo is an arid, once snowcapped region of the chilean andes, 40 miles north of chile\u2019s capital city of santiago. there, a series of hamlets tucked around the mountains and valleys are home to a lively community of small-scale agricultural and ecotourism businesses. in recent years, the effects of melting glaciers in the region have exacerbated a historical drought and threatened local water security.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"a
a resident of the land north of el alfalfal, a township in caj\u00f3n del maipo, plays with her dog during an afternoon break from yard work.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"jesus
jesus carrasco, a goat herder in the caj\u00f3n del maipo valley, lets his herd out of the barn at the start of the day. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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juan mu\u00f1oz sells jesus carrasco\u2019s goat cheese and local honey on the side of the camino al volc\u00e1n, a highway that connects the caj\u00f3n del maipo to santiago city. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"a
a group of women push a food cart through the streets of the san jos\u00e9 de maipo, a popular ecotourism destination and the largest township in the caj\u00f3n del maipo valley. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

in 2013, a new hydroelectric project, named alto maipo, began construction along the r\u00edo maipo, a large glacier-fed river in the caj\u00f3n del maipo valley. while the valley is already home to a long-standing network of hydroelectric plants, the company, aes gener, promised to produce over four times the current energy supply by diverting rivers through 43.5 miles of tunnels dug beneath the mountains. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

after being announced, the project was met with swift backlash from community and environmental leaders. now, years after protests have died down, the project remains internationally controversial and plagued by operational problems, such as glacial retreat reducing the water flow needed to provide the energy for the project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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the entrance to a strabag facility, a european construction company contracted for construction of the alto maipo project, sits along the road to el alfalfal. <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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infrastructure from the larger hydroelectric network juts out into the rio maipo.\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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a pipe sticks out along the eastern ridgeline of the rio maipo valley.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

the greater regional hydroelectric system generates energy through a broad series of underground tunnels that divert water from naturally occurring rivers before being returned to the surface. alto maipo\u2019s tunnels span over 41 miles and source millions of gallons of water from three rivers: the r\u00edo volc\u00e1n, the r\u00edo yeso, and the r\u00edo colorado. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

water travels through the tunnels before being deposited into the larger r\u00edo maipo, several miles downstream of where the water would naturally flow. the energy produced across the caj\u00f3n del maipo is sent to the santiago metropolitan region<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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local water scientists test the r\u00edo colorado for residue from a nearby plaster mine.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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local water scientists test the r\u00edo colorado for residue from a nearby plaster mine.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n