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El Cerrejon Zona
Norte - CZN
The Cerrejon,
located in the department of Guajira,
is probably the largest surface mine in
Latin America and has been operating
since the seventies. Since then the
local economy has suffered terribly
because of changes in land use, to the
extent that in some areas royalties are
the sole source of income. All mining
production is exported to the countries
of the North. This region is inhabited
by the Wayuu indigenous community,
whose customs and traditions are
endangered by the presence of private
mining companies in the area.
The CZN was
initially operated by the an overseas
company INTERCOR (a branch of EXXON)
and Carbones de Colombia - CARBOCOL.
When the CARBOCOL mines were sold,
INTERCOR adopted the legal name
Carbones del Cerrejon S.A. and
associated with extraction companies
HP-Billiton, Anglo American and
Glencor.
Indigenous peoples'
ranch, Puerto Bolivar, Guajira. Credit:
Hildebrando Vélez Galeano
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