Upsetting the Offset - Transnational Institute

Plants linked
to a CDM
project
La Manga
Huasco
Maintenlahue
Maintenlahue
Peralillo
La Manga
Ramirana
Violations
Unauthorized construction of a well
for disposal waste. A well many times
bigger than the authorized
Illegal construction of two lagoons
for water storage (size bigger than
50,000 m3) related to pig farms
Spill over of sewage (Liquid
Industrial Residues) to the
Maintenlahue marsh, storage of non
treated purines 40 in furrows non
considered in the project
Non reforestation of 5,39 ha
required in the management plant
Maintenance of untreated purines in
a lagoon of 61,000 m 3
Maintenance of untreated purines
Unauthorized construction of a
waste lagoon
Unauthorized spill over and
discharge of liquid residues;
Non notice to authorities of spill
over of residues;
Unauthorized discharge of sewage
into a stream that leads to a wetland
(A Ramsar site and also a national
natural reservoir)
Discharge of sewage into a stream
not considered for this purposes in
the environmental authorization
Fine
(Approx.
Chilean
Pesos)
Warning
Upsetting the Offset
Date
17 June
2008
17,403,500 30 April
2008
16,023,000 8 Aug
2006
9,661,800 16 April
2007
16,135,500 8 March
2007
16,362,000 18 July
2007
15,138,500 22 Feb
2005
! Along with this environmental record, an outbreak of listeria was detected in
2009 at one of the company’s plants. Listeria was caused by bad sanitary
conditions, and the company was forced by the authorities to close the plant
down temporarily.
! Furthermore, the company has been involved in serious conflicts with
workers at its facilities. Agrosuper employs about 17,000 workers, and there
have been a string of bad working conditions, anti-unions practices, low
wages and violations of labor rights. In 2007 more than 600 workers were
striking at the Rosario and Lo Miranda pig processing plants with the goal of
obtaining the right of collective bargaining and better salaries. As a
consequence, the company fired the workers en masse. Today, at least 200
workers are still in the courts trying to obtain their rights. Aware of the
consequences of sanitary conditions within food processing plants, some
workers and unions have been active whistleblowers even at the risk of
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