Ferronor Potrerillos - Llantas - Chañaral Line, Chile

You can find there A EMD G12 B'B' heading an acid train up to Potrerillos. The El Salado Río got its name originally from its high salt content, which accounts for the white sediments. But unfortunately, salt is not the only substance. Between 1926 and 1975, the Potrerillos - El Salvador mines dumped 150 millions of tons of flotation tailings in suspension through the Salado river to the sea in the Chañaral Bay, contaminating not only the creek and its environment by toxic substances, but also the seashore, resulting in a displacement of the shore line of more than one kilometer further out into the ocean
The American Andes Copper Mining Company, a subsidiary of the Anaconda Company, built the railroad, the smelter and the mine at Portrerillos from 1916 onwards. The challenges involved in building the necessary infrastructure are reflected by the fact that it took more than 10 years to complete the railroad, the smelter, water systems, housing and road in this barren, lonesome area.