Chinese state-owned company COSCO Shipping is at the center of an investigation, following a complaint for breach of environmental commitments made to mitigate the impacts of the construction of the Chancay mega-port, Peruvian daily La Razón reported in February.
Peruvian nongovernmental organization Defense Front for the Dignity and Freedom of Chancay (FREDDLICH) is one of the complainants. It argues that COSCO Shipping came short on its commitment to two key mitigation actions in its environmental impact study of the project.
First: the creation of a sediment bypass to replenish the northern beaches affected by erosion caused by the construction of the mega port. Second: the installation of underground geotubes — permeable fabric tubes for dewatering, erosion control, and shoreline protection — on the affected beaches, as a complement to the first measure, Argentine news site Infobae reported.
To install the geotubes, FREDDLICH explains, large bags of biodegradable materials filled with sand and buried on the beaches must be used to retain the soil and prevent erosion. Instead, COSCO used tires as support for the geotubes, a solution that was not contemplated in the modified environmental impact study it submitted. The strong waves dismantled these barriers, and the fragments are scattered all over Chorrillos Beach, polluting the environment.
“We have filed two actions for protection and a criminal complaint against COSCO Shipping. They destroyed Chorrillos Beach, affecting biodiversity, nature, and tourism,” Miriam Arce, a member of FREDDLICH, told Diálogo. “All this is happening because the environmental impact study is a lie and biased.”
“On the other hand, the construction of the mega-port breakwaters continues to have an impact on the bay. We noted that beaches adjacent to the work have begun to experience changes in their geological structure. A silting process is being observed, causing the biodiversity of the organisms to change,” Antony Apeño, a marine biologist and specialist in marine-coastal ecosystems at the Peruvian environmental organization CooperAcción, told Diálogo. “Another evident impact is the complete modification of the landscape in these areas, as various residents have denounced. This has seriously affected the economic and sporting activities that took place on these beaches.”
To shed light on the situation, the provincial Prosecutor’s Office for Crime Prevention, with jurisdiction over environmental matters in the province of Huaral, ordered its Criminal Investigation Department to obtain information from the Environmental Evaluation and Control Agency (OEFA), the Ministry of Transport, and the Chancay Captaincy, who will also have to be held accountable for their role in the current environmental situation, Peruvian media outlet Expreso reported.
“According to the institution’s own environmental impact study, the dredging and deposit of that material would cause an environmental disaster with irreversible impacts,” Arce said. “They [COSCO Shipping] presented the report as if everything were resolved, but they have not stated how they are going to make up for this damage, because the volume they dredged was enormous.”
The OEFA, attached to the Ministry of the Environment, and the General Directorate of Ports and Coastguards (DICAPI) of the Port of Chancay, inspected Chorrillos Beach. They confirmed the presence of tire waste, geotube fragments, and mesh in various areas of the coastline, left by the Chinese company, the Peruvian Secretariat of Government and Digital Transformation indicated in February. DICAPI will continue to supervise COSCO Shipping because it has committed to carrying out the necessary clean-up actions and improving its installation processes.
“It’s almost impossible to reverse the major impacts caused on these ecosystems. This project could have been done in another area where it would not have caused so much damage to the environment,” Apeño said. “It requires a great deal of will from the company and adequate demands from the state entities in charge to reduce the damage, which is very difficult to achieve.”
Multiple problems
The affected communities have a long history of reporting concerns about COSCO Shipping and the project. Peruvian investigative news site Ojo Público highlighted among others that works were carried out prior to environmental impact studies, permits that had reached their limit were renewed with newly incorporated companies, public land was sold at derisory prices, not to mention that the area ceded was intended for Peru’s National defense.
“The ecosystems most affected are the coastal hills,” Apeño said. “These environments have been invaded and are being marketed as areas for housing or warehouses.”
The construction of the Chancay mega-port also caused a substantial increase in heavy truck traffic in the area. FREDDLICH warned that the city was not prepared to withstand that demand. On the night of February 13, the Chancay Bridge, a key connection to the Pan-American Highway, collapsed. A bus and a car fell into the water, causing three deaths and 50 injuries, Chilean daily BioBio reported.
“The mega port of Chancay was inaugurated with great fanfare without guaranteeing related infrastructure for it to function optimally,” Anahí Durand Guevara, former head of the Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations of Peru, said via X. “Today the Chancay Bridge collapsed, 400 meters from the mega port, leaving dead and injured and the Pan-American [highway] paralyzed. Once again, improvisation and apathy.”
While those affected face the consequences of the project, COSCO Shipping is looking at a new gain, as the Peruvian Congress is making progress on the creation of the Chancay Special Economic Zone (ZEECHANCAY), a legislation that will exempt industrial, commercial, and service users and developers from taxes, Peruvian daily Gestión reported. If approved, COSCO will be able to freely import equipment, machinery, furniture, raw materials, and all kinds of goods necessary for its activities without tariffs.
