The president reported that the agreement through which the MTOP will deliver resources for the first phase is now ready.
Under three phases, the remediation work is being carried out in the area of the sinkhole that generated an evacuation in an area of Zaruma, in El Oro, last December.
The Vice Minister of Mines, Xavier Vera, estimated that until December 15, 2022, the remediation is expected to end, in its three phases.
The Zaruma sinkhole has a depth of 25 meters, which is equivalent to a 10-story building. It has a diameter of 35 meters, according to the Government.
During a report this Thursday, the minister specified that the first phase of remediation will be from Colón Street to the Municipality. Phase two will cover works from the Municipality area to Gonzalo Pizarro street, in the south. Phase three of the works will be from Calle de la Inmaculada to the municipal coliseum.
The sinkholes in Zaruma have been known since 1993, according to sectional authorities
President Guillermo Lasso, who participated in the meeting, reported that the agreement is now ready by which the Ministry of Transportation and Public Works will deliver $2.7 million to the Army Corps of Engineers, which will be used for the work of the 1 of this entire project.
The Government indicated that the remediation works in Zaruma continue with the beginning of the construction of the bypass (underground tunnel for access to the chamber) that will be located lateral to the sinkhole.
The kidnapping of two engineers and a soldier in the Zaruma subsoil is ruled out
It is bypass it will have a dimension of 80 centimeters wide by 1.60 meters high; and it will allow access to the chamber above the plug, it will facilitate the verification of the melting of the plug and, in the next stage, the filling with a mixture of tailings sand and cement, this access will facilitate the control of the tailings injection.
Additionally, machinery provided by the Prefecture of El Oro has cleaned the debris that was inside the sinkhole. At the same time, the Army Corps of Engineers continues with the manufacture of beams on site, which will serve to support the slopes of the collapse.
The Agency for the Regulation and Control of Energy and Non-Renewable Natural Resources indicated that exhaustive controls are carried out in Zaruma. From December 14 to date, it has carried out 74 monitoring and control inspections, during which 253 packages of illegally extracted mineralized material have been seized.
The president urged the Municipality to carry out a house-to-house inspection and take the data to the Prosecutor’s Office and initiate the corresponding legal proceedings against those who are putting the city at risk with illegal mining activities. He said that if the illegal activities continue, the problems will continue even if the remediation work is done. (I)
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