Highest City in the World
Peble Jeine
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La Rinconada is a city in the Peruvian Andes located near a gold mine. It is considered to be the highest city in the world. The city is located in the Ananea District, San Antonio de Putina Province. It lies at a height of 5,100 m above sea level. The population has grown from the year 2001 to 2009 by 235% to 30,000 inhabitants. The economy is mainly based on the production of gold in the nearby mine.Matter of Luck
Many miners work at the gold mine owned by Corporacion Ananea. Under the cachorreo system they work for 30 days without payment. On the 31st day they are allowed to take with them as much ore as they can carry on their shoulders. Whether the ore contains any gold or not is a matter of luck.
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Environment
The city has no plumbing and no sanitation system. Besides having no sewage system there is significant contamination with mercury due to the mining practices. Local miners will refine the ore by grinding and treating it with mercury and pressing the mass through a cloth to filter it. The resulting amalgam is heated to remove the mercury.
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