Pulp mill built by Finnish company stirs controversy on Uruguay-Argentina border

By Evelyn Sigot Pavón

ENTRE RIOS PROVINCE, ARGENTINA -- The installation of cellulose pulp plants in Latin America is a currently a controversial problem that involves political, financial and environmental matters.

The most recent and burning conflict over a pulp mill takes place in South America. Since 2002, a dispute between two neighboring countries continues because of the pulp mill built by Botnia, a Finnish company, in Fray Bentos, Uruguay. The plant is situated on the Uruguay River, which constitutes an international border between Uruguay and Argentina.

According to Botnia’s own Web site, the plant was scheduled to open by the end of the third quarter of 2007 but the opening has been delayed.

"To commence commercial production the mill requires a final environmental permit from Uruguayan authorities who are currently finalizing this procedure," Botnia states on their site.*

This photo, taken in April 2006, shows the Botnia pulp mill under construction near the Uruguay River, on the border of Uruguay and Argentina. (Photo © 2006 and courtesy Fundación M'Biguá. Reprinted with permission.)

Argentina considers it illegal to put the pulp mill into operation because it violates the "statute of the Uruguay River." It will seriously impact the water and aquatic fauna, both consumed by human beings. Zone residents are concerned about the consequences that operation of this mill could have in agriculture and tourism.

This kind of cellulose pulp negatively impacts the environment and human health. A month ago, five workers of Botnia’s plant suffered skin and breath system irritation because of possible inhalation of sodium sulfate.

In just one second, the pulp mill is going to take a cubic meter of water from the river and return it with contaminants and carcinogenic substances that will have a disastrous environmental impact, generating both water and air pollution.

The Botnia pulp mill will use about 3.5 million cubic meters of wood per year and will produce 1 million tons of bleached eucalyptus pulp a year.

Uruguay’s position is that the project meets all the required conditions to start operating. Defenders of the plant assure that the success of the project will bring development, improving the region’s economy and generating new jobs. The Uruguayan government gave assurances that the plant will use the best technology to protect the environment and agreed to delay the official inauguration of the Botnia plant until the October 28 presidential election in Argentina.

Botnia affirms its commitment to taking care of the environment and argues that the Fray Bentos plant is the most modern mill of this type in the world. Botnia claims to provide the highest level of technology used by European countries in environmental care, following the regulations of the European Union and Uruguay's legislation. The company ensures that the plant will reuse and recycle raw material to prevent global warming.

Meanwhile, residents from Argentina and Uruguay are still facing the conflict and making demands.** Over the past two years, ecological groups, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and citizens have blocked the National Route 14 and the General San Martin Bridge on the Uruguay River against the operation of the pulp mill.

Residents from Gualeguaychú, NGOs and ecological groups from Argentina cross the San Martin International Bridge. This citizen "mobilization" was summoned by the Environmental Assembly of Gualeguaychú, on Saturday, April 29, 2006, to commemorate the first anniversary of the mobilization against the installation of the cellulose plant in 2005. (Photo © 2006 and courtesy Fundación M'Biguá. Reprinted with permission.)

On Saturday, Sept. 29, 2007, Argentine and Uruguayan leaders held a face-to-face meeting in the United Nations Headquarters in New York and dialogued about cellulose (pulp) plants, in a failed attempt to reach an agreement. There have been no negotiations. Ecological Groups accused Néstor Kirchner, Argentina’s president, of being "soft" and a traitor during the New York meeting. He declared against the re-localization of the pulp mill, noting that the plant has been built and there is nothing to do but wait for a decision from The Hague.*** Because of this, the Citizens' Environmental Assembly of Gualeguaychú decided to block the National Route 14 again.

A group of Argentine and Uruguayan ecologists walk along International Route 135 that joins Colón (Argentina) to Paysandú (Uruguay). They were protesting the installation of the Botnia pulp mill in April 2006. The plant, now built and scheduled to open soon, is still opposed by citizens of both countries, concerned about potential environmental pollution. (Photo © 2006 and courtesy Fundación M'Biguá. Reprinted with permission.)

On Oct. 1, 2007, Kirchner met Entre Ríos governor, Jorge Busti, to discuss the conflict with the Citizens' Environmental Assembly. The blockade was lifted, and the citizens are waiting to hear new offers.

In order to prevent financial interests and bilateral conflicts from becoming the epicenter of this dispute, brother countries must agree to consider the voice of the people by respecting the human right to health, water and air for life, not for commercial resources; by favoring dialogue and communication; and by integrating technology for a social, ecological, political and economic sustainability.

Notes:

* See http://www.metsabotnia.com/en/default.asp?path=204,1490,1491,1541,1546,1878 The site also states, "The forest industry company Oy Metsä-Botnia Ab - marketing name Botnia - was founded in 1973, and it manufactures high quality bleached pulp grades under the name Botnia. Botnia is owned by M-real Oyj, Metsäliitto Osuuskunta, and UPM-Kymmene Oyj."

** Especially, people from Gualeguaychú, the Argentinian locality in Entre Ríos Province, situated on the Uruguay River opposite the Uruguayan city, Fray Bentos, where the plant was built.

*** According to an Oct. 1, 2007, article on Bloomberg.com, "Argentina brought a case against Uruguay to the International Court of Justice in The Hague in May 2006, charging that the construction of the mill violated a 1975 bilateral agreement on the use of the Uruguay river, which runs between the two countries." See Bloomberg.com.

Editor's Note: The newest contributor to Keweenaw Now and author of this article, Evelyn Sigot Pavón, is a student at the National University of Entre Ríos (Universidad Nacional de Entre Ríos) in Argentina. She is completing a degree in Social Communications with a specialization in Cultural Process. Evelyn is also working on ecology issues with M'Biguá, a non-governmental organization in Paraná, in Entre Ríos Province, Argentina.

"I am writing about ecological issues to let other people know about my country and current happenings," Evelyn writes.