Huge gold mine in the highest place in the world

La Rinconada in Peru used to be a gold mine in the Andes range at an altitude of 5,000 meters above sea level.

Here, there are many migrant workers who come and settle here from remote and impoverished areas in the hope of obtaining stable and capable jobs. On average, these mines earn 100 tons of gold and precious metals each year. The increase in gold price also makes the number of people migrate more and more.

La Rinconada, city in Sevilla, Spain, is located at a height of 5,000 meters

The city is one of the most isolated places in the world, located next to the giant Bella Durmiente snow mountain

Wanting to go to La Rinconada can only be reached through a dangerous stone road covered with grass, stones, dirt and frost.It took a few days to reach La Rinconada

Tourists of course do not choose this location to stop because there are no hospitals, food shops or hotels here.

Because at a rare height, La Rinconada is very thin air and people need to be very familiar to be able to breathe normally.

The economy of the city relies heavily on gold mines hidden deep in the icy layers

In the period 2001 - 2009, gold prices increased by 235%.That's why more and more people flock here to search for gold.The current population has reached more than 30,000 people

Gold workers here do not have a stable income.They rely heavily on their gold reserves and their ability to dig for a living

The gold seeker here has to walk about 30 minutes to get from this city to the gold mine

Women are not allowed to go to the gold mines and they are only here to take care of the work behind the man

La Rinconada does not have running water, people also tried to build a waste water treatment system but eventually could not complete.

The people of La Rinconada often treat waste by burning garbage or burying it on the ground

Mining activities are not controlled so the soil environment in La Rinconada is heavily polluted.In particular, the gold digging area is contaminated with mercury, so most workers here are poisoned from this chemical.They are itchy, change skin color and affect the nervous system

The lake in the gold mine area is heavily polluted

People in the city love to play football