Sanjay,
Doe Run was supposed to upgrade the smelter and clean up eleven years ago. They are famous for delaying clean-ups, upgrading and only do those things when they are pressured to do so. This has been their modus operandi in the US and and Peru. They are still spilling lead concentrate all over Missouri and their Herculaneum smelter still belches out sulfur dioxide and heavy metals. Only when citizens expose the problems does the government force Doe Run to do the right thing. Think of all the money Doe Run would save and the lives that could be saved if they had done things right in the first place!

I was born in Lima, when I traveled to Arequipa, which is a high altitude city we went to a Club to dance the first night, and that night I feel dying, with the sickness. They toog me to the emergency room thet night. Then
I was told by experienced people there, that when you travel to a high altitude city, the first night you have to rest and take it easy on the first day so the next day when you get up up you will adjust perfectly to the new atmosphere there. I followed this advise on my following trip when I visited Cuzco. I felt wonderful, I could hike and have some matte de coca too. It was a great experience to get closer to the stars.

This is a good post but would have been much better discussing/ informing the public what the heavy metals can do to a person(s) (ie effect on brain, nervous system, lungs, etc)