2018-06-08 Red Precordillera
Articles

Serious contamination by Sinergia and Enaco in the precordillera of La Florida

View original article at Red Precordillera Archived on March 20, 2026
This article was translated using automated tools. The translation may contain inaccuracies.
The companies dumped tonnes of earth, rocks, and rubble in the upper part of the "Alto Macul" project, at the foot of the native precordilleran forest. The rubble created a dump 200 meters long, 8 meters wide, and more than two meters high — placed directly below high-voltage transmission towers, reducing the clearance between the power lines and the ground, which is extremely dangerous and prohibited by law. These events demonstrate the vulnerability of the Andean ecosystem that survives in the municipality. The community announces legal action against those responsible.
  • The companies dumped tonnes of earth, rocks, and rubble in the upper part of the "Alto Macul" project, at the foot of the native precordilleran forest.
  • The rubble, generated by the urbanization and construction of homes on the site, created a dump 200 meters long, 8 meters wide, and more than two meters high.
  • Furthermore, the dump was created directly below the high-voltage transmission towers, reducing the distance between the power lines and the ground — which is extremely dangerous and prohibited by law.
  • These events demonstrate the vulnerability of the Andean ecosystem that survives in the municipality, which the relevant authorities have been unwilling to protect. The community announces legal action against those responsible.

Outrage. That is what the neighbors feel about the violent intervention carried out by real estate company Sinergia and construction company Enaco in the precordillera of the municipality of La Florida.

The companies practically buried 2,000 square meters of land under tonnes of waste, without permits to do so, destroying native vegetation and increasing the risk of landslides and flooding in the area. Furthermore, the material was deposited below the high-voltage transmission towers, creating a greater risk of accidents and violating regulations governing the distance between power lines and the ground for safety reasons and to prevent forest fires.

Agustín Pérez, Director of Works of the municipality, went to inspect following the complaints, stating that these operations were completely illegal and that legal action would be initiated to require the company to remove the waste. He also committed to not granting final approval of the project. In response, Enaco stated it would remove the material before the first rains. The community's surprise was great when it went to check whether the company had complied: Enaco merely spread the material further at the same site, destroying more native trees and shrubs and leaving everything as before.

But who is Sinergia?

This company, controlled by the most powerful families in this country (the Cueto clan (LATAM), Sarquis (Pesquera el Golfo, now Blumar), Alberto Kassis (meat products king, owner of COPESA), and the Zalaquett family), has violated every environmental and urban regulation with its "Alto Macul" project, destroying more than 200 hectares of native forest and setting up alongside the dangerous Quebrada de Macul without any mitigation measures.

The community of Alto Macul (or Macalto) is up in arms against Sinergia for selling a project with misleading advertising. First, promising accessibility when in reality it has a single access road for 3,900 homes — which today translates into traffic jams and obvious problems in emergencies. Second, for promising a large green area (140 ha.) that keeps shrinking due to the construction permits granted to the real estate company by the authorities. Third, for not expressly stating that the project is in a very vulnerable area when it comes to natural disasters, according to a risk study paid for by the Municipality itself (Ferrando, 2014). There are roads and homes built along the path of the last Quebrada de Macul landslide and in other minor ravines, and the entire project sits above the San Ramón Fault.

For these and other reasons, residents have mobilized to demand that Sinergia, the Municipality, and the Intendancy address these serious urban problems and halt construction in the precordillera, through modifications to the Zoning Plan that restrict the impunity with which Sinergia, Enaco, and other real estate developers operate.

In any case, the damage is already done, and in part the Municipality is also responsible for not decisively protecting the site. Instead, it has maintained preferential treatment for Sinergia, approving all project modifications submitted by the company and not enforcing compliance with the voluntary commitments agreed between the real estate company and the environmental authority in 1997.

The community is preparing legal action against those responsible, and a Zoning Plan proposal for the sector that protects the surviving environmental heritage and addresses the serious urban problems arising from city planning that was handed over to private actors.

Red por la Defensa de la Precordillera.

The content expressed in this article is the responsibility of its original authors and does not necessarily represent the views associated with the Panul Para Todos project.

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