Quinara community demands action on polluted Piscobamba River in Ecuador

Residents of the Quinara parish in Loja province say a stone‑quarry mining operation has contaminated the Piscobamba River, rendering the water unsuitable for irrigation, bathing or tourism. The community, which cultivates coffee, sugarcane, bananas and other fruit, reports that the river has been polluted for more than 20 years despite complaints to national and local authorities. Former assembly member visits confirmed the mining activity and urged higher‑level officials to intervene, but no concrete response has been recorded.

Locals fear loss of irrigation water for their crops and a sharp decline in visitor numbers, threatening both agriculture and the area's nascent tourism sector. They are calling for urgent environmental inspections and measures to halt the discharge of mining‑related sediments and waste into the river.