The government of Peru declared a state of emergency on Friday July 18, after a crack was discovered in the tailings dump for a major ore mine. If the tailings pond is breached, thousands of tons of toxic metals and chemicals could pour into the Rimac River, major water source for the capital city of Lima.

One-third of the country’s population lives in the capital, an estimated 8 million people.

The Coricancha mine contains reserves of gold, silver, lead, zinc and copper. It is owned by Canadian mining company Gold Hawk and operated by Gold Hawk subsidiary Compania Minera San Juan (Peru) S.A. The federal government has ordered the mining operations relocated.