Mosquera, Colombia: Lots of foam pollutes river

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A woman holding a girl walks past piles of foam in Los Puentes, Colombia on Wednesday

Photo: Sergio Acero / dpa

Huge layers of foam from a polluted river have reached residential areas in the Colombian city of Mosquera, worrying residents.

The environmental authority of the Cundinamarca department, which includes the capital Bogotá and Mosquera, around 20 kilometers away, attributed the foam to large quantities of cleaning agents and other chemical substances in a statement.

She urged households and industry to avoid excessive use of these agents and substances.

The wind partially blew the polluted and stinking foam through the streets.

The heavy rain caused the polluted water to move more, causing the foam to form, explained Edwin García, director of the Environment Agency's laboratory.

April has been the rainy season for much of Colombia.

According to the city administration, the phenomenon is not entirely new for the residents of Mosquera.

However, the foam had never been seen in the area in such quantities, the statement said.

The city administration and the environmental authority have taken measures to mitigate the effects.

The authority also pointed out that it built the Mosquera water treatment plant, which went into operation in 2020.

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