Chile turns to desalination plants amid water crisis

Chile turns to desalination plants amid water crisis

As water began to flow along a dry riverbed in central Chile last year, residents reacted with amazement and joy. People cheered and embraced – it had been a long time coming. Petorca, a town in the central Valparaíso region some 220 km from Santiago, has become an emblem of water inequality in the country – severe drought over the past decade has dried up the Petorca River and left the town’s population reliant on water trucks. This lack of acc…