Chañaral

City and Commune

Plaza Chañaral

Coat of arms

Chañaral

Location in Chile

Coordinates: 26°20′40″S 70°37′19″W / 26.34444°S 70.62194°WCoordinates: 26°20′40″S 70°37′19″W / 26.34444°S 70.62194°W

Chile

Atacama

Government

• Type

Municipality

Area

• Total

5,772.4 km² (2,228.7 sq mi)

Elevation

198 m (650 ft)

Population (2002 Census)

• Total

13,143

• Density

2.3/km² (5.9/sq mi)

• Urban

13,180

• Rural

363

Sex

• Men

6,968

• Women

6,575

Time zone

CLT (UTC−4)

• Summer (DST)

CLST (UTC−3)

56 + 52

Website

Chañaral is a small coastal city and commune in the Atacama Region, Chile and capital of the Chañaral Province. A colourful town largely unknown by tourists, who generally head straight for towns such as San Pedro de Atacama. The town is considered unspoiled, with the benefit of having absolutely no high rise buildings. On the arid hills nearby is a lighthouse which casts a beam over the town during the night. Throughout the day and night, there is a lively, bustling atmosphere on the narrow streets. Despite it being coastal, it is not a typical seaside resort, partly because the ocean is contaminated by copper mining industry. Situated a short distance to the north is the Pan de Azúcar National Park.

In 1824, Diego de Almeyda made the discovery of the large natural deposits of copper in the area, and was the first in the mining industry in Chile to export it. For this reason, the town was founded October 26, 1833 as Chañaral de las Ánimas ("Chañar field of the Souls"). A few of years later, Pedro Lujan discovered ore at El Salado, where a mine was built. In 1836, a shipping port promising raw material was constructed. The great boom Chañaral began in 1860 when A. Edwards & Company was inaugurated where an inn exists today.

According to the 2002 census by the National Statistics Institute (INE) the commune of Chañaral spans an area of 5,772.4 km² (2,229 sq mi) and had 13,543 inhabitants (6,968 men and 6,575 women). Of these, 13,180 (97.3%) lived in urban areas and 363 (2.7%) in rural areas. The population fell by 2.8% (393 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses. The demonym for a person from Chañaral is Chañaralino for a man and Chañaralina for a woman.

As a commune, Chañaral is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal council, headed by an alcalde who is directly elected every four years. The 2008-2012 alcalde is Hector Volta Rojas (PRSD), and the council has the following members:

...
Wikipedia