Paper is often seen as a green alternative to plastic, but the industry that produces it uses enormous quantities of water.
Uruguay's capital, Montevideo, even ran out of fresh drinking water this year, after record low levels of rainfall. Uruguay's pulp mills turn eucalyptus and pine wood into cellulose, which is then exported to be made into paper abroad. The mill takes 129 million litres of water a day from the local river, the Rio Negro. The waste water is then treated and pumped back into the river.UPM runs another pulp mill, Fray Bentos, in south-west Uruguay. The company points out that both its facilities are several hundred kilometres from Montevideo, in areas where there is no water scarcity, so cannot be responsible for water shortages in the capital.
is a series exploring how technological innovation is set to shape the new emerging economic landscape. UPM's Mr Battegazzore says the company has "a very, very strict monitoring plan that includes the follow up of the biota in the river on annual basis and which involves local and international scientists".
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