San Pedro de Atacama - City of Chile

San Pedro de Atacama is a Chilean town and commune in El Loa Province, Antofagasta Region. It is a popular tourist destination.

San Pedro de Atacama grew, over centuries, around an oasis in the Atacama desert. It is located east of Antofagasta, some 100 km southeast of Calama and the Chuquicamata copper mine, overlooking the Licancabur volcano. It features a significant archeological museum, the R. P. Gustavo Le Paige Archaeological Museum, with a large collection of relics and artifacts from the region. Native ruins nearby now attract increasing numbers of tourists interested in learning about pre-Columbian cultures. Tourists also visit for other popular activities including sandboarding and stargazing, with the views of the stars from the Atacama unrivalled across the continent.

In the past it was found that the town's water supply was naturally contaminated with high levels of the heavy metal arsenic which leaches from adjacent salt lakes, with levels of as high as 600µg per litre being recorded. Interestingly the indigenous population seem to have developed a natural tolerance to this otherwise toxic metal and suffered few ill effects from drinking the water. Recently a filtration plant has been installed in the town which has reduced the levels of arsenic and other contaminants in the local water supply.