Leonardo DiCaprio's diamond factory in Spain angers locals

Residents in a tiny Spanish town are battling against the installation of several electricity towers to power a synthetic diamond factory, of which American actor Leonardo DiCaprio is a major investor.

Trujillo, in the western province of Cáceres (Extremadura) and the birthplace of conquistador Francisco Pizarro, will be home to Diamond Foundry from 2025, a company that “grows” diamonds using plasma reactors that reproduce the pressure and heat conditions necessary to make them.

These diamonds, free from all the moral and environmental problems associated with diamond extraction as shown in DiCaprio’s 2006 hit film "Blood Diamond", are made in between 6 to 10 weeks.

However, doing so needs a lot of electricity and this is where the clash with locals comes from.

Residents in Trujillo, who are generally supportive of the project, have rejected the installation of 22 forty metre electricity towers to supply the factory.

This is principally because the towers would cross El Berrocal, a protected nature area with views of the walled city that is home to prehistoric and Medieval ruins. Trujillo is known for its natural beauty and was once a candidate to become a World Heritage Site.

A view of the picturesque town of Trujillo, where the Diamond Foundry will be. Photo: Ardo Beltz/Wikipedia. (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Lin Mateos, spokesman from the Save El Berrocal Platform, told La Sexta that this would not be allowed to happen elsewhere. The towers "cannot be put in front of the wall of Ávila, or Lugo," he argued, referring to two other historic walled cities in Spain.

"Imagine putting these towers 400 meters from the Alhambra... it can't be allowed."

Local residents are now on a war footing and have already protested outside the town hall.

"We consider this an outrage which is an attack on the city, the landscape and El Berrocal, a protected area," Mateos adds.

The Fund for the Defense of the Natural and Cultural Heritage of Extremadura (FONDENEX) has asked the Environment Prosecutor's Office to investigate whether the power towers could be considered a crime against historical-artistic heritage.

Many local residents are not opposed to the factory itself, which will create around 300 jobs, but the prospect of it ruining the local landscape. "If the factory is on urban land, the rules state that high-voltage lines have to be underground," Aurelio Moreno, a Trujillo, told Spanish outlet La Sexta.

The factory is set to open for production in 2025.