As part of the protest, a number of different sculptures in the city were covered with face masks. Photograph by Sergio Gonzalez. Published with permission. Since March 2016, the city of Medellín, Colombia, has been affected by air pollution. The environmental problem is caused by different factors, including the El Niño weather phenomenon, a rise in the number of car parks, and the geographic location of the city itself (located in a valley) which causes the smog to stay trapped between the mountains. Medellín, which has historically held the nickname of “City of Eternal Spring,” was quickly and sarcastically renamed by web users #Medehollín, “hollín” meaning “soot” in English. Spanish-language Wikipedia defines soot as: …partículas sólidas de tamaño muy pequeño, desde unos 100 nanómetros (100 nm) hasta 5 micras (5 μm) como máximo. En su mayoría compuestas de carbono impuro, pulverizado, y generalmente de colores oscuros más bien negruzcos resultantes de la combustión incompleta de un material (madera, carbón, etc). Su aspecto es similar a la ceniza pero con un tono más negro. …tiny solid particles, from 100 nanometres (100 nm) to 5 microns (5 μm) maximum. Mostly composed of impure coal, crushed, and generally dark in colour or blackish resulting from the incomplete combustion of a material (wood, coal, etc). It looks similar to ash, but blacker in tone. The incident caused such a stir, that one of the country's national newspapers, Revista Semana, published a piece explaining the origin of the hashtag. Así nació el hashtag ‘#MedeHollín‘ –> https://t.co/Fml6WWAXOY (foto vía @JFValenciaF) pic.twitter.com/u47pKp9SFw — Revista Semana (@RevistaSemana) April 4, 2016 How the hashtag ‘#MedeHollín‘ came to be However, while some find it all amusing, the city's mayor, Federico Gutiérrez, was quick to issue a call to stop “degrading” Medellín by naming it as such: Señores @RevistaSemana con todo respeto. Estamos viviendo una emergencia ambiental. Somos #Medellín NO #Medehollín . De esta también salimos — Federico Gutiérrez (@FicoGutierrez) April 3, 2016 Ladies and Gentlemen @RevistaSemana, with all due respect, we are experiencing an environmental emergency. We are #Medellín NOT #Medehollín. We will get through this too. Citizen commentary ranges from calls to protect the environment, use of masks to protect yourself and opt for a bicycle, to the publication of up-to-date figures on the situation as its happening. Those living in Medellín like Juan Herrera thought that the problem is caused by a lack of care for their environment by the residents themselves: No hacen falta las palabras. #Medehollin lo siento mucho, esta gente no te quiere como tanto dicen. pic.twitter.com/QvUpceFkqG — Juan Herrera (@herrerajuans) April 1, 2016 No need for words. #Medehollin I'm so sorry, these people don't love you as much as they say. Meanwhile, Daniel Urrea published a photo on Instagram reluctantly wearing a face mask: El nuevo juguete. Cero divertido: muy necesario. Indignación. #Medehollín A photo posted by George Falconer (@danielup_) on New toy. Not fun: very necessary. Indignation. #Medehollín Daniel Suárez shared that deaths due to respiratory causes in the city have increased: En #Medehollin se dispararon las muertes por enfermedades respiratorias, causantes por contamina pic.twitter.com/XzUJn5NW2q — Daniel Suárez (@Danielsuarezvoz) 14 de abril de 2016 In #Medehollin deaths from respiratory illnesses are going up, caused by pollution. A Change.org petition is also channeling residents’ responses to the situation. In the petition's explanation, its creator Pablo Montoya unpacked the environmental, economic, governmental and societal reasons which are behind the pollution crisis in Medellín: Para mí, una de las razones principales de esta crisis, no solo ambiental sino también social, es la gran cantidad de carros y motocicletas que entran a Medellín y sus municipios aledaños. Cantidad que hace tiempos excedió, y con demasía, las capacidades mismas que tiene nuestro espacio para enfrentarla. Se sabe que el arribo del flujo automotriz se hace sin ningún control, o con controles pírricos en los que están directamente comprometidas la empresa privada y las autoridades estatales. No es necesario describir ahora este contubernio corrupto que solo funciona en aras de enriquecer a algunos. For me, one of the biggest reasons for this crisis, not only environmental but also social, is the large number of cars and motorbikes which come into Medellín and its neighbouring towns. It is a number which exceeds, by a long way, our capacity to deal with it.