Readers of Frontera NorteSur in the El Paso-Ciudad Juárez-New Mexico area might be interested in an upcoming public meeting on the environmental remediation project underway at the former Asarco smelter site in El Paso, Texas. Called by the Custodial Trustee in charge of the remediation, the meeting is scheduled for Thursday, June 16 at the El Paso Downtown Public Library from 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm. The address is 501 North Oregon Street.

Any additional information will be available on the Trust’s website: www.recastingthesmelter.com

After more than a century of operation, the final owner of the smelter, Grupo Mexico, suspended work in 1999. Asarco’s iconic smokestacks were finally demolished in 2013 and no longer dominate the Paso del Norte skyline. For many years, Frontera NorteSur has extensively covered the numerous controversies over El Paso’s Asarco operation.

Located at the junction of El Paso, Ciudad Juárez and Sunland Park, New Mexico, Asarco provided thousands of jobs to locals and was a regional economic powerhouse. However, the facility was also linked to environmental contamination and worker health and safety concerns.

Interested readers can check out some of Frontera NorteSur’s most recent pieces about Asarco at the following links:

https://fnsnews.nmsu.edu/will-el-pasos-historic-smelter-workers-ever-see-health-justice/

https://fnsnews.nmsu.edu/daddy-smelters-dirty-little-souvenirs/

https://fnsnews.nmsu.edu/the-toxic-ghosts-of-asarco/

Frontera NorteSur: on-line, U.S.-Mexico border news
Center for Latin American and Border Studies
New Mexico State University
Las Cruces, New Mexico

Source: http://www.grass-roots-press.com/2016/06/11/public-meeting-on-former-asarco-smelter-site/