October 6 - Public Hearing on the Texas Rail Plan

Fellow Texan:

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is in the process of developing a comprehensive rail plan for Texas. The Texas Rail Plan will serve to guide future actions of TxDOT in cooperation with our rail partners as we work to meet the freight and passenger rail needs of the state.

We have traveled throughout the state this year conducting seven rail visioning workshops and ten public meetings to hear your ideas and get your input regarding the future of our state's rail system. Through this process we have developed a draft of the Texas Rail Plan that is ready for your review and feedback at the link referenced below.

We will hold a final public hearing on October 6, 2010, at 1:30 p.m. (CST) at the TxDOT Auditorium in Building 200, Room 1A-1 at 200 East Riverside Drive, Austin, Texas. If you are unable to attend the hearing, we encourage you to visit our website at: http://www.txdot.gov/public_involvement/rail_plan/default.htm to review the draft document and provide comments. The mailing address, if preferred, is also available at this link.

Following the public hearing, and a 30-day comment period, we will analyze the feedback and finalize the plan for submittal to the Texas Transportation Commission for adoption. Afterwards, TxDOT will submit the Texas Rail Plan to the Federal Railroad Administration for coordination with the National Rail Plan.  The plan will also be made available to the Texas legislature for their consideration.

TxDOT values your participation in laying the foundation for the Texas Rail Plan and creating a vision for the future of rail in Texas. We hope you will participate in this important planning process.

... inquiries may be directed to AskTxDOT@dot.state.tx.us

Texas Department of Transportation * 125 E. 11th Street * Austin, TX 78701 * (512) 463-8585

"(AMM) Asarco's legal battles rage on despite Chapter 11 exit" Federal DOJ, TX/WA/MT lose big

"Google Alert

(AMM) Asarco's legal battles rage on despite Chapter 11 exit
Metalbulletin.com (subscription)
Asarco LLC's legal team received a reprieve Sept. 29 when a Texas judge denied substantial contribution claims made by the US government and three states in ..."

"NEW YORK 01 October 2010 Asarco LLC's legal team received a reprieve Sept. 29 when a Texas judge denied substantial contribution claims made by the U.S. government and three states in the company's Chapter 11 bankruptcy case. Judge Richard Schmidt of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas rejected applications by Texas, Washington, Montana and the U.S. Department of Justice for more than $22 million in fees and expenses associated with Asarco's bankruptcy. According to Schmidt's memorandum opinion, the government movants had already received payment in previously settled environmental claims. "

"Mine giant Grupo Mexico gains upper hand in Sonora : Asarco workers here worry that union losses in Cananea dispute could carry over"

http://azstarnet.com/business/local/article_413da48c-6854-5956-881f-5d70a8551b27.html

"CANANEA, Sonora - The Mexican conglomerate that owns Tucson-based Asarco LLC is winning a long labor conflict south of the border, a victory that could reverberate across North America....Arizona mining contractors, such as Tucson-based Modular Mining Systems, are benefiting from the re-opening of the massive mine by making sales there....This outsourcing of labor tells Bensusan, the Mexico City researcher, that Grupo Mexico is winning in its effort to undercut independent unions...."

ASARCO Denver CO site -- "assumption of environmental cleanup"

compare this clean-up with Superfund effort at Asarco E. Helena MT 

"Google alert
Colorado business park to get funds - The Denver Post
The 77-acre former Asarco property north of downtown is targeted for 1.1 million square feet of industrial development after it is cleaned up. ...
www.denverpost.com/commented/ci_16211013?source...
"

"After the site is cleaned up, Adams County will contribute $10 million to develop the site from a grant it received from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. .....Brownfield Partners reached an agreement with Asarco in 2006 to buy the property out of bankruptcy. At the time, it said it would redevelop the site as a high-end industrial business park.   ....Asarco valued the transaction at about $8 million, largely as a result of the liability transfer, assumption of environmental cleanup and decommissioning of the facility."

Testing at Asarco [El Paso] : Has XRF been used and if not, why [and what about RADON]

Mr. Puga:

Current research by M.D.'s (2009) show significant radon contamination throughout El Paso - heavily associated with the dirt outside of homes, and they recommend clean-up.  The levels are very significant.  It is very interesting that you state "El Paso County has low radon potential" when the medical doctors are finding radon to be a huge problem here. 

We already know from the EPA that El Paso TX had the highest Beta Radiation levels in the nation just before Asarco El Paso shut down in 2/99.  Mr. Bill Luthans asserted that this was "naturally occurring radiation" (or "NORM"/"TENORM") and said it was not a problem - but could not provide data to back-up his statement that the radiation was not a problem.

You are incorrect to state that "Radon gas, which is a naturally occurring substance, is not measured using XRF methods".   Radon is an element that appears from radium decay, and can be detected with many different methods.  It is radioactive and hazardous to our health.  

You did not provide any links or documents showing any XRF data from ASARCO.  In fact, Asarco El Paso refused to allow XRF technology to be tested on-site) to determine what chemicals have been left here by the nearly ten years of illegal, untracked, incineration of both military and industrial wastes for profit by Asarco El Paso.  

I would like to know why Project Navigator continues to dodge the question of the illegal chemical residues at the site.  I would like Project Navigator to provide data showing the radon, radium and radio-isotope levels at the site. 

EPA has provided proof now that ASARCO handled radioactive materials.

I would like to know who Mary Koks is (you copied her on your reply) at <mkoks@munsch.com>; and, why you felt it necessary to also copy the TCEQ attorney, Caroline Sweeney on your reply.  Are Radon and NORM/TENORM at ASARCO something that Project Navigator is afraid to discuss with the public?

Details about what chemicals have been left here by the nearly ten years of illegal, untracked, incineration of both military and industrial wastes for profit by Asarco El Paso continue to be kept secret; but, such secrecy/gag is likely illegal now that the Federal Dept. of Justice made the confidential-for-settlement-purposes-only EPA-DOJ-Asarco agreement public domain.   

Project Navigator should honor the intent of this public-domain-release of information; and, also the La Paz Accord JAC committee International Recommendation (to measure background contamination levels).   To continue to withhold full disclosure from the public about the poisons remaining around this site is ethically and morally wrong; potentially places the elderly, the young, the unborn and the ill in grave dangers that could be averted; and potentially puts Project Navigator in the sad role of making profits in a fake clean-up at the expense of our future generations.

-------- Original Message --------

Subject:	RE: Testing at Asarco: Has XRF been used and if not, why
Date:	Thu, 30 Sep 2010
From:	Roberto Puga <rpuga(at)projectnavigator.com>

Hello  ---,

 

Thank you again for your continuing interest in this project.  We offer the following responses to your questions:

 

1. Laboratory-type X-ray fluorescence (XRF) methods were employed in the past by Asarco to measure metal concentrations in soils and slag. Any results relating to X-ray and other analysis reported to the various regulatory agencies are documented in the remedial investigation reports produced for the site. These reports are available in the public record from the TCEQ and on the Trust website. 
2. Remedial contractors typically employ portable XRF screening tools for qualitative measurements during remediation of metal impacted sites.  The approved use of any analytical tools which may include XRF screening tools will be outlined in the appropriate work plans and procedures which will be posted on the Trust website.
3. Radon gas, which is a naturally occurring substance, is not measured using XRF methods, and in any case is not a constituent of concern at the site.  According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, El Paso County has low radon potential.  Outside ventilated, above-grade commercial buildings, which includes the plant office, (the only occupied building on the site) are generally not surveyed for radon.  Since radon is not a constituent of concern and there is no indication of radon sources there is not a concern for radon accumulation.  Testing requirements for constituents in stormwater runoff are detailed in the site discharge permit, which does not include radon.
4. The Trust has been extraordinarily transparent in all of its activities, and has posted requested information on its web-site.  The Trust will continue its policy as it completes its mission for the site.
5. We advise every one of the potential hazards at the site, and our Health and Safety program mandates training, personnel protection and monitoring for workers that may come in contact with constituents of concern.

 

Regards,

 

Roberto Puga

Trustee

 

---

From:
Sent: Saturday, September 18, 2010
To: Roberto Puga; Elizabeth Schell
Subject: Testing at Asarco: Has XRF been used and if not, why

 

To:  Project Navigator
Fr:  ---
sb:  XRF technology

Has XRF technology been used to test at the ASARCO El Paso site, and if not, then why not?

If XRF technology has been used then please advise us to the results of that testing.

XRF can detect Radon (element #86).  It is radioactive and is a known health hazard.  What were the results for Radon within the buildings and for the run-off/effluent water from ASARCO?

Do I need to force further disclosure through a P.I.A. or FOIA?  Please let me know.

Please also advise your potential contractors about the years of illegal toxic-waste burnings at Asarco; and, also advise any potential Project Navigator-UTEP interns of child-bearing-age of these chemicals.

- ---

Center for Biological Diversity and Sierra Club lawsuit Asarco llc, the BLM and the Department of the Interior : Circuit Judge reverses decision of the district court that approved BLM actions

"

OPINION

W. FLETCHER, Circuit Judge.

The Center for Biological Diversity, the Western Land Exchange Project, and the Sierra Club (collectively, "Appellants") bring suit against Asarco LLC ("Asarco"), a mining company, and the Department of Interior and the Bureau of Land Management (collectively, "BLM"). Appellants contend that the BLM's approval of a land exchange violates the National Environmental Policy Act ("NEPA"), 42 U.S.C. §§ 4321-70; the Federal Land Policy and Management Act ("FLPMA"), 43 U.S.C. §§ 1701-87; and the Mining Law of 1872, 30 U.S.C. §§ 21-54.

If the proposed exchange does not occur, the land will continue to be owned by the United States. In that event, Asarco will be permitted to conduct mining operations on the land only if it complies with the Mining Law of 1872. Specifically, Asarco will not be able to conduct a new mining operation on the land without first submitting a Mining Plan of Operations ("MPO") to the BLM. The MPO would have to include detailed information about the operations, management, monitoring, and environmental impacts of the proposed mining activities. The BLM would then have to approve the MPO before the new mining could proceed.

If the proposed exchange occurs, Asarco would take fee simple ownership of the exchanged land. In that event, Asarco's use of the land would not be subject to the requirements of the Mining Law of 1872. Asarco has spent sixteen years, and considerable amounts of time and money, seeking to achieve private ownership of the exchanged land, which would allow Asarco to avoid having to prepare the MPOs that are required so long as the land remains in public hands.

As part of the process of approving the land exchange, the BLM prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement ("FEIS") pursuant to NEPA. In the FEIS, the BLM assumed without analysis that the MPO process would impose no constraints on, and would have no effect on, the manner in which Asarco would conduct new mining operations on the exchanged land. That is, the BLM assumed that the manner and extent of Asarco's new mining operations would be the same whether or not the United States owned the land. Because of this assumption, the BLM did not compare the environmental effects of exchanging the land with the effects of not exchanging the land.

Under these circumstances, we hold that the BLM has not "taken a `hard look' at the environmental consequences of its proposed action" in violation of NEPA, and that its action was therefore arbitrary and capricious. Blue Mountain Biodiversity Project v. Blackwood, 161 F.3d 1208, 1211 (9th Cir. 1998). We also hold that the BLM's approval of the proposed land exchange was a violation of FLPMA and similarly arbitrary and capricious. Webb v. Lujan, 960 F.2d 89, 91 (9th Cir. 1992). We therefore reverse the decision of the district court approving the actions of the BLM.

."

USA sues Asarco, llc (FKA Asarco, Inc. -- see Swiss Asarco Bank [Asarco A.G.] associated with Asarco SA/Asarco Inc.)

"Google Alert:
USA v. ASARCO :: Justia Dockets & Filings
US Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit - Other Statutes - Environmental Matters - USA v. ASARCO - Justia Federal Dockets and Filings.
dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/ca9/10-35824/
"
"

Defendant - Appellant:	ASARCO, LLC, FKA ASARCO, Inc.
Plaintiff - Appellee:	UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Case Number:	10-35824
Filed:	September 17, 2010
Court:	U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
Nature of Suit:	Other Statutes - Environmental Matters
Previous Case:	United States v. ASARCO, Inc. (6:1998cv00003)

"

Will TXDOT conceal the illegal secret chemicals at ASARCO El Paso, too??

How far does the corruption and secrecy extend?  

Google Alert
"Fix for UTEP traffic jam: $7M overpass
El Paso Inc
It's a much more complicated project, TxDOT officials say, since it involves historic neighborhoods, the former Asarco property and railroads, ..."

DOJ Asarco settlement agreement filing August 24, 2010 in Texas : Kelly Camp Mine, Bruce Gelber, Alan Tenenbaum, David Dain, Eric Albert, Ramos, Barron

"Google Alert:
USDOJ: Environment and Natural Resources Division : IN RE ASARCO, LLC
ENRD Home | Proposed Consent Decrees | IN RE ASARCO, LLC. Case, Comment Period. IN RE ASARCO, LLC, 09/10/10 - 10/12/10. Settlement Agreement 0.36 MBytes ...
www.justice.gov/enrd/3557.htm
"

2010 Sept. 8: Government argues that 75 mil settlement with former Asarco principal bondholder Citigroup is"fair, adequate, reasonable and in the public interest."

2010 Sept. 8:  "The government is defending as "fair and adequate" its $75 million settlement with Citigroup Inc. over charges it misled investors about billions in potential losses from subprime mortgages....The $75 million represents less than 0.3 percent of Citigroup's $22.07 billion in revenue in the second quarter of this year, the SEC noted....The bank has nearly $2 trillion in assets...."

http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/09/08/2453998/sec-defends-75-million-deal-with.html#ixzz0z1RR9YZS

Morgan Stanley bank backs out of Revel Casino in New Jersey (April 2010)

Morgan Stanley bank backs out of Revel Casino in New Jersey

April 2010:  "...[Morgan Stanley] says it will be selling its stake in Revel Entertainment Group LLC's Revel casino in Atlantic City, N.J. The investment bank, which had invested $1.2 billion into the project, says it will "take a substantial loss...Morgan Stanley will be getting cents on the dollar."

Asarco Swiss Bank deceased President "Mikhail Katamanin's assets spark a legal brawl..."

"Google Alert: Mikhail Katamanin's assets spark a legal brawl
Detroit Free Press
Lawyers for the Swiss company, Asarco, and an attorney for his two adult sons declined to comment. One of the sons, Dean Katamanin, also declined to comment ..."

(for more information do a search within the epgtlo.blogspot.com blog for "Asarco A.G." or "Katamanin" or "Asarco Swiss bank")

Asarco A.G. (Swiss Bank) president died 12-09 without filing bankruptcy papers ... attorneys argue that estate should be settled in Russia...

"....Katamanin also had a home in Switzerland and two apartments in Moscow, according to court filings. In the final year of his life, his passport was stamped 54 times in eight countries, records show....A Russian citizen, he died at age 53 in December in Zurich...of a heart ailment....In March 2008, Katamanin and a man representing himself as an agent of Asarco [Asarco S.A., Asarco inc.] signed the loan agreement under which Plymouth agreed to transfer $12 million into Katamanin’s Swiss bank account, the agreement states. But lawyers ...say...his estate should be settled under Russian law."

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2010/08/dead-businessman-leaves-behind-pile-of-debt-battle-for-assets.html

Asarco Hayden will smelt siliceous flux for gold and silver

"Google Alerts
Santa Fe Gold Supplies Trial Shipment of Siliceous Flux to Arizona ...
Santa Fe Gold Corporation (OTCBB:SFEG) is pleased to announce it has contracted with ASARCO LLC ("Asarco") to supply a trial shipment of 1000 tons of ...
story.albuquerqueexpress.com/index.php/ct/9/.../38146371/
"

""This initial trial of siliceous flux to Asarco's Hayden smelter, together with a similar trial conducted earlier this year with Freeport-McMoRan Miami's smelter, is expected to lead to long term contracts," said Pierce Carson, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Flux sales potentially could be quite significant to Santa Fe and could account for a substantial portion of ore mined at Summit."

Asarco El Paso TX Smelter stack to be brought down BEFORE DISCLOSING WHAT SECRETS TOXINS REMAIN

What do the Environmental Officials/DOJ and ASARCO continue to hide?  They are removing the Asarco stack before they disclose what toxins remain in the region from the years of illegal hidden waste-incineration.  Stacks can prove the point-source of industrial emissions down to the dust-particle level (SEM analysis) and easily assign monetary blame and responsibility. 

The La Paz Accord Internation Joint Advisory Committee for Air passed a resolution over 18 months ago recommending a comprehensive study to show what the background contaminants were in the Paso del Norte and the EPA HAS NOT RESPONDED.  People within the EPA, the DOJ and TCEQ continue to dodge the questions.  No study has been done to determine what actinides remain here or how much radioactive nickel or polonium etc. from the years of unlisted, secret waste burning.  Despite six years of asking, the community have yet to get answers.


"Google Alerts
Asarco Demolition Date Scheduled | KTSM News Channel 9
Asarco Demolition Date Scheduled. By Alexa Helms Multimedia JournalistAnchor ... Opinions vary on what to do with the Asarco smokestacks ...
www.ktsm.com/news/asarco-demolition-date-scheduled
"

Asarco rewards those who kept the secret of the corrupt illegal haz-waste El Paso CONTOP incineration with promotions and retirement

Instead of full disclosure to the taxpayers of El Paso County and the community of the Paso del Norte region, the former Manager and the person in charge of the world's two largest CONTOP furnaces got full retirement and promotion.

Instead of prison.

While Asarco employees as a group slowly die from terrible cancers, m.s., and other diseases commonly associated with exposure to industrial poisons, the managment who let this happen and did not disclose what was going on get retirement and promotion.

Where is our Federal oversight, where is our Federal Dept. of Justice?  Why are taxpayers and employees being left in the dark while the company management escapes accountability for what the EPA secretly told the Federal DOJ was illegal activity done over almost a DECADE?!

Asarco General Manager Retires MyHighPlainscom
Larry Castor, general manager of the Asarco Amarillo Copper Refinery, is retiring effective Aug. 31, after 34 years with the company.
myhighplains.com/fulltext?nxd_id=151065

"Castor ... and his wife, Joni, plan to take off the next two years to explore and spend time in various places in the U.S. and abroad....Jones...will become the seventh general manager of the Asarco Amarillo Copper Refinery since start of operations in 1975."

March 2010 Whistleblower exposes J.P. Morgan Chase [Asarco had a "$450 million Revolving Credit Agreement with J.P. Morgan Chase & Co] precious metals market manipulation

"A London trader walks the CFTC through a silver manipulation in advance"

..."On March 23, 2010, GATA Director Adrian Douglas was contacted by a whistleblower by the name of Andrew Maguire. Maguire is a metals trader in London. He has been told first-hand by traders working for JPMorganChase that JPMorganChase manipulates the precious metals markets, and they have bragged to how they make money doing so."

April 11, 2010 New York Post:
Metal$ are in the pits Trader blows whistle on gold & silver price manipulation by MICHAEL GRAY

"Maguire -- in an exclusive interview with The Post -- explained JPMorgan's role in the metals pits in both London and here, and how they can generate a profit either way the market moves.

"JPMorgan acts as an agent for the Federal Reserve; they act to halt the rise of gold and silver against the US dollar. JPMorgan is insulated from potential losses [on their short positions] by the Fed and/or the US taxpayer," Maguire said."

May 24, 2010
Serious manipulation’ Of Gold Silver Markets

"...Maguire rebuked the CFTC: “It is common knowledge here in London among the metals traders that it is JPM’s (JPMorgan Chase’s) intent to flush out and cover as many shorts as possible prior to any discussion in March about position limits. ....WND asked JPMorgan Chase to reply to Maguire’s charges. “We have no knowledge of who Andrew Maguire is,” Brian Marchiony, a spokesman for JPMorgan Chase told WND. “We have no comment on Maguire’s charges.”

"USW Announces Observers for Strike at Mexican [ASARCO's old owner Grupo Mexico] Copper Mine"

 

"PITTSBURGH, Aug. 20 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Leo W. Gerard, International President of the United Steelworkers (USW), today announced a cross-border effort is being undertaken to place a rotating team of international observers in northern Mexico's city of Cananea to monitor the presence of 3,000 illegal federal police who are intimidating striking copper miners of the Los Mineros independent union....USW National Director for Canada Ken Neumann in Toronto – has also called on Mexican President Felipe Calderon to assist a peaceful resolution of the strike, which is mainly over issues of health and safety....According to Los Mineros strike leaders, the Mexican government is behind recent actions that have begun terminating electric power at some of the strikers' homes as another example of attempts to intimidate and frustrate their standing up for their rights under Mexican labor laws...."

Project Navigator Trustee Office dodges Asarco Waste and Water Contamination questions

Ms. Schell,
the following makes no scientific or "legal" sense. Surely Project Navigator can provide better answers than this and not waste our time.

See my response.

"[Project Navigator]Response: Both the GAO and EPA have fully investigated and reported on the hazardous waste issue involving Encycle and Asarco. In a February 16, 2010 letter to the EPA, several environmental groups presented eight (8) different issues they had with the cleanup of the former ASARCO site. A major request/issue was # 3B: “EPA should make public all information concerning the type, source and amounts of hazardous waste that were illegally incinerated at the facility.” In their May 11, 2010 response the EPA supported TCEQ’s determination that ASARCO was a metal contaminated site and that “EPA has no data that “product” sent by Encycle to ASARCO contained organic chemicals.”

"

GAO did NOT investigate ASARCO. In fact, your "legal" argument is one that the ASARCO attorney himself gave me over the telephone and it is flat out wrong. If you phone the G.A.O. you will be able to confirm for yourself that the investigation was not about ASARCO but about how the military in general handled hazardous waste disposal - and that the GAO included the Asarco handling of RMA (Rocky Mt. Arsenal) waste only as one of many examples they studied. As far as the EPA "full investigation", please READ the 1998 EPA to DOJ Asarco confidential for settlement purposes only document in which the EPA stated that ASARCO had burned unmanifested illegal hazardous waste for profit for years. Rep. Reyes made a public statement soon after declaring that ASARCO had paid millions of dollars on the condition that the details of what it had done would never become public. Yet, this matter is now in the public domain with that release of the DOJ EPA asarco confidential for settlement purposes only document.

As far as your quote stating “EPA has no data that “product” sent by Encycle to ASARCO contained organic chemicals.” -- Please clarify -- I never asked you to test for organic chemicals from Encycle even though we know that the site is contaminated with PCB's and Dioxins (all secondary smelters are producers of the latter). I have asked our environmental agencies to test for actinides and radioactive isotopes -- and, this has not been done. So, since "...in their May 11, 2010 response the EPA supported TCEQ’s determination that ASARCO was a metal contaminated site" WHY HASN'T THIS TESTING (metals and transition metals) BEEN DONE?

Ms. Schell, you write that current onsite electrical workers did not contact Asarco waste [ "PNL workers fully are trained and informed about any current or potential site hazards and are outfitted accordingly. Workers performing electrical work are not in contact with waste and therefore do not need hazmat gear to perform the work. Additionally, workers have been informed of any on site risks."]. This is inherently incredulous, Ms. Schell,
since TCEQ/EPA/Asarco have all documented the heavy industrial-levels-of-contamination at that site with arsenic, and this is odorless, tasteless and documented as being in the air there. Those workers were not wearing masks made to remove vapors or nanoparticles of arsenic.

We ask that the Trustee now address the problem honestly. The International JAC La Paz Accord group has also asked for full disclosure of the Asarco background chemicals left here from its operations. This should include testing for polonium, lead isotopes including radioactive ones, radon, radium precursors for radon, actinides including tritium, uranium, plutonium, and any isotopes from naturally occurring radioisotopes.

In regards to the ammonia-tank. I did not ask about a tank being removed. I asked why a tank was added, and what it had been used for while this site was supposed to have been "idled".

In regards to your statement that "the Trustee will maintain this storm water system through closure of the site. The storm water system that will remain after closure has not been designed yet. " Please explain to me how this present storm water system meets the conditions of the 9-2006 SW-5 permit that says that all stormwater from the Asarco site will be handled via the City stormwater system and not discharged to the RioGrande. According to your statement "SW-5 is located at the western edge of the Former Asarco plant property and discharges through a culvert below the B.N.& S.F. railroad tracks. The permitted discharge for storm water goes into the Rio Grande". THIS SITE IS NOT PERMITTED FOR DISCHARGING STORMWATER TO THE RIO GRANDE, THE AMERICAN CANAL or PAISANO.

Incorrect Asarco Bankruptcy Powerpoint for U.S. EPA HQ, OECA/OSRE,Superfund Symposium,Indianapolis, Indiana,August 10-12, 2010

To:  Mr. Elliott J. Gilberg, Director Wa. D.C. EPA Office of Site Remediation and Enforcement
Fr:   El Paso TX
sb:  Asarco Bankruptcy Powerpoint for U.S. EPA HQ, OECA/OSRE,Superfund Symposium,Indianapolis, Indiana,August 10-12, 2010
http://www.astswmo.org/files/meetings/2010SSMS/Presentations/Gillberg-ASARCO_Bankruptcy-Handout.pdf

Mr. Gilberg,

Your powerpoint leaves out the EPA-DOJ Asarco Confidential-for-Settlement-Purposes-only document in which the EPA proved ASARCO illegally burned secret (unmanifested) hazardous-wastes deliberately for profit for nearly ten years here in El Paso TX and also E. Helena  MT.
http://archives.newspapertree.com/Asarco/asarco_1998_memo.pdf

I would like to know why you did not let conference attendees know about this massive almost-decade-long burning of illegal wastes from both military and industrial sources - this proof was released by the DOJ in 2006 (see NYTIMES 10/2006) and now is in the public domain after eight years of secrecy.

ASARCO Bondholder Citigroup's head of Latin America team handled CEMEX acquisition of RMC and a 1.1 Billion$ offer for Grupo Mexico S.Peru Corp.

Link to Warton Finance Document 2005

"John Boord heads Citigroup Global Markets' Latin America Investment Banking
team....The Citigroup Latin America Investment Banking
team has recently been involved in a number of high-profile transactions
including:
- advising Cemex on the acquisition of RMC Group PLC in Europe,....and a $1.1 billion
offering for Southern Peru Copper scheduled to come to market next week."

Atlantic City Casino and ASARCO A.G. Swiss Bank-President Mikhail Katamanin

"Foreign investor Mikhail Katamanin, who in May was hit with a $12-million foreclosure lawsuit on his Highland Park mansion, filed a personal bankruptcy petition June 6 [2009] in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Chicago.... His debts are described as “primarily consumer,” and the list of creditors includes Atlantis at Paradise Island Resort & Casino in the Bahamas, Caesars Palace Las Vegas Hotel & Casino and Trump Taj Mahal Casino Hotel in Atlantic City. Chicago lawyer Kori Bazanos, who represents Mr. Katamanin, declined to comment. Related story: Lender asserts claim on lakefront mansion"

http://www.chicagorealestatedaily.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=34626

"A Caribbean investment company has sued to collect on a $12-million loan ...the property is held in trust by Swiss company Asarco A.G., which Mr. Mikhail [Katamanin] controls, according to the complaint and public records....lawyer Irving Drobny, who represents Asarco, is out of the country until next week, according to employees at his office....The claim also is to be arbitrated in Switzerland, according to the complaint."
http://www.chicagorealestatedaily.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=34626

March 2010 Philadelphia Inquirer .. discussing the “furor” over the involvement of the Chinese government in Morgan Stanley’s casino project Atlantic City

"Morgan Stanley is the financial adviser to Grupo Mexico, and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP is the company's legal counsel."

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-23/grupo-mexico-proposes-combining-asarco-southern-copper-mining-operations.html

"Reveling in Your Money

Posted: Tue, 30 Mar 2010 17:27:13 +0000

As we wait to see if Governor Christie will sign the bill that takes away the voter's right of referendum on a proposed $300 million tax break for Morgan Stanley's casino, two excellent new articles came out about the issue.

Paul Mulshine, an editorial writer with the Star Ledger, penned a piece entitled "Atlantic City's Revel casino: Wall Street's Reveling in your money."  In the piece, Mulshine wrote:

The prime backer of the half-finished Revel casino, Morgan Stanley, has put together a financing deal that relies on funding from the Chinese government. Yes, you read that right. The geniuses in Trenton are preparing to give a giant grant to a consortium of commies and Wall Streeters.

But as Doherty points out, both the Chinese and Morgan Stanley have plenty of money at the moment. Morgan Stanley got $10 billion in bailout funds, he said, so there's no reason they can't finish the project on their own.

Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Inquirer has a new article discussing the "furor" over the involvement of the Chinese government in Morgan Stanley's casino project."

ASARCO AMC SOUTHERN COPPER merger agreement being advised by Morgan Stanley and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

SEC filing for AMC ASARCO SOUTHERN COPPER merger includes the following exhibit: 99.1

..."Our proposal is conditioned on, among other things: the negotiation and execution of a mutually satisfactory definitive merger agreement and related agreements and the satisfaction of the conditions set forth therein; the recommendation of the Transaction, the terms thereof and any agreement or agreements relating thereto by a committee of independent directors of Southern Copper to the Board of Directors of Southern Copper; approval of the Transaction and definitive merger documentation by the Boards of Directors of Southern Copper and Grupo México and the Board of Directors and sole stockholder of AMC; AMC’s satisfaction, in its sole discretion, with the results of its due diligence review of Southern Copper; receipt of any governmental and of existing lender and other third-party consents and approvals; and the absence of a material adverse change in the business, results of operations, financial condition, assets, liabilities and prospects of Southern Copper.

We have assembled a team of advisors including Morgan Stanley and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP..."

http://www.faqs.org/sec-filings/100723/SOUTHERN-COPPER-CORP-_8-K/a10-14572_1ex99d1.htm

ASARCO Bankruptcy is over, but workers remain sick

"Ex-Asarco employees seek reason for illnesses by Chris Roberts \ EL PASO TIMES"

" 'Records of the chemicals processed at the plant have been incomplete and in most cases unavailable...'   'People want to cover it up, take down the smokestacks and forget this ever happened,' ...'They (employees) gave this company decades of their healthy years, and all they get is pain.'     Calls to the Asarco headquarters in Tucson seeking comment for this story were not returned."

Workers in 1942

Click on image to enlarge.

"Worker at carbon black plant. Sunray, Texas, 1942. Reproduction from color slide. Photo by Worker at carbon black plant John Vachon. Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress"
see
http ://blogs.denverpost.com/captured/2010/07/26/captured-america-in-color-from-1939-1943/

ASARCO gave EPA monies "from the large Bankruptcy settlement" according to EPA OIG report

page 4
"as the Agency refraining from drawing down from the Superfund Trust Fund at the Bureau of Public Debt for 4 months because the Agency received collections from the large ASARCO Bankruptcy Settlement for Superfund that occurred in the FY 2010 first quarter."

page 5
...'The Agency reported to OMB that the $309 million increase in Collected Spending Authority from Offsetting Collections is primarily due to the ASARCO Bankruptcy Settlement for the Superfund program that occurred in the FY 2010 first quarter.
..."The Agency reported to OMB that the $262 million increase in Change in Unfilled Customer Orders – Advances Received is primarily due to the ASARCO Bankruptcy Settlement for the Superfund program that occurred in the FY 2010 first quarter."

page 10
"The Agency reported to OMB that the $294 million increase in Cashout Advances, Superfund, is primarily due to the ASARCO Bankruptcy Settlement for the Superfund program that occurred in the FY 2010 first quarter."
www.epa.gov/oig/reports/2010/20100719-10-2-0166.pdf

ASARCO former principle-bondholder Citigroup now ordered to pay SEC over 70 million in fines$

"Citigroup to Pay $1 for Every $500 in Subprime Exposure It Hid
by Marian Wang
ProPublica, Yesterday, 4:08 p.m.
Citigroup has agreed to pay the SEC $75 million to settle charges that the bank hid exposure to more than $40 billion [1] in subprime CDOs. (That works out to roughly $1 fine for every $500 worth of hidden exposure.) Read the full SEC complaint".
http://www.propublica.org/blog/item/citigroup-to-pay-for-75-million-for-hiding-exposure-to-subprime-cdos

[do search on "Citigroup" in blog search engine]
[also see epgtlo.blogspot.com/2009/07/citigroup-comment-on-pemex.html ]

Grupo Mexico proposed merger of railroad units

"We are expecting the notification ... of this ruling will be by the end of August," Octavio Ornelas, a director of the company's transportation arm, said on a conference call for investors....'If Cofeco appeals that ruling, then we will spend another six to nine months in order to have a positive ruling so we will have that consolidation ready by the end of the first quarter of next year,' he said....Ferromex and Ferrosur are clustered under Grupo Mexico's transportation division, Infraestructura y Transportes Mexico, or ITM...."

http://www.miningweekly.com/article/grupo-mexico-says-rail-merger-depends-on-regulators-2010-07-29

Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) comprehensive rail plan

Asarco El Paso three years ago.... railroads

"Out in the West Texas Town of El Paso" from May 16th, 2007, THE TEXAS OBSERVER

"...[Rep. Joe] Pickett speculated that [Senator Eliot] Shapleigh’s efforts to block El Paso County [TX] from building or acquiring a tolled railroad bridge [SB 893] was designed to help developers in neighboring New Mexico. 'If you were applying for a presidential permit or talking to the federal folks about where to do a bridge, it would seem to me it would help your cause in New Mexico if there was some statute or some language that said it couldn’t be done in El Paso County...To have something like this is very suspect.' 

Verde Corporate Realty Services, established by El Paso billionare Bill Sanders, owns approximately 20,000 acres adjacent to New Mexico’s Santa Teresa Port of Entry, which is about a 30-minute drive from downtown El Paso. "

http://www.texasobserver.org/blog/index.php?name=out-in-the-west-texas-town-of-el-paso/
[only cached version now works]

Santa Teresa Port of Entry is less than ten miles from the ASARCO El Paso stacks/site (Tacoma WA Asarco contamination zone went out 200 square miles or more).   For more information use keyword search in blog for "Punta Colonet", "Ferromex", "railroad", "Foxcon".

For more about Asarco Grupo Mexico's railroad, read this

"Out in the West Texas Town of El Paso" from May 16th, 2007, THE TEXAS OBSERVER

"There’s a been a lot of talk of relocating rail lines to Santa Teresa, which would obviously benefit Sanders’ business parks. One 2003 study, which was prepared for the city of El Paso, recommended moving many regional urban rail facilities to Santa Teresa, including the Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Santa Fe’s rail yards in El Paso, as well as the Ferromex rail lines in Juárez.
In addition, Union Pacific Corp’s planning a $150 million terminal just four miles west of Santa Teresa that may process as many as 100,000 container units per year, according to news reports."

http://www.texasobserver.org/blog/index.php?name=out-in-the-west-texas-town-of-el-paso/
[only cached version now works]

ASARCO Grupo Mexico and potential I.P.O. railroad offer

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2318083620100723

July 23,2010:

"Grupo Mexico is also considering spinning off its railroad unit in an initial public offering next year."

[do keyword search in this blog for "Ferromex", or "Railroad" or "Punta Colonet"]

Grupo Mexico share-value rose today on news....

google alert:
"Grupo Mexico pitches Southern Copper Asarco merger
Shares in Mexican miner Grupo Mexico rose on Friday after the company said its wants to boost efficiency by fusing units Asarco and Peru's Southern Copper, ...
www.miningweekly.com/.../grupo-mexico-pitches-southern-c..."

Big Surprise (not!) "Grupo Mexico plans to unite Southern Copper, Asarco"

google alert:
"Grupo Mexico plans to unite Southern Copper, Asarco
Reuters
Packaging Asarco with Grupo Mexico's other mining assets in a publicly listed company sheds the first light on the value of Asarco after its bankruptcy saga ..."

Asarco Tacoma plume area impacted over 200 square miles: WHAT ABOUT ASARCO EL PASO??

"...Washington Department of Ecology is planning the next phase of arsenic and lead cleanup associated with a century of operations at the former Asarco smelter in Ruston.... These properties are within a 200 square-mile geographic “service area” that includes the most highly contaminated portions of the Tacoma Smelter Plume....."

"...Ecology will clean up ...areas with results that average above those cleanup levels or that have a reading of 40 parts ppm arsenic or 500 ppm for lead in one location...."

http://www.tacomaweekly.com/article/4603

University of Arizona research should declare conflicts of interest $$ concerning ASARCO involvement

UA first to study contaminants in dust and water
"KVOA Tucson News
KVOA contacted Asarco, the leading mining company based in Tucson, for reaction. A spokesperson says, "Asarco share's the study objective of minimizing ..."

ASARCO and Univ. of Arizona research on dust contamination

July 8 2010 KTSM News Channel 9 ASARCO EL Paso water contamination

"Asarco's Contamination
KTSM News Channel 9
By Phillip Mena - Multimedia Journalist EL PASO, TX - As the debate continues over what to do with Asarco, Dr. Philip Goodell wants people to understand ..."

ASARCO water contamination

"Sham Recycling Creates Sham Decision?
 
The TCEQ Executive Director's Asarco Air Permit Renewal decision ignores
hidden contamination in international waters, soils and air from secret
burning of toxic waste; What are elected officials, TCEQ and EPA
concealing?

    EL PASO, Texas, May 8 [2007]/PRNewswire/ -- Representative Reyes and the GAO
 fail to investigate the specific incident that involved Asarco - instead,
 "will focus on the overall procedures and processes that DOD follows for
 disposing of hazardous waste that is created by military facilities and how
 the transport and disposal of this type of waste by the contractors is
 monitored and tracked."
     At the base of the Asarco smelter, the International Boundary and Water
 Commission's (IBWC) American Dam diverts Rio Grande River water to over 70
 miles of public drinking supply and irrigation canals. American Dam
 employees are sick, and the State Department Office of the Inspector
 General (OIG) recommended bringing in expert independent medical review.
     The first canal travels along the Asarco ore handling staging area and
 chemical ponds. Representative Reyes' office calls the 9-04-06 Asarco levee
 collapse, spilling hundreds of thousands of gallons of poisons into this
 drinking water, a "minor incident." El Paso Water Utilities (EPWU) reports
 showed elevated poisons at the Canal Street station after the event. The
 EPWU Canal St. plant pumps water up the Franklin Mt. and distributes it
 throughout El Paso.
     IBWC data shows leakage of 24 million dollars worth of Asarco
 groundwater contamination into the canal, near where Asarco Hydrometrics
 consultants found groundwater arsenic levels at 35,000 times the legal
 limit. Alluvial sediment beneath the Rio Grande is filled with faultlines
 above the international Hueco Bolson aquifer.
     EPA Water officials cannot find any data for Rio Grande water tests at
 the smelter meant to confirm EPA data taken five years earlier, even though
 EPA mentioned the testing on public radio.
     Asarco is sending poisons from the bottom of its ponds to TX US
 Ecology, the company that also manages Hanford Reservation Nuclear Waste in
 Washington State. A complete chemical analysis of these poisons has not
 been made available despite requests.
     The El Paso GTLO, SPEG (Sunland Park Environmental Group), El Paso
 Sierra Club members and concerned groups want the Asarco Contamination
 exposed, the responsible officials to "step down," and correct clean-up to
 begin."

ASARCO El PASO to auction off assets without testing for or declaring the secret toxic-wastes used on that site

"By Phillip Mena - Multimedia Journalist

Friday, July 9, 2010 - 9:43am

EL PASO, TX - Roberto Puga, the man who will oversee the cleanup and eventual sale of the Asarco property will be in El Paso today to meet with an auctioneer company about the sale of Asarco's assets. 

Walter Parker Auctioneer Inc.  is the company picked to auction off Asarco's assets beginning August 2."

http://www.ktsm.com/news/asarcos-assets-to-be-auctioned

July 2010 ASARCO restructuring of Asarco LLC CAPCO Pipe Company (asbestos)

Google Alert:

HPCwire HPC Market Watch
ASARCO BANKRUPTCY NEWS tracks the restructuring of Asarco LLC CAPCO Pipe Company Inc ... ASARCO BANKRUPTCY NEWS is distributed to paying subscribers by ...
markets.hpcwire.com/taborcomm.hpcwire/?GUID...Page...

Why is there an ASARCO Swiss bank (Asarco inc., Asarco S.A.)?

Why on earth is there an ASARCO Swiss bank ("ASARCO A.G."associated with
Asarco inc and Asarco S.A.).

(search inside this blog for "Asarco A.G.")

20050408 Banks backing Noble corp.- deep ocean oil drilling that has platform now renting to Mexico.... and UBS LOAN FINANCE LLC --- 26 Banks, total....

About the time that Grupo Mexico's ASARCO declared bankruptcy, and went from an "Inc." to an "llc.":

20050408 Banks backing Noble corp.- deep ocean oil drilling that has platform now renting to Mexico.... and UBS LOAN FINANCE LLC --- 26 Banks, total....

"EXECUTION COPY CREDIT AGREEMENTParties: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A. | BANK OF NEW YORK | BANK OF TOKYO-MITSUBISHI, LTD. | CITIBANK, NA | COMERICA BANK | DEUTSCHE BANK AG | DEUTSCHE BANK SECURITIES INC | DNB NOR BANK | FORTIS CAPITAL CORP | HARRIS NESBITT FINANCING, INC | HSBC BANK USA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION | ING CAPITAL LLC | JP MORGAN SECURITIES INC | JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, NA | KBC BANK NV | MIZUHO CORPORATE BANK, LTD | MORGAN STANLEY BANK | NOBLE ENERGY, INC | ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND PLC | SECTION 711 Financial | SUMITOMO MITSUI BANKING CORPORATION | SUNTRUST BANK | UBS LOAN FINANCE LLC | UFJ BANK | US BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION | WACHOVIA BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION | WELLS FARGO BANK, NA
Law Firm: Thompson Knight;Mayer Brown
Document Date: 4/8/2005
Industry: OILPRD
Sector: ENERGY
Governing Law:Texas
http://agreements.realdealdocs.com/Thompson-Knight-law-firm/



Well, well…
From two years ago: July 28 2008
By richmx2
"Petróleos Mexicanos will pay $484,000 a day to Noble Corp. for an oil rig that will allow the company to drill in waters up to 7,000 feet deep for the first time.

Pemex, as Mexico’s state oil company is known, will take delivery of the Noble Max Smith rig in August under a three-year contract, Noble Corp. said in a statement.

The rig is being moved to Mexico from the U.S. Gulf of Mexico following upgrades and maintenance."

JUNE 28 2010 "Noble Corp (NE.N) said it would buy Norway's privately held Frontier Drilling for $2.16 billion"

"Noble's all-cash acquisition of Frontier, officially known as FDR Holdings Ltd, will add to cash flow immediately and to earnings from early 2011, the company said...Carlyle Group [owns 20% of Grupo Mexico who owns ASARCO] and Riverstone Holdings are investors in Frontier....Frontier, which is domiciled in Norway and headquartered in Houston, is building two ultra-deepwater drillships designed to operate in Arctic waters under a partnership with Shell."

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE65R2C520100628

Birkenfeld, the UBS Banker who exposed UBS

Whistle-blower advocates seek review of former UBS banker's treatment

"Whistle-blower advocates are asking U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to review the treatment of tipster Bradley C. Birkenfeld, the former UBS banker who was sentenced to 40 months in prison despite his pivotal help in the groundbreaking case against the Swiss banking giant."

20070917 ASARCO principle-bondholder Harbinger Capital sues Wachovia Capital Markets under "Cause:18:1962 Racketeering (RICO) Act just 5 months after Wachovia sues UBS and Harbinger...

"Harbinger Capital Partners Master Lund I, Ltd. et al v. Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC et al .... 
Case Number:     1:2007cv08139... 
Nature of Suit:     Other Statutes - Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations.."   9/17/2007

http://dockets.justia.com/docket/new-york/nysdce/1:2007cv08139/313179/

"Wachovia Bank, N.A. et al v. Harbinger Capital Partners Master Fund I, Ltd. et al
Plaintiffs:     Wachovia Bank, N.A. and Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC
Defendants:     Harbinger Capital Partners Master Fund I, Ltd., ....UBS Willow Fund, L.L.C...."
 
"Case Number:     3:2007cv00123
Filed:     March 22, 2007....
Cause:     28:1441 Petition For Removal--Other Contract..."

http://dockets.justia.com/docket/north-carolina/ncwdce/3:2007cv00123/48458/

Bank of America Corp and Wachovia Bank caught laundering huge Drug-monies

 

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-06-29/banks-financing-mexico-s-drug-cartels-admitted-in-wells-fargo-s-u-s-deal.html 

"The smugglers had bought the DC-9 with laundered funds they transferred through two of the biggest banks in the U.S.: Wachovia Corp. and Bank of America Corp., Bloomberg Markets magazine reports in its August 2010 issue."

 

Council of the Americas NAFTA and ASARCO

"Who's on the Council of the Americas? The following is a list of board members of the New York-based Council of the Americas, a globalist organization composed of banksters and corporate fat cats that is working with the Bush administration to expand NAFTA into a continental free trade zone."

"Francis R. McAllister, Pres. & Chief Operating Officer ASARCO Inc."
"Richard de J. Osborne, Chairman of the Board(Retired) ASARCO Incorporated"
"Brian d. O'Neill, Managing Director & Latin America Executive The Chase Manhattan Bank"
"William R. Rhodes, Vice Chairman Citibank, N.A."
"Federico Sacasa, Group Vice Pres. Bank of America"

"This list of members of the Council of the Americas was obtained from the group's web site located at www.counciloftheamericas.org."

http://www.libertylobby.org/articles/2001/20010521council_americas.html

Court upheld Grupo Mexico (ASARCO and Ferromex Railroad owner) acquisition of Carlos Slim Ferrosur railroad

"Grupo Mexico plans to sell shares in its railroad business in an
initial public offering, Chief Financial Officer Daniel Muniz said in an
May 21 interview. Grupo Mexico owns the Ferrocarril Mexicano SA, or
Ferromex, and Ferrosur SA railroad companies. A federal court upheld its
acquisition of Ferrosur, owned by billionaire Carlos Slim, which had
been halted by the antitrust commission in 2006 and prompted a
government probe."

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-05-31/grupo-mexico-lures-funds-as-railroad-mines-are-free-update2-.html

"BP is using federal agencies to shield itself from public accountability"

From the Ground: BP Censoring Media, Destroying Evidence

"...BP is using federal agencies to shield itself from public accountability.

For example, while flying on a small plane from New Orleans to Orange Beach, the pilot suddenly exclaimed, "Look at that!" The thin red line marking the federal flight restrictions of 3,000 feet over the oiled Gulf region had just jumped to include the coastal barrier islands off Alabama."...

Will BP get a confidential for settlement purposes-only EPA DOJ agreement like ASARCO did back in 1998??

How many confidential for settlement purposes-only EPA DOJ agreements exist?  How common are these secret agreements with the Federal DOJ ?

Google Web Alert

BP Bankruptcy Would Offer No Protection From Costs (Update2 ... After a federal judge discharged Asarco from bankruptcy in December, Associate U.S. Attorney General Tom Perrelli said taxpayers got more than a dollar back ... www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601010&sid=a55...

---

"...“The bankruptcy option is clearly there,” said John Olson, managing partner of Houston Energy Partners, a hedge fund unit of Sanders Morris Harris Group Inc. “BP’s board and CEO can say they’ve ruled it out, but you can’t rule it out, realistically.” Olson doesn’t hold any BP shares.

On June 13, White House Adviser David Axelrod called on BP to establish an escrow account for claims tied to the spill. U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid requested that the London-based company set up a $20 billion fund administered by an independent trustee, according to a letter from his office." [Asarco was asked to set up a fund for its wastes, too in the early days before its bankruptcy  - it then went through a bankruptcy that refrained from any mention or knowledge about liabilities from Asarco's nearly ten years of burning secret toxic-wastes for profit]

effects of Lead (Pb) -- like the Lead (Pb) found around ASARCO EL Paso TX

"[Lead is a naturally occurring bluish-gray metal found in small  amounts in the earth's crust. Lead can be found in all parts of our  environment. Lead itself does not break down, but lead compounds are  changed by sunlight, air, and water. When lead is released to the  air, it may travel long distances before settling to the ground. Once  lead falls onto soil, it usually sticks to soil particles. Movement  of lead from soil into groundwater will depend on the type of lead  compound and the characteristics of the soil.  Lead is a heavy metal that can be toxic to living bodies, humans and  animals, in certain high levels. Lead can be found in paints on  houses, on pottery, and other objects. Lead can be found in water, in  air around smelters, and in such objects as batteries.  When lead enters the body, generally through ingestion but also  through inhalation from dust and lead smelters, it may be seen as a  lead line on the metaphysis of growing bones in radiographs.  Lead can be especially detrimental to children as many tissues are  growing and developing and lead is easy incorporated into those  cells. It may slow growth, cause hearing problems, hyperactivity and  behavior changes.  Children with high lead burdens may have  neurological damage, including brain damage. This may present as  headaches or learning difficulties, muscle cramps, twitches or  spasms. It may be more severe, leading to seizures and death.  Adults may also suffer from lead poisoning. Adults may experience a  variety of neurological problems, among them, memory and  concentration problems. They may also have muscle and joint pain,  reproductive problems, and hypertension (high blood pressure). Adults  may also suffer from neurological problems as well.  Heavy metal intoxication almost always affects the gastrointestinal  system, such as diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, poor appetite and as a  consequence, weight loss. Anemia may also be seen in lead poisoning,  which further increases the weakness the victim experiences.  The effects of lead are the same whether it enters the body through  breathing or swallowing. Lead can affect almost every organ and  system in the body. The main target for lead toxicity is the nervous  system, both in adults and children. Long-term exposure of adults can  result in decreased performance in some tests that measure functions  of the nervous system. It may also cause weakness in fingers, wrists,  or ankles. Lead exposure also causes small increases in blood  pressure, particularly in middle-aged and older people and can cause  anemia. Exposure to high lead levels can severely damage the brain  and kidneys in adults or children and ultimately cause death. In  pregnant women, high levels of exposure to lead may cause  miscarriage. High-level exposure in men can damage the organs  responsible for sperm production.  Children are more vulnerable and more sensitive to lead poisoning  than adults. A child who swallows large amounts of lead may develop  blood anemia, severe stomachache, muscle weakness, and brain damage.  These same clinical signs mimic other childhood illness. If a child  swallows smaller amounts of lead, much less severe effects on blood  and brain function may occur. Even at much lower levels of exposure,  lead can affect a child's mental and physical growth.  Exposure to lead is more dangerous for young and unborn children.  Unborn children can be exposed to lead through their mothers. Harmful  effects include premature births, smaller babies, decreased mental  ability in the infant, learning difficulties, and reduced growth in  young children. These effects are more common if the mother or baby  was exposed to high levels of lead. Some of these effects may persist  beyond childhood.  Lead in the groundwater may be an issue in this case. Lead can be  absorbed from the drinking water. In the US, the level of lead in the  water is allowed at less than 0.15 ml of lead per liter of water  (less than 0.15 ppm). A number of water filtration units such as  reverse osmosis can filter out the lead. If the situation is more  primitive than this, I am unsure what to treat a well with. Calcium  disodium EDTA has been used to treat people, and putting it into a  water well may work to bind it, but I have no data support. Certainly  using a water system that is not contaminated with lead is the best  option.  If this is a case of lead in the air, then it is appropriate to cover  the mouth and nose and to remove one's self from the area.  Lead has no known physiological function in the body. It can be  tested for in the blood, but chelators are necessary to help  eliminate the metal from the body. Effective chelators include  dimercapterol and succimer.  Portions of this comment have been extracted from:  <http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts13.html> - Mod.TG]"

Sweeping the Asarco El Paso secret haz-wastes under the rug....

" Redevelopment of the Asarco plant offers El Paso a bright future ...
By admin
Redevelopment of the Asarco plant in El Paso offers the city and the state of Texas the opportunity to take the lead in solar research. According to the El Paso Times, possible contamination of the 600-acre site will keep homes, ...
Gateway El Paso - http://gatewayelpaso.com/"

"The EPA kept a secret from us for nearly 8 years, signing a confidential settlement document with ASARCO through the Federal Dept. of Justice. Chair of the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Reyes said that ASARCO paid MILLIONS on the condition that details of what it had done would never become public."

The SECRET? ASARCO had illegally burned unlabeled secret hazardous-wastes throughout the 1990's --- just to make money. God only knows what poisons remain here from that. No one will tell us. This whole ASARCO development saga is not about DISCLOSURE it is about CLOSURE of that site so that it can all be "swept under the rug".

As it is, the land has been exposed to God only knows what (ASARCO was accepting unlabeled stuff from both industrial and military sources!).

We the community wait for honest answers to our questions: how much radioactive lead (Polonium) is there? What other radioactive materials remain there and how much? What about dioxins - how much? Mercury? Beryllium? What has gotten into our water supply (it is in the Hueco bolson and the Rio Grande now)?

We want answers. What is the point of "developing" this land and stirring up the dusts next to our water supply (60% of our water passes right by ASARCO in an open-canal) until we know what we are dealing with??

Does ANYONE buy a bill of goods ("developing the site") without knowing exactly what they are being sold, first??"

Five years later -- WHOSE LIABILITIES IS THE CITY OF EL PASO PROTECTING?

"Google News Alert for: asarco

EDITORIAL: Asarco input: Citizens can influence zoning
Trading Markets (press release)
Citizens with concerns regarding new usage of contaminated Asarco smelter land will get what they ask for -- putting in their proverbial two cents worth. ..."

WHOSE LIABILITIES IS THE CITY OF EL PASO PROTECTING?  And will we all be smart enough to finally put a stop to this cover-up and demand honest answers? (see "Letter to Governor Richardson" in the SCRIBE documents section, along with the 13 exhibits).

City of El Paso sits back, March 2005 and allows the City/County Health and Environ. District Director to receive lifetime award -- after a lifetime of ignoring ASARCO toxins...

Back in 3/05 the Federal State Department said that IBWC American Dam workers by ASARCO and old-smeltertown could not get independent medical review in the entire region.   A worker told me that this has been going on for 30 years.  Meanwhile in March 2005...."Dr. Jorge Magaña, El Paso City-County Health and Environmental District Director, was awarded a 2005 Border Health Lifetime Achievement Award from the New Mexico Border Health Council at a banquet that was held April 22, 2005 in Las Cruces, NM. Dr. Magaña was honored for his work to improve health in the Paso del Norte Region in areas including ... Child Lead Poisoning Prevention." (from City of El Paso employee connection newsletter Issue 5 05/13/05).

also see " January 20, 2005 -- A History Of El Paso’s Top Health Officials Failure To Protect Border Residents"
http://www.gettheleadout.net/news_detail.sstg?id=9