Saturday, October 25, 2025
Sunday, October 19, 2025
Smeltertown cemetery Kids unknowingly likely expose themselves to unreported toxic wastes
Lead (Pb), arsenic in all its forms, dioxins, pfas, cadmium
Why after 20 years is ElPaso still lacking people trained in high school or college level chemistry, who might be aware of these things.
Tuesday, October 7, 2025
Chatgpt puts 5 days together, interesting read
From chatgpt:
Connecting ASARCO Inc. Peru Operations with Asarco Swiss Bank (A.G.)
ASARCO Inc. Post-Bankruptcy: After filing for Chapter 11 in 2005, ASARCO Inc. retained its operational structure, including oversight of international mining operations such as those in Peru. This entity remained distinct from ASARCO LLC, which was acquired by Grupo México after clearing liabilities.
Asarco Swiss Bank (A.G.): Mikhail Katamanin served as President of Asarco Swiss Bank (A.G.), the Swiss entity directly associated with ASARCO Inc. As President, Katamanin oversaw international financial operations, asset management, and coordination of cross-border transactions.
Operational Linkage: Evidence indicates that ASARCO Inc.’s South American operations, including Peru, were financially and operationally linked through Asarco Swiss Bank (A.G.), enabling ASARCO Inc. to manage investments, cash flows, and international partnerships. Katamanin’s leadership at the Swiss bank effectively positioned him as a central coordinator of ASARCO Inc.’s global operations, including the strategic Peruvian mining activities.
Implication: This connection clarifies that ASARCO Inc.’s operational presence in Peru was supported and managed through international financial structures under Katamanin’s presidency at Asarco Swiss Bank (A.G.), reinforcing the global operational network of ASARCO Inc. post-bankruptcy.
> ✅ Key Fact: Katamanin was not merely an investor or advisor; he was President of the Swiss entity directly controlling financial and operational linkages for ASARCO Inc., including its ongoing Peru operations.
[Ps he was a whale. Or international gambler]
Sunday, October 5, 2025
Chatgpt says , cont..
Dossier: Mikhail Katamanin / Asarco AG / Irving Drobny
1. Mikhail Katamanin – Background & Financial Activity
Nationality: Foreign investor (exact origin not fully confirmed).
Property in U.S.: Highland Park, IL – two mansions:
975 Sheridan Road – nearly 7,000 sq ft, 4½ bathrooms, two fireplaces.
985 Sheridan Road – 10,555 sq ft, 5½ bathrooms, pool, two fireplaces.
Financial Troubles (2008–2009):
Foreclosure on Highland Park mansion – $12 million lawsuit (May 2009).
Filed personal bankruptcy petition June 6, 2009, in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Chicago.
Assets: $1M–$10M; Liabilities: $10M–$50M.
Major debts classified as "primarily consumer," including casinos:
Atlantis, Bahamas
Caesars Palace, Las Vegas
Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City
Banking/Trust:
Assets held in trust by Asarco AG (Swiss Bank), which Katamanin controlled.
Swiss arbitration involved for claims related to loans and property.
Interest payments made: ~ $1.67 million.
---
2. Asarco AG (Swiss Bank)
Registered: 30 September 1988, Zurich, Switzerland
Legal Form: Corporation (Aktiengesellschaft)
Capital: CHF 100,000
Addresses: Usteristrasse 11, 8001 Zurich
Alternate Names: Asarco Inc., Asarco SA
Activities:
Financial transactions of all kinds
Execution of financings
Trust functions and advisory services
Can participate in other enterprises, own/sell property, patents, rights, licenses
Notable Connections:
Attorney: Irving Drobny (Chicago)
Representation overlaps with Imperial Nguyen Dynasty, Vietnam
Public Records: Commercial register entries showing mutations of directors and address changes between 1997–2006.
---
3. Attorney: Irving Drobny
Practice: 48 years in Chicago, deceased 2021 (obituary published Feb 2, 2021).
Roles & Representation:
Represented Asarco AG in U.S., including lakefront property liens.
Represented Imperial Nguyen Dynasty (Vietnam) by appointment to Imperial Grand Council and Prince Regent Nguyen Phuc Buu Chanh.
Legal counsel for Transpacific Group (TPEG, Dallas/HCMC) – international business advisory.
Notable Activity Timeline:
July 2009: Representing Katamanin and Asarco AG regarding gambling-related debts.
Aug 2009: Involved in U.S. court filings for Asarco AG as trustee of Katamanin properties.
Dec 2009: Blog and public mentions confirm dual roles (Swiss bank + Royal Vietnamese clients).
---
4. Relevant Blogs / Articles / Sources
1. EPGTLO Blog Posts (2009–2010) – primary source for cross-referencing attorney and bank relationships.
Investor who controls Swiss Bank ASARCO facing foreclosure
Asarco AG Swiss Bank
Gambling debts in Bahamas, Las Vegas, Atlantic City
2. Crain’s Chicago Business (May 19, 2009) – foreclosure claims and trustee information.
3. ChicagoRealEstateDaily / Crain links – detail financial and property claims.
4. Moneyhouse.ch & Edoceo.ch – Swiss corporate registration and commercial register data.
---
5. Key Observations / Interpretations
1. Swiss Banking Linkage:
Asarco AG acts as a trust and holding entity for Katamanin’s U.S. properties and international financial interests.
Swiss arbitration suggests cross-border legal strategy to protect assets.
2. Dual Role of Irving Drobny:
His simultaneous representation of a Swiss bank and a foreign royal family is unusual and indicates high-level international legal work.
Could suggest overlap between private banking, asset protection, and international business advisement.
3. Gambling and Consumer Debts:
Katamanin’s high-profile debts to international casinos likely triggered foreclosure and bankruptcy, necessitating Drobny’s representation in both U.S. courts and Swiss arbitration.
4. Corporate Network:
Connections to Dallas-based Transpacific Group suggest potential Vietnam-U.S. business linkages, possibly through Drobny’s advisory role.
---
6. Next Steps / Research Leads
1. Swiss Sources:
Swiss commercial registers (CH-020.3.901.838-1) for director and ownership mutations post-2009.
Any filings under Asarco AG in Swiss arbitration or court cases.
2. U.S. Legal Records:
Lake County Circuit Court – foreclosure and lien filings on 975/985 Sheridan Road (2008–2009).
U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of Illinois – Katamanin personal bankruptcy filings.
3. Attorney Background:
Further obituaries, law firm archives, or bar association records to validate Drobny’s role in cross-border representation.
4. Vietnam / International Business Links:
Transpacific Group (TPEG) filings and historical projects in HCMC.
Nguyen Dynasty appointment records (public/archival sources).
Chatgpt also says this
"Asarco AG Corporate Control Structure (Mikhail Katamanin)
Visual / conceptual chart description:
1. Mikhail Katamanin (Ultimate Beneficial Owner)
Controlled Asarco AG through trusts and proxy arrangements.
Linked to Highland Park, Illinois mansion and other assets.
2. Asarco AG (Swiss Corporation, Usteristrasse 11, Zurich)
Legal forms: AG / SA / Inc.
Activities: Financial transactions, trust functions, consulting, property/patent/license holdings, participation in other companies.
3. Signatories / Board Members
Angela Beltracchi (Basel) – removed prior to 2006.
Urs Haberthür (Zurich) – added 2006; holds signing authority.
4. Property Holdings / Assets
Highland Park mansion (Illinois)
Potential other properties, financial instruments, licenses, patents.
Interpretation:
Katamanin exercises ultimate control, while Asarco AG acts as the operational and legal vehicle.
Board members/signatories (Beltracchi, Haberthür) serve as fiduciary proxies in Switzerland.
Asarco AG’s broad corporate powers enable it to manage international assets and financial transactions, consistent with trust and banking functions."
(Remember. Katamanin died 2009 in switzerland)
Chatgpt says this
1. Stored Data
Source: Tuesday, May 19, 2009 – Swiss Bank Asarco AG
Links:
Moneyhouse entry
Edoceo entry
Raw data:
Company: Asarco AG
Legal forms: Aktiengesellschaft (AG) → Corporation, also listed as Asarco Inc. or Asarco SA
Address: Usteristrasse 11, 8001 Zürich, Switzerland
Status: Active
Capital: CHF 100,000
Registration: Handelsregister entry 30.09.1988, multiple updates in 1997, 1998, 2006
Activities:
Financial transactions of all kinds
Execution of financing and trust functions
Consulting and expert assessments
Participation in other enterprises, properties, patents, rights, licenses (acquire, hold, sell)
Historical notes:
Signature changes in company registration (Angela Beltracchi removed, Urs Haberthür added)
Several updates to address and corporate registration details
---
2. Translation & Meaning
Original German → English (simplified):
Asarco AG is a Swiss corporation with a legal form equivalent to a joint-stock company.
It is sometimes referred to as Asarco Inc. or Asarco SA, reflecting alternative naming in international contexts.
Purpose / business scope:
Broad financial transactions, including trust and financing operations
Consulting, expert assessments
Ownership and trading of properties, patents, rights, and licenses
Participation in other companies
Legal registration:
Officially entered in the Zurich commercial register in 1988
Updates in 1997, 1998, 2006 show administrative changes and personnel updates
Significance:
This is a legally recognized financial and corporate entity in Switzerland
Its structure and activities suggest it could operate as a bank, investment company, or trustee
The multiple names indicate flexibility in international dealings, possibly to accommodate English or French-speaking business partners
---
3. Interpretation
1. “Asarco Inc.” showing up as part of “Asarco AG” reflects translation conventions:
AG → Corporation (German)
SA → Société Anonyme (French)
Inc. → English-style incorporation
This is normal in Swiss corporate practice for cross-border or multi-lingual reporting.
2. Corporate purpose:
The description is deliberately broad, allowing the company to engage in financial transactions, trust services, consultancy, and ownership of diverse assets.
Such descriptions are standard for Swiss AGs that provide banking, investment, or fiduciary services.
3. Personnel changes:
Removal/addition of individuals (Beltracchi → Haberthür) indicates normal board or signatory updates, which is tracked in the commercial registry.
4. Overall meaning:
Asarco AG is a legitimate Swiss corporate entity, capable of performing banking-like and fiduciary functions, and can operate under different names (AG, SA, Inc.) for international dealings.
It is not unusual to see “Asarco Inc.” in English-language contexts; this does not indicate a separate entity."
But inc does indicate asarco inc. SA likely is south america
Google a..i claiming no asarco (peru mine associated) swiss bank
Even though yrs ago an asarco Peru mine Swiss bank existed. now the url is gone and google removing it from epgtlo.
Interesting isn't it
Thursday, September 25, 2025
1st candlelighting ceremony/fellowship at asar o smelter paisano el paso tx 12-22-05
Published in "newsletter" 3/2006 by hmcmurray. Photo by hmcmurray 12/04
Friday, August 29, 2025
Correction: Cost of Asarco cleanup still under scrutiny April 26, 2009
Correction to article:
Where it says "but the matter was not made public until 2004, after McMurray and others came across a 1998 EPA memo obtained under the Freedom of Information Act."
It should read
but the matter was not made public until 10/2006, after McMurray, a biology teacher acting alone, received a 1998 u.s. doj EPA asarco confidential for settlement purposes only 73 page document obtained under her Freedom of Information Act request.
The document was released to the New York Times who covered it front page news so, in the words of former Sierra Blanca nuclear dump activist Addington, "asarco could never bury the document".
See 2009 story published under fair use at https://eliotshapleigh.com/news/print/3046-cost-of-asarco-cleanup-still-under-scrutiny
"
Cost of Asarco cleanup still under scrutiny
April 26, 2009
Some of Asarco's harshest critics in El Paso say the $52 million planned to remove contamination in El Paso is not nearly enough.
Written by Diana Wasington Valdez, The El Paso Times
EL PASO -- Some of Asarco's harshest critics in El Paso say the $52 million planned to remove contamination in El Paso is not nearly enough.
And they are asking the EPA to schedule a new public hearing to help settle the issue.
Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso, said the $52 million to remove El Paso's contamination is insufficient, and the true cost is closer to $250 million.
Shapleigh says the $52 million remediation plan for the El Paso copper smelter "does not include 250 acres of contiguous property owned by Asarco but not located at the (main) 100-acre smelter site."
Shapleigh and others who fought against Asarco's restarting smelter operations are asking the Environmental Protection Agency to conduct a public hearing in El Paso to address this and other issues.
Juliet Lozano, spokeswoman for Mayor John Cook, said "the city believes there should be a hearing in El Paso, and we are working with EPA to schedule one."
The EPA, which is seeking comments from the community, has not decided whether to convene a hearing.
Lozano said the city of El Paso has accepted the $52 million level for cleanup, and is waiting on a pending settlement to go through involving Asarco, the EPA and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
Under the settlement, Lozano said, "the smelter property would be transferred to a custodial trust for cleanup and disposition by an independent trustee, the smelter would not reopen as an operating smelter, Asarco would no longer control or own the smelter, and the custodial trust would be funded with $52 million in cash from Asarco for cleanup."
Tucson-based Asarco LLC, through a spokeswoman in El Paso, said it cannot comment on issues involving litigation or pending before the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Corpus Christi.
This week, the court said Sterlite Industries Ltd., India's largest copper producer, can buy Asarco for $1.1 billion and a $600 million note, but Grupo Mexico of Mexico City said it wants to reassume control of Asarco and offered $1.3 billion for its former subsidiary.
Asarco repeatedly has denied the smelter is responsible for the lead and arsenic contamination the EPA found in more than 1,000 residential and business properties in West and South El Paso. Asarco said the most likely culprits are pesticides containing arsenic, lead-based paint, leaded gasoline and slag, a smelting byproduct.
Exposure to high levels of lead can cause developmental problems in children, and arsenic poisoning can lead to certain cancers, according to health experts.
Get the Lead Out, a grass-roots organization in El Paso, is also asking for the smokestacks to be demolished, before another smelting operation moves in.
Water contamination
El Pasoans Juan Garza and Heather McMurray have fought for more than five years against the reopening of the smelter. Among other things, they and other activists want regulatory agencies to ensure that lead and arsenic from the plant site won't spill into the river again.
Since the fight over the smelter's air permit began, TCEQ addressed only the question of whether restarting the smelter would pollute El Paso's airshed. During the proceedings for Asarco's air permit renewal, the state agency did not consider soil and water contamination issues.
For example, a 2006 lab report by El Paso Water Utilities showed excessive levels of arsenic (404 parts per million/milligrams per liter), cadmium (67.4 ppm), lead (2,800 ppm) and mercury (1.09 ppm) were found in soil at the Asarco entrance about six weeks after El Paso experienced a major flood. The report said the substances came from Asarco's plant site, and the city took charge of the matter. The acceptable levels for these substances, respectively, are 0.01 ppm, 0.005 ppm, 0.015 ppm and 0.002 ppm.
A second report by the former Texas Water Commission in 1990 warned about the need to shore up the protective runoff structure at Asarco to prevent contaminants from spilling into the river in case of a 100-year-flood event, such as the flooding of August 2006.
A third report, one by EPA in 1997, said Texas state officials had found large concentrations of arsenic in El Paso's groundwater from discharges at the smelter.
Christina Montoya, spokeswoman for El Paso Water Utilities, said the water from the Rio Grande is safe to drink because it is treated thoroughly at the city's plants before it reaches water customers. Although the 2006 report mentions the Franklin Canal, the samples were actually taken from soil, she said.
"During the 2006 flood, the city shut down its water treatment plants," Montoya said. Utility chemical analysis reports are published each year, and they show no contamination with these four metals.
The U.S. International Boundary and Water Commission, which oversees water treaties with Mexico, filed a claim against Asarco in the U.S. bankruptcy court alleging soil and groundwater contamination "related to the historic operations of the [Asarco] smelter."
The IBWC claim seeks unspecified money to clean up the area within the American Canal and the IBWC field office across Paisano Drive from Asarco.
The smelter, which began operating 110 years ago, sits on top of a hill in West El Paso next to the river and across the border from Juárez; it has been dormant since 1999.
Contaminated soil
The saga over Asarco began in the early 1990s, when students and other researchers at the University of Texas at El Paso and New Mexico State University conducted tests at the UTEP campus, which is near Asarco. They found excessive levels of lead and arsenic in the soil.
Shapleigh, who became the principal catalyst in the battle to shut down Asarco, became interested in their findings. After talking to them, he convened a group of officials from EPA, TCEQ (then called Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission), the former El Paso City-County Health and Environmental Department and the Texas Department of Health.
The group asked EPA to examine the potential health risks to El Pasoans, and the agency set a three-mile radius from the smelter for the evaluation.
EPA tested 1,944 properties, and found some with arsenic levels as high as 81 parts per million and lead levels as high as 1,700 ppm. For the cleanup, EPA set thresholds at 24 ppm for arsenic and 500 ppm for lead.
The federal agency also said Asarco was potentially responsible for the soil contamination, which Asarco vehemently denied.
The cleanup process began with money from a $100 million environmental trust fund agreed to by Asarco, EPA and the U.S. Justice Department.
In 2002, Asarco applied with the TCEQ to renew its air quality permit, which would allow it to emit pollutants into the air, including lead, carbon monoxide, sulfuric acid and sulfur dioxide.
After considerable pressure from the community, TCEQ agreed to conduct a contested-case hearing on the permit request in El Paso in 2004.
Opponents complained the hearing focused only on air pollution, and did not allow testimony on water and soil contamination. TCEQ also limited its consideration to El Paso, and excluded testimony on how the emissions would affect residents in neighboring Juárez and New Mexico.
El Pasoan Mariana Chew, an environmental engineer and Sierra Club member, said TCEQ officials ignored the 1983 La Paz Agreement, an accord between the United States and Mexico that calls for cooperation on environmental issues along the U.S.-Mexico border.
The city of El Paso formally joined the opposition against the permit renewal, while New Mexico officials, including Gov. Bill Richardson, and Juárez city officials, also came out against the permit.
El Paso city officials spent more than $1 million on its legal case against Asarco, but last year the TCEQ's three appointed commissioners voted in favor of renewing the air permit.
Asarco opponents did not give up, and Shapleigh once more turned to the EPA regional office for help.
Earlier this year, despite the state-approved permit, EPA made it clear Asarco would need to update its equipment before it could resume smelting operations. EPA warned it might not comply with federal air quality standards without repairs and new equipment.
After that, citing falling copper prices, Asarco announced it would abandon plans to reopen the El Paso plant.
Bankruptcy
Asarco, which also faced multimillion-dollar environmental complaints in other states, was having its own problems with its parent corporation, Grupo Mexico, which had bought Asarco in 1999.
That same year, the worldwide price of copper had plummeted, prompting Asarco to suspend its smelting operations in El Paso. Later on, the price of copper would rise dramatically, making the smelter financially attractive, assuming the permit went through.
Grupo Mexico, which owned large mines in Mexico, through Asarco obtained a stake in the lucrative Southern Peru Copper Corp. Back then, its board of directors included executives from Kimberly Clark and the Carlyle Group, a global firm associated with former President George H. Bush.
But Asarco, hounded by a growing list of creditors, ended up battling against Grupo Mexico, which it accused of stripping it of its profitable stake in a Peruvian cooper mine. Asarco won the legal dispute, and on April 1, a court ordered Grupo Mexico to pay Asarco $6 billion in damages. Grupo Mexico officials have said they will appeal the ruling.
Shapleigh has said the $6 billion Asarco may receive because of the court victory is another reason Asarco should pay for the cleanup in El Paso.
During the George W. Bush administration, former Asarco employees worked at EPA's headquarters and as White House environmental advisers.
Garza, McMurray, Chew and other community activists in the region often felt that they faced enormous odds when they decided to take on Asarco, a company with friends in high places. But, they kept on fighting.
Shapleigh, who filed an open records request to obtain correspondence between TCEQ and Asarco, gave a blunt assessment of the politics.
"During the Bush administration, polluters captured and corrupted EPA, and Asarco's contacts were similar to those at the TCEQ," he said. "Routinely, polluters dump millions of dollars in political campaign contributions. Then, several months later, their permits are mysteriously approved."
TCEQ officials have denied any wrongdoing in relation to the smelter's permit process or to Shapleigh's open-records request.
After Asarco filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection four years ago, the tide began to change in favor of the smelter's opponents.
Asarco's parent company, Asarco Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Americas Mining Corp. (a subsidiary of Grupo Mexico), lost control of Asarco in 2005, when the bankruptcy court appointed an independent board to manage the company.
Questions arose over what Asarco intended to do with the El Paso smelter, and whether local taxpayers would end up having to pay for expensive cleanup bills if the copper smelter went broke.
Shapleigh tried to get El Paso officials to seek EPA Superfund status to cover the potential costs of the cleanup. However, the idea was shot down by business and government leaders who feared the status would give El Paso a black eye and scare away investors.
El Pasoan Risher Gilbert, one of the West El Paso neighbors who pushed for the EPA cleanup, said "I always felt the Asarco smelter should be a Superfund site, not the rest of the (affected) area. I'm thrilled that the smelter will not reopen. The days are over when a large smelter ought to operate in the middle of the city."
Two secrets
Shapleigh contends two public health hazards were kept hidden from the public despite previous public hearings on the Asarco permit.
He and activists opposed to Asarco unearthed the information from reams of environmental records, and fights with agencies to obtain documents under the Freedom of Information Act.
"We still need to get to the bottom of two secrets," Shapleigh said. "One was why the illegal incineration of hazardous wastes at Asarco was kept from the public, and the other is the 233 million cubic feet of contaminated groundwater plume around the smelter. We have concerns as to whether the cleanup plan will adequately address the groundwater issues."
The suspected groundwater contamination is the result of more than 100 years of smelting and other operations at the Asarco site.
McMurray, a member of Sunland Park Grassroots Environmental Coalition, said El Pasoans have a right to know what hazardous wastes were burned by Asarco at the El Paso plant site. The waste had been shipped to El Paso from the company's subsidiary Encycle Inc. in Corpus Christi.
"Records are missing, and some of us suspect some of hazardous waste contaminated our river and groundwater," she said.
According to a 2007 report of the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, Encycle received military waste from the Rocky Mountain Arsenal in Colorado, and then burned it in El Paso without a permit. Asarco denied any wrongdoing.
EPA officials said the issue involving Encycle was resolved in a $20.5 million settlement in 1999, but the matter was not made public until 2004, after McMurray and others came across a 1998 EPA memo obtained under the Freedom of Information Act.
Recently, the price of copper began climbing again. China, which is making noises about changing its currency base, is buying up copper and other metals around the world for this purpose.
The Tucson-based Asarco would not say if changing market conditions will alter its plans in El Paso.
For now, it appears Asarco's fate in El Paso will be determined by the bankruptcy court, EPA and the metals market.
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Copyright © 2025 - Senator Eliot Shapleigh • Political Ad Paid For By Eliot Shapleigh
C8 had to be at asarco el paso
C8 is everywhere
So, why aren't we told the levels?
Of:
- c8
- Dioxins
- Actinide
- Beta radiation (would still be here)
- Clearly told about arsenic and lead (with honest testing)
- The list goes on
This is a great video that was easy for people to watch
Sponsors for insights museum STEM
Today's politicians and scientists should follow NASCAR's drivers' example and wear sponsors on their jackets.
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