Arsenic contamination persists in a New Mexico town's water supply

After years of arsenic contamination, New Mexico intervenes in Sunland Park’s water crisis.

Silvia Foster-Frau reports for The Washington Post.

In short:

• Sunland Park, a majority Latino community, has faced dangerously high arsenic levels in its drinking water for over 16 years, with minimal effective intervention.
• Local residents, including those suffering health effects, have repeatedly voiced their concerns at public meetings, questioning the utility’s commitment to resolving the issue.
• The state has recently stepped up enforcement, issuing significant fines and demanding stringent compliance from the local water utility.

Key quote:

“People are dying from this. We’re paying for something that’s poisoning us.”

— Elvia Acevedo, local resident

Why this matters:

Access to safe drinking water remains a challenge in various parts of the United States, particularly affecting low-income and minority communities. Long-term exposure to arsenic can lead to severe health effects, including cancer, skin lesions, developmental effects, cardiovascular diseases, neurotoxicity, and diabetes.

The risks are pronounced in regions where groundwater is the primary source of drinking water and arsenic concentrations are high, and Southwest U.S. communities and Hispanics are most likely to have arsenic-laden water.