Alpaso Times reported that former Asarco workers walked through the century old former smelter showing regulators where potentially toxic materials leaked and were buried.

Mr Carlos Sanchez chief of the Environmental Protection Agency's Arkansas and Texas Superfund Section said that "We got preliminary information on where those potential pits or disposal locations were. We also got information on what they believe was disposed or spilled."

Mr Sanchez said that a survey crew noted GPS coordinates for seven locations and the trustee responsible for cleaning up the site will create a plan based on that information.

Mr Roberto Puga the trustee in charge of cleanup said that the plan will be available in about two weeks. His staff will look to see what information is new and determine whether further testing is necessary. Cleanup plans will be adjusted if necessary.

Mr Ernesto Robles worked at the plant for 30 years and was a supervisor before it closed in 1999. He said that I was in the yard department and I worked all over the place here and I know what was buried.

The former employees said that most of the sites were undocumented and unprotected, which means the toxic material could have evaporated into the air or leached into the soil. Although the former employees were happy that regulators listened.

(Sourced from www.elpasotimes.com)