Frontera NorteSur June 2000

TODAY'S NEWS (Updated Every Weekday)

Wednesday, May 24, 2000: Municipal Authorities Seal Doors to Norfluor Plant

To the surprise of Norfluor representatives, Cd. Juárez municipal authorities sealed the doors of the plant and shut down the operations. The chemical plant owners had hoped to continue limited production under the court-ordered shelter granted by the judge of the Sixth District last week. The company had been fined for failure to meet the minimum standards for safe operating procedures. Although the judge had suspended the planned closing, the city decided yesterday to go ahead and shut the plant down anyway.

The director of the city's ecology and civil protection department, Alma Leticia Figueroa Jiménez, said "We've made this decision because the company failed to pay their fine and because of safety problems in plant production." Figueroa also said that after the city took action, the directors of Norfluor assured them that they would meet the safety standards that authorities demand.

Residents from the area have requested the closing because they believe that health problems and animal deaths are a result of the contamination alleged to be caused by the plant, according to Cd. Juárez city councilor Jorge Daniel Mena Eng. "We don't agree that the factory should be re-opened. There exist too many questionable aspects to this situation and the judge made a very quick decision."

The plant experienced two hydrofluoric acid explosions late last year and the community and authorities have been concerned about the dangers the plant presents since that time. For more details please visit FNS archives at: http://www.nmsu.edu/~frontera/dec99jan00/feat2.html

Sources: El Diario