State hearings on Southern New Mexico water utility fines postponed
A photo of the drying bed at the Santa Teresa Community Arsenic Treatment Facility included in a recent inspection of the Camino Real Regional Utility Authority. (Courtesy of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency / David Esparza)
Attorneys for state regulators and a Southern New Mexico water utility facing $250,000 in fines for arsenic level violations have agreed to push back hearings about the penalties.
The hearings scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday will now be held sometime in the fall, according to a joint motion filed last week by attorneys for Camino Real Regional Utility Authority and the New Mexico Environment Department.
The utility supplies water for more than 19,000 people in Sunland Park, Santa Teresa and southern Doña Ana County, an area with high levels of naturally-occurring arsenic in the groundwater.
State regulators first issued fines of more than $251,000 in March 2024, after findings that the utility's arsenic treatment plants were 'offline and bypassed' for more than a year, sending drinking water with 'high levels of arsenic' to residents.
Drinking water with high levels of arsenic is associated with diseases such as diabetes, increased risk of cancers, and can contribute to heart and lung diseases and skin problems, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Utility leadership has said in statements that they take the concerns seriously and have worked to lower arsenic levels, achieving compliance with federal standards.
However, after a series of failed tests in May public officials and the state's top environment officials said they've lost confidence in the utility's leadership to address the chronic issues.
In late May, the New Mexico Environment Department filed an amended complaint, claiming that the utility delayed reporting elevated arsenic levels for multiple days and failed to specifically report them to the state.
'The continuing cycle of non-compliance by Respondent which compromises the public's access to safe and reliable drinking water requires the application of a bad faith enhancement for each of the violations which are the subject of this enforcement action,' the amended complaint stated
Regulators raised the total fine to $252,000. Attorneys for the utility objected to the addition of new allegations for the upcoming June hearing, and requested more time to address them.
Both the utility and the environment department agreed to a calendar extending witness and discovery deadlines into August, with a final date for the new hearing to follow.
The utility faces additional court dates beyond the administrative hearing later this year.
A 3rd Judicial District Judge ordered parties to submit a further schedule in the civil lawsuit the state brought earlier this month against the utility, requesting the judge appoint a third party to take over the utility's operations.
A hearing is scheduled for July in the civil lawsuit brought last year, which alleges the utility violated residents' civil rights.
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