Questa, New Mexico

Carlos Herrera has lived most of his life in Questa, New Mexico, a small town near the confluence of the Rio Grande and Red Rivers.  Herrera was born here, and as a boy, he swam in the Red River and dreamt of catching the big trout that lurked in its shadowed pools.

Like most locals, Herrera worked at the Molycorp molybdenum mine, a few miles from town in the Carson National Forest.  Although he remembers being disturbed by some of the mining practices he witnessed, the paychecks rolled in, and Herrera was glad to have them, especially in a rural town where jobs opportunities were limited.

But while the pay was good, Herrera soon learned that there was a downside to living near the Molycorp mine.

Carlos and his wife, Gloria, bought a house in Questa, a few years before Herrera started working at the mine in the late 1960s.  Their place happened to be downstream from the mine (as is most of the town) and a short walk from the artificial ponds where mine effluent was dumped.

It wasn't long afterwards that the family began to have health problems, which persisted for decades.  Gloria suffered from chronic gastrointestinal problems, which medication did not relieve.  In 1973, she had a kidney removed.  Meanwhile, the Herrera's children suffered from thyroid problems, bone deterioration, and cluster headaches.  Their hair turned white and white stripes formed on their fingernails.  Only Herrera, who rarely drank tap water, seemed immune to these afflictions.

Numerous leaks and spills from the mine occurred over the years, at one point killing fish in an eight-mile stretch of the Red River.  Herrera's cattle, pastured adjacent to the river, also became ill.  Their hides turned white, and they lost weight.  The veterinarians who examined the animals discovered toxic levels of aluminum in their blood. Herrera believed that polluted water was making his cows and his family sick.

Although the mining company assured Herrera that his water was safe to drink, he was worried.  A strange substance spewed from the familys water heater and connecting pipes.  He could see gunk suspended in a glass of water drawn from the kitchen tap.

Herrera and his wife were convinced that their well water was contaminated by mine waste.  But it was not until 1988, more than two decades after the Herreras had moved into their house, that a supervisor at Molycorp mine told them their well water was not safe to drink.  "I'm sure they knew long before they told us," Herrera said.

The Herrera family switched to the municipal water system, and eventually sued Molycorp in a case that settled out of court.  Herrera said he never got a clear answer about what was in his well water.  A few other Questa families sued Molycorp, and their cases also settled out of court.  "Gag orders" imposed as part of the settlements limit what the Herreras and other families can disclose about the lawsuits.

 "My children are grown now and have their own families," Herrera said, "but I worry that they may suffer in the future."  Herrera's son and one of his two daughters live in Questa with their families.

Last year, local residents learned for the first time that municipal water lines had been buried in tailings from the mine, raising new concerns about whether their water is clean.

"I am very concerned for our families, neighbors, all the residents of Questa," he said, "and especially the elderly and young children who do not seem to have a voice."