An analysis of soil samples taken along a drainage canal in southeastern Juarez, Mexico, indicates the presence there of heavy metals such mercury, arsenic and lead, New Mexico State University civil engineering professor Nicasio Lozano said.

Lozano will discuss the study and its findings at noon, Wednesday, Feb. 7, in the Nason House at 1200 University Avenue. The presentation is part of a "Works in Progress" lecture series sponsored by NMSU's Center for Latin American Studies.

Lozano said the samples, taken from 15 sites on irrigated and unirrigated land along the canal, indicate pockets of high concentration of the substances mixed with other areas of lower concentration. The heavy metals could come from industrial pollution and from solid wastes in Juarez sewage water, which was untreated until last year when a water treatment plant went on line in Juarez, he said.

The study was a joint effort with Rosario Arellano, an environmental engineering professor at the University of Juarez. It was, in part, undertaken as the first step in developing a database on the elements found in the area's soil, he said.

The presentation is free and open to the public. For more information about the "Works in Progress" lecture series, call Tina Patton at the Center for Latin American Studies at (505) 646-2842.

Chris J. Minnick
Feb. 5, 2001

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