This article was first published by Source New Mexico. For more stories, visit sourcenm.com.
The dispute between Texas and New Mexico over the sewage disaster that caused more than 4.8 billion litres of sewage to enter the Rio Grande near Sunland Park is over.
A federal district judge in Texas last week approved a settlement with environmental regulators in New Mexico, overturning a $1.2 million fine against El Paso Water Utility.
In the August 6 ruling, Judge David Briones of the Western District of Texas officially dismissed the case, after which both parties agreed to pay their own costs and attorneys’ fees.
The fine from New Mexico environmental regulators came after a catastrophic rupture of two sewer lines in August 2021. El Paso Water said the utility’s only option was to divert a total of 1 billion gallons of untreated wastewater into the Rio Grande near Sunland Park, NM, over five months.
The Rio Grande, which forms the international border between the USA and Mexico, also meanders across the state borders of Texas and New Mexico in this section.
Officials with the New Mexico Department of Environmental Protection filed two enforcement actions in June 2022, including a $1.2 million fine, alleging that the spill posed a threat to New Mexico’s health and environment. El Paso Water called the allegations “false and misleading” at the time, citing environmental assessments the utility commissioned that found no wildlife was harmed by the spill.
Now New Mexico is dropping the case against El Paso Water entirely.
Attorneys for the state’s environmental agency concluded the case had no prospect of success, said Drew Goretzka, a spokesman for the agency.
“The people of Sunland Park were greatly impacted by the over one billion gallons of wastewater released by El Paso Water, which is why we filed this lawsuit,” Goretzka said. “However, after considering the legal benefits, we decided to withdraw it.”
The New Mexico Department of Environmental Conservation is not expected to appeal.
Texas environmental regulators have fined the El Paso power company just over $2 million for the spill, but credited it toward the estimated $7 million it will spend on cleanup, according to an agreement reached with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality in September 2023.
In a press release, El Paso Water said the utility would provide New Mexico state environmental authorities with information, documents and materials related to the oil spill in exchange for a fine.
