La Carreta News
The Water Monitoring Federation of the Río Grande~Río Bravo
(The Beginning of an Idea) - the short version
2007-2008
by
Sylvia Ernestina Vergara
I always thought that I lived in a relatively isolated, beautiful, protected environment in Dixon, New Mexico, USA. But after being interviewed November 2006 by Russian Federation, scientist, and nuclear expert, Natalia Mironova and informal talks with Sheri Kotowski, of the Embudo Valley Environmental Monitoring Group, it became clear that the Río Grande River is at serious risk for nuclear and chemical contamination that could become irreversible.
Cited in a press release March 29, 2007 by Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety:
"Numerous studies by community groups, the New Mexico Environmental Department (NMED), and LANL itself show that New Mexico’s future water supply is threatened by highly toxic pollutants, including PCBs at more than 25,000 times the New Mexico Water Quality Standard protective of human health. Other toxins of critical concern include 1,4-dioxane, hexavalent chromium, nitrates, fluoride, perchlorate, high explosives, selenium, and numerous radioactive elements, such as americium, cesium, cobalt, plutonium, strontium and tritium that have been detected in the regional aquifer."
Contaminants from the Los Alamos National Laboratory of the Jemez Mountains of New Mexico are threatening the future drinking waters of the Río Grande and are contaminating surface water, ground water and the regional aquifer.
Natalia Mironova, a renowned environmentalist, is president of The Movement for Nuclear Safety in Chelyabinsk in the Russian Federation. She was responsible for having to relocate populations in beautiful mountain villages much like our own because of nuclear contamination. These disasters also include the Techa River in Russia that is permanently contaminated with nuclear pollutants from severe and dangerous nuclear accidents at the Mayak plutonium facility. Operations continue to contaminate the surrounding area.
I began to wonder if the Río Grande could become permanently contaminated with nuclear pollutants emitted from the Los Alamos National Laboratory and its proposed increase of plutonium pits on the Pajarito Plateau in the Jemez Mountains. All our villages, cities and towns would have to be relocated. It became clear to me that preventing nuclear contamination is the best solution.
Natalia’s question to me was: "Can the United States and Russia work together to create cleaner environments?" Yes! And unilaterally de-escalate nuclear arms around the world. I realized then that I was part of a larger community that extended far beyond my small farm. I want to live in a nuclear free world and maybe there are hundreds of millions of people that would prefer to live in a nuclear free world too!
I wrote her a poem called The Only Arms, which she took back to Russia. It is a dream poem about rivers around the world becoming so pure that all peoples can drink from them once again.
I was invited to present my poetry at the Segundo Encuentro Internacional de Poetas June 2007, an international literary symposium of eighty scholars, journalists and writers meeting in Delicias, Chihuahua, Mexico. I also presented papers detailing the Notice of Intent to Sue LANL, the Shared Values Statement and petition created by the Communities for Clean Water for over 1,400 violations of the Clean Water Act. Its main message is twofold:
- Los Alamos National Laboratory must clean up its life threatening nuclear and chemical contamination that is starting to get into the regional aquifer, ground water, surface water and the Río Grande.
- Clean water containing its natural healthy nutrients is a human right.
It was in Mexico that I shared the concept of a future federation of water monitoring groups that could be in ongoing contact and communication about the safety and well being of the river (Río Grande~Río Bravo). The Mexicans were very glad to be informed of what was occurring up stream on the Río Grande and appreciated being recognized as more than just our neighbors on the southern part of this river (the Río Bravo). They seemed open to the idea of developing small groups of their own along the Río Bravo to the ocean that would monitor the river for nuclear and other contaminants and also for nutrients.
Talks could be given on how to create a water-monitoring group. In this way, the river becomes a resource that draws people of our two nations together to protect the health and vitality of the river and ensure that nuclear and other chemical contaminants never reach downstream and upstream populations, ocean, flora, and fauna.
In my mind this idea began to sing, "Flowing water serves to renew Life!"
In that sense, I was so proud to know that such groups as Amigos Bravos, Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety, Don Gabino Andrade community Acequia, Embudo Valley Environmental Monitoring Group, Hope: Honor Our Pueblo Existence, New Mexico Acequia Association, Partnership for Earth Spirituality, Río Grande Restoration, Tewa Women United and others are working for the protection and safety of the waters of the Río Grande.
The idea is to create through a federation of citizen monitoring groups of the United States and Mexico, the first large river in the world that would be so healthy that we could directly drink its waters and benefit from its wonderful natural nutrients.
It is important to develop a holistic approach to the Río Grande~Río Bravo to ensure future generations drinking water and appreciation of the grand cycle it plays in nature.
I imagined many benefits from such a collaboration. I have posted a longer detailed paper called The Water Monitoring Federation of the Río Grande~Río Bravo at www.lacarretanewmexico.com |
News 