Grupo México to Remediate Cananea Environmental Problem

After Grupo México was accused last week of negligence for polluting the Sonora River, the company has approached the government to dialogue with affected communities.

Last week, the Ministry of the Environment, Luisa Albores, accused Grupo Mexico of failing to comply with remediation commitments agreed in 2014. Meanwhile, Grupo Mexico said that its restoration work on the Sonora River did work and assured that the current situation of the river is not due to the 2014 accident. "The alleged findings of the tests presented (by the government) have no relation to the 2014 event. They omit current sources of contamination, such as illegal mining (and) untreated wastewater discharge," Grupo México stated in a press release.

Despite the differences, Grupo México sent a letter to the government requesting support to establish dialogue tables with those affected by pollution in the Sonora River. "They want to dialogue and review the studies carried out by the Ministry of the Environment to remedy this serious situation," said President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. The president added that the company's willingness to clean up the river and care for those affected by the incident came after his government declared that Grupo México's previous remediation plan was insufficient.

What Happened at the Sonora River?
On Aug. 6, 2014, Grupo México’s Cananea mine reported a spill of 40,000m³ of acidified copper sulfate in the Bacanuchi and Sonora rivers, affecting 22,000 people in seven municipalities that no longer had drinking water as a result.

Grupo México created a US$106 million fund to remedy the environmental and health damages caused by the spill. However, the fund closed after less than 1 percent of the total amount had been used, with no tangible changes achieved, El Informador reported. 

In 2021, President López Obrador announced a new Comprehensive Care Plan for Cananea that seeks to provide social justice through the implementation of programs that improve the quality of life of its citizens and address the most pressing mining problems in Cananea, Sonora. The new plan constitutes the following: labor, social security, environmental health, well-being, and urban development. The new government studies on the Sonora River come after the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) ordered a reevaluation of the case in 2020.