Borderland    Monday, June 30, 2003
Diana Washington Valdez
El Paso Times

A smell described by several Upper Valley residents as an unbearable stench has invaded their neighborhood and forced them to close their windows and stay indoors.

"It smells like human feces, like raw sewage," said Sylvia Marcum, who lives in the 5500 block of Westside Drive. "We can't even sit outside anymore. It's that bad."

Her home in the upscale neighborhood is near an Elephant Butte Irrigation District drainage ditch being used to temporarily discharge excess effluent (treated waste) from the Santa Teresa waste-water plant. The Texas-New Mexico state line divides her property.

Lupe Peet, one of Marcum's neighbors who has lived on Westside Dri! ve since early 2002, said she first noticed the foul smell a few months ago.

"Everything was fine at first," she said. "It's worse in the evenings."

But Peet said residents "haven't been able to pinpoint where it's coming from."

Gary Esslinger, manager of the irrigation district in Las Cruces, said the district issued a temporary special permit to discharge effluent into the drainage system in the vicinity of Westside Drive. The fluid eventually empties into the Rio Grande.

Esslinger said he doubts the odor is coming from the effluent.

"There could be other things going on, such as unauthorized dumping, and there are a lot of septic tanks in that region," he said. "If someone complains to our office, I will be glad to send a water quality specialist to investigate."

Toby Alvarado, manager of Eco Resources in Santa Teresa, said he's certain the strong smell is coming from the Sunland Park waste-water treatment plant, which is across the street from the complai! ning neighbors.

"Most people can't even tell the plant! is there," he said. "It has been there since 1979, and we're hoping the problem will end after the waste-water treatment system expansion is completed, possibly by December.

"The system is not in any way discharging raw sewage into the (ditch) drainage system, because that would be illegal," he added.

Last year, Sunland Park broke ground on a $3.8 million project to double its waste-water plant's capacity. The city also took over the waste-water treatment service for Santa Teresa.

Diana Washington Valdez may be reached at dvaldez@elpasotimes.com