US authorities are testing a river in Arizona for possible cross-border contamination from a toxic mine spill in northwestern Mexico, an official said Tuesday.
The checks came after a recent massive acid spill in the Sonora River from the Buenavista copper mine which turned a 60-kilometer (40-mile) stretch of the waterway orange, causing Mexican authorities to shut off the municipal water supply to 20,000 people in seven towns.
The spill is the worst environmental disaster on record in the mining industry in Mexico.
"Two water-quality inspectors from the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality were dispatched today to the border region where the San Pedro River crosses into Arizona from Sonora," said a spokesman for the Arizona watchdog.
They will test for acidity levels and could have initial results later Tuesday, he said. More comprehensive tests will take longer.
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