Well closed in Guanajuato because of radioactivity in water

A well in the community of La Cantera has been closed by mayor José César Rodríguez due to the high levels of radiation detected by researchers from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).

The local water department and government representatives were at hand on Monday, to witness the closing of the well which provides water to the communities of La Cantera and La Huerta.

The closing was done under the pressure from the local Mayoye Los Angelitos Guerreros organization, as well as local parents, in response to the recommendations from the Geoscience Center of the UNAM.

By the end of last week, the people of la Cantera expressed their distrust on the results of studies carried out by two laboratories hired by the local government and the water authorities, which contradicted the findings of the UNAM.

The villagers attribute the death of five people, from 2007 to 2015, to the high levels of radioactivity in the water.

Mayor Rodríguez expressed that more studies will be conducted and the closing of the well is just momentary.

The CGEO in Juriquilla, Querétaro, determined that the water presented radioactivity levels of 2.3 per liters, well above the 0.56 considered safe by the Mexican authorities.