South Valley neighborhood asking for air quality rule

Residents of a South Valley neighborhood, frustrated at being used as a “sacrifice zone” for industry, are asking for a harder look at the impact of pollution before air quality permits are approved.

Mountain View is a Bernalillo County community sandwiched be

tween the Rio Grande and Interstate 25. The area is host to several industrial facilities, including a water treatment plant, several asphalt plants and the

Rio Bravo generating station. As early as 2004, the New Mexico Environment Department labeled the neighborhood, whose inhabitants are predominantly Hispanic and low-income, as an “overburdened area.”