Eventually, federal anti-pollution standards forced the company to spend millions to clean up the lead and arsenic in the soil and do something about the extreme air pollution and health hazards. In 1967, ASARCO went down in history when it built the tallest smokestack in America in order to reduce ground level concentrations of sulfur dioxide. Almost as soon as the tower went up, it was controversial. Not only was it huge and ugly, but by 1970, the people of El Paso were still living with the unhealthy contaminants released by ASARCO. By 1971, ASARCO had become the largest smelter and producer of non ferrous metals in Texas. (White, Murga, and Rodriguez 1) and was ranked as the highest lead pollutant in North America. It destroyed the lives of many. Even tax payers as far away as Arizona were left holding the bag for billions of dollars in environmental damage and clean up when the company only contributed an insufficient $7.3 million for the process. (Jarmona). ASARCO shut down in 1999 because it was costing more to produce copper and there was less demand.
This year, 2007, ASARCO has petitioned the city for permission to reopen; after having spent millions to renew the company. Company spokespersons claim that the site damage has been corrected, that the company can now pass the air pollution tests, and that every effort has been made to make it safer for the employees.