"In the past four years, our wells have started drying up," says Juan Urbano, who just finished a three-year term this February as the president of the Communal Territory of San Felipe Ecatepec.
Where is all the water going?
In between San Felipe and San Cristobal lies a Coca-Cola bottling plant, operated by the Mexican company FEMSA.
Despite the government’s responsibility, most Mexicans do not have safe drinking water in their homes.
The company declined to specify how much it pays for the water extracted in San Cristobal.
Meanwhile, public health organizations, such as El Poder del Consumidor (Consumer Power), based in Mexico City, have argued that soda consumption was contributing to Mexico’s soaring diabetes and obesity rates.
Another study found that one in six diabetes cases could be directly linked to soda consumption.
"The long-term strategy is to increase access to safe drinking water and drinking fountains."
Coca-Cola previously had billboards in Indigenous communities around San Cristobal, such as San Juan Chamula, showing men and women in traditional dress with Coca-Cola bottles.
In San Felipe Ecatepec, Juan Urbano doubts the current Mexican government will help the community with its water problems.

I said yes, not knowing that my answer would change both of our lives.
Without knowing it, I’d been giving my babies poison.
Now, I’m hoping I can help make sure that other Maine families have access to safe drinking water.
Since over half of Mainers rely on well water for cooking, bathing and drinking, it’s estimated that well water for more than 100,000 Maine people is contaminated by arsenic.
The Legislature last month overrode the governor’s veto of a bill to expand outreach and education about this silent epidemic in Maine.
By helping moms like me and many others learn we need to test our well water, it will dramatically boost the number of people who test.
We were lucky that we could afford our filtration system, which cost a few hundred dollars.
With strong bipartisan support, the Legislature approved putting aside $500,000 to help all Maine families access safe drinking water, using funding that is available at no additional cost to taxpayers.
If he does, here’s my message to Maine legislators: Moms like me are counting on you to override the veto, to help us protect our children from poison in their drinking water.
My idea for a new T-shirt for my daughter is one that says this: “All Maine families deserve safe and affordable drinking water.” Wendy Brennan is a mom of two.

I said yes, not knowing that my answer would change both of our lives.
Without knowing it, I’d been giving my babies poison.
Now, I’m hoping I can help make sure that other Maine families have access to safe drinking water.
Since over half of Mainers rely on well water for cooking, bathing and drinking, it’s estimated that well water for more than 100,000 Maine people is contaminated by arsenic.
The Legislature last month overrode the governor’s veto of a bill to expand outreach and education about this silent epidemic in Maine.
By helping moms like me and many others learn we need to test our well water, it will dramatically boost the number of people who test.
We were lucky that we could afford our filtration system, which cost a few hundred dollars.
With strong bipartisan support, the Legislature approved putting aside $500,000 to help all Maine families access safe drinking water, using funding that is available at no additional cost to taxpayers.
If he does, here’s my message to Maine legislators: Moms like me are counting on you to override the veto, to help us protect our children from poison in their drinking water.
My idea for a new T-shirt for my daughter is one that says this: “All Maine families deserve safe and affordable drinking water.” Wendy Brennan is a mom of two.

Since so many North Carolina residents draw drinking water from unmonitored private wells, a push is on to improve testing and treatment.
Still, any filling in of blanks could help state and county public health experts like her improve their understanding of where wells are and what contamination risks lurk nearby.
The steps were developed at a 2015 Environmental Health Collaborative summit attended by a mix of drinking water supply and public health experts.
“There needs to be more support for private well owners.
Using 2007-2013 data from North Carolina emergency departments, she concluded in research published last year that 99 percent of 29,400 emergency department visits over a seven year period for acute gastrointestinal illness – vomiting, diarrhea and the like – linked to drinking water were associated with contamination in private wells, not public water supplies.
A bacteria screen can be as little as $25, but a full panel, including pricey tests for radium, can add up to more than $600.
The occupational and environmental branch of the state Division of Public Health recommends that well owners test their water annually for coliform bacteria, one step to detecting animal or human waste contamination.
Gibson’s studies of such neighborhoods in rural Wake County, called “under-bounded” communities by demographers and public health researchers, contribute to evidence that being unlinked can introduce health risks.
Results for both contaminants were only a fraction of a percent in samples taken from the nearby public water.
The summit recommendation Gibson has published also calls for studies to identify these under-bounded neighborhoods, estimate how much it would cost to connect these homes to public water, and make extending water and sewer lines their way a priority.

Since so many North Carolina residents draw drinking water from unmonitored private wells, a push is on to improve testing and treatment.
Still, any filling in of blanks could help state and county public health experts like her improve their understanding of where wells are and what contamination risks lurk nearby.
The steps were developed at a 2015 Environmental Health Collaborative summit attended by a mix of drinking water supply and public health experts.
“There needs to be more support for private well owners.
Using 2007-2013 data from North Carolina emergency departments, she concluded in research published last year that 99 percent of 29,400 emergency department visits over a seven year period for acute gastrointestinal illness – vomiting, diarrhea and the like – linked to drinking water were associated with contamination in private wells, not public water supplies.
A bacteria screen can be as little as $25, but a full panel, including pricey tests for radium, can add up to more than $600.
The occupational and environmental branch of the state Division of Public Health recommends that well owners test their water annually for coliform bacteria, one step to detecting animal or human waste contamination.
Gibson’s studies of such neighborhoods in rural Wake County, called “under-bounded” communities by demographers and public health researchers, contribute to evidence that being unlinked can introduce health risks.
Results for both contaminants were only a fraction of a percent in samples taken from the nearby public water.
The summit recommendation Gibson has published also calls for studies to identify these under-bounded neighborhoods, estimate how much it would cost to connect these homes to public water, and make extending water and sewer lines their way a priority.

There is no law that requires cities disinfect their water, Stringer said.
"We need to consider disinfecting," he said of Artesia’s water system.
Artesia does not have a disinfectant system.
Even if the city does submit two clean samples to NMED, processed in a state-licensed lab in Hobbs, Yurdin said the state will continue to monitor Artesia’s system more than before.
The discovery of E. coli triggered a required state assessment of the city water system within 30 days, Stringer said.
He said Artesia’s E. coli problem is a top priority for his division that oversee water systems as small as trailer parks or as large at the city of Albuquerque.
Artesia’s water has now been known to contain the potentially life-threatening bacteria for about six days since a boil water alert was put into effect on June 15.
The three positive samples were in areas subjected to chlorine flushing Tuesday night, read a news release from the City of Artesia.
Flushing of city water lines will continue through Thursday with the city turning on fire hydrants.
Officials hope that by flushing the lines, contaminated water will exit the system and clean water will be able to flow.

Hawkins and her husband bought this house in the northern Michigan resort area of Shanty Creek back in 2004.
The contamination has expanded more than a mile towards Hawkins’ community since 2005, the year after she purchased her home.
Janice Adams is a senior geologist with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.
He says this policy requires homebuilders to hook up to public water if it’s available, or test new wells for TCE before they can get a permit.
In total, the DEQ has poured $27 million into monitoring, mapping, and extending municipal water to homes affected by the plume.
In 2015, the state and Antrim County partnered to fund extra infrastructure that will supply clean water if this field becomes contaminated.
Janice Adams says it could be absorbed into Mancelona’s system, or hook up to the next town over, Bellaire.
“Well, it’s nice the DEQ is going to pay for getting me hooked up to public water, but what if somebody says ‘oh, we’re not going to fund that anymore’?
You know, and with the state of the government at this point, it’s just not very comforting to me to accept that assurance.” State officials say it would cost too much to clean up the contamination.
So, they say they’re just going to keep connecting homes to municipal water as the plume moves.

Mariner East 2 operations continued Saturday in Exton, less than a week after a dozen residents allege drilling lubricant infiltrated their well water amidst construction of the pipeline project that will transport natural gas liquids across Pennsylvania.
Reports said Sunoco Pipeline LP resumed horizontal drilling of the Mariner East 2 pipeline in Exton on Saturday, despite the results of well water contamination testing taking approximately one week to complete.
Documents provided to the Daily Times allege both the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and Sunoco Pipeline LP were aware the potential risks of horizontal directional drilling in the Exton area.
In neighboring West Goshen, Chester County, the township filed a petition for an injunction with the Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission Monday night, alleging Sunoco Pipeline LP breached the terms of a settlement agreement regarding construction of value stations along Mariner East 2.
Chester County residents affected by contaminated water on Valley View Drive were given drinking water, replacement water pumps and were provided with the opportunity of rooms in nearby hotels.
“I was horrified to hear that this project may be impacting Chester County well water,” Dinniman continued.
The loss of safe drinking water hardly seems like a minimal impact.
To advance construction before determining the degree of damage is simply wrong.” The concern that state legislators have raised is the lack of transparency from Sunoco Logistics and Sunoco Pipe LP in revealing environmental waste leakages into waterways to the residents before their water sources are compromised.
“We’ve already seen three spills of drilling fluid in the Chester Creek and now drinking water has been compromised in nearby Chester County.” “So I’ve signed onto a bill that would improve transparency and communication on pipeline projects to keep our residents safe and informed.” While not seeping directly into the private water sources of residents, a similar leak of the bentonite clay — the naturally occurring absorbent clay used in the lubrication of the drilling and cutting tools in horizontal drilling — muddied the waters of Chester Creek in Brookhaven in May.
A DEP inspector visited the site and determined that Sunoco Pipeline LP had “cleaned up pretty well” and installed a containment area around the bentonite return area.

Sunoco agrees to extend public water to homes with tainted wells.
The Newtown Square-based company was moving rapidly Tuesday to arrange to extend Aqua Pennsylvania water service to an enclave in West Whiteland Township.
About a dozen customers said their water wells went bad after Sunoco began underground drilling in the area to construct its Mariner East 2 gas-liquids pipeline.
Sunoco supplied bottled water and put up several families in hotels after the problems were reported July 3.
Mariner East is Sunoco’s $2.5 billion project to deliver natural-gas liquids such as propane across Pennsylvania to its terminal in Marcus Hook.
Shields said the affected homes will be connected to temporary water supplies while it makes plans to convert the area to public water.
Some of the affected homes are along Township Line Road near an existing Aqua main and would require only a small service line to connect.
The contamination controversy is the latest point of contention for Sunoco’s project.
On Monday, another Chester County community, West Goshen Township, requested an emergency order to block Sunoco from constructing a valve station for Mariner East 2 at a location on Boot Road east of Route 202 that the township says violates a 2015 agreement.
It says the valve station should be located next to an existing site on Boot Road on the opposite side of Route 202, where Sunoco operates a pump station for its Mariner East 1 pipeline.

The Air Force has built a $2.7 million water treatment facility at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base to scrub contaminants from two drinking wells at the sprawling base.
BARRIE BARBER/STAFF
Two tainted drinking water wells that serve thousands at Wright-Patterson started pumping water in June after a more than year-long shut down, an environmental official says.
The latest drinking water samples pumped out of the two tainted wells show the treated water has nearly “non detectable” indicators of contaminants typically found in firefighting foam, according to Raymond F. Baker, 88th Civil Engineer Group branch chief.
Two groundwater production wells in Area A exceed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency health advisory limits of 70 parts per trillion for lifetime exposure to perfluooctanoic acid, or PFOA, and perfluoroctanesulfonic acid, or PFOS, results show.
Before treatment, one well show contaminant levels around 700 parts per trillion and the second at about 200 parts per trillion, Baker said Thursday.
Wright-Patterson started pumping drinking water out of the wells on June 2., he said.
The base has four additional drinking wells in Area B. Wright-Patterson has an estimated 27,000 employees.
The Ohio EPA has had concerns a groundwater contamination plume could reach seven city of Dayton water production wells at Huffman Dam near the military installation.
In June, the city tested groundwater monitoring wells on the site which showed contamination levels were below the EPA threshold of 70 parts per trillion, she said in an email Thursday.