Zimapn isthe poorestof the 84municipalitiesofHidalgo state, located 200 kilometers north of Mexico City. This splaces population is no greater than 37 000inhabitants.The most importan economical activity is mining where the mainelementotained is marble.

Througout the years mine wastehasalwaysbeen dumped and has led an incredibillhigh degreeof pollution, especiallywater fromstreamsand springsthat localsconsume. Then, itis notsurprising thatthis regionhas recordedmore casesof cancerthanthe national average.

Until2003they werewillingto livewiththatmess,but itwas said thata recycling plant of the Spanish Multinational Abengoa-Befesa, was going to begin operations inthesuburbs ofCuauhtemoc, at only 9 kilometers away fromthe cityof Zimapn. However,itwasdiscovered that it was pretended to build the biggest landfill ofLatin America, discharging over 18,834tonnesoftoxic wasteper year. And that it would havean investmentof 60 milliondollars,alifetime of only 50years andonlycreate40 new jobs.The dump would destroy human health and the environment. By2007, social protests triedto stopthe construction,whichhas resulted inone hand, astrong police repressionand in the other hand, a callto prevent the abuseofmultinationalson natural resourcesand local communities.Locals from Zimapn wrote a letter where they ask for a call of solidarity with its cause and exhort people to reflect on the actions that directly affect the environment. As well there is information that reveals that in Spain, in the small town of Nerva, it exists another big Befesa landfill project with exactly the same caractheristics as the one in Zimapn. According to the public opinion in Spain, trasnationals do not care about the place, only the business and its benefits. So it is necessary to express that the idea is not to blame any nationality but the companies, which ambitions overcome anything.In April 2009, social protests arrived to Mexico City, where activists of the social group Todos Somos Zimapn marched on the main streets of this city protesting against the landfill labours done by Befesa in Zimapn. These protests were caused by the entry of at least a dozen trucks loaded with toxic waste to Zimapn during the first days of april 2009.Arturo Williams Trejo, leader of the opposition movement and secretary of the Municipal Council of Administration, reported that in addition to the entry of trucks carrying toxic waste, elements of the Federal Preventive Police (PFP), settled in Zimapan since June 2008, used violence to repress the opposition of residents and elements of the municipal police who tried to stop the entry of the units.This situation remained the same for months, with tensin and political issues being involved. During this time, elections were held in Zimapn and Jos Mara Lozano, leader of the movement Todos somos zimapan, was elected as the new president of Zimapn in 2009. Inmediately he managed to cancel the permission for Befesa to build the landfill, but it was not an easy process. In October 2009, Lozano, reported that Befesa wanted to recover from the financial damage of 270 million dollars after the cancellation of the landfill project in this city, but then he said that Zimapn was not responsible of any kind of payment.Couple of weeks afther that, Lozano received an ultimatum by the federal government subsecretary Geronimo Gutierrez, in which they indicated that the landfill from the Spanish company had to become operational despite the opposition of the people from Zimapan.But after some discussions and public opinion against the landfill, the federal government stepped back and gave way to dialogue, involving the participation of the Federal Environmental Protection Office(PROFEPA), the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) and the three levels of government order to help solve the conflict.Then, in January 2010, the municipality of Zimapn initiated a lawsuit against the Spanish company Befesa-Abengoa, to revoke the permits that were granted by the last municipal administration, to operate a toxic waste facility in the suburbs of Zimapn.This action, as Lozano said, was the first one against Befesa-Abengoa and will be carried by the firm Bugarn y Asociados hired by the current administration.The report was received by the legal representative of the company and a public notary.By January 2011, things changed and Befesa-Abengoa demanded the municipality of Zimapn for stopping the project in the region. The demand is being reviewed by an international tribunal. The compensation amount claimed by Befesa-Abengoa adds up to more than 96 million dollars.