El Salvador: Mining for Gold

Certain areas of El Salvador have toxic water thanks to previous mining operations. In San Sebastian, water tests showed levels of cyanide at 9 times the accepted value and iron level 1000 times greater than is considered safe. The Commerce Group mined the area for gold until 1999. The Salvadoran government tested the water in 2012, thirteen years after mining had stopped.
Even without toxic mining processes polluting water sources, many Salvadoran communities have precarious access to safe water, at best. One quarter of rural Salvadoran communities do not have access to safe drinking water. Two thirds of the population rely on a single water source: the Rio Lempa.
http://andreaamyjackson.wordpress.com/2014/02/17/mining-for-gold-and-digging-graves-for-justice-equality/