Appeals Court upholds dismissal of water contamination case

DENVER - A federal appeals court on Tuesday upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit New Mexico brought against two companies it accused of contaminating groundwater in Albuquerque.

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals also dismissed New Mexico's claim for injury for the cleanup of the South Valley, which was ordered by the Environmental Protection Agency.

In 2004, a federal judge dismissed parts of New Mexico's claims against General Electric and AFC Industries. The state claimed they had let chemical solvents seep into the groundwater in a square-mile area, leaving the water undrinkable.

Later that year, the state was ordered to pay the companies' legal costs.

State attorneys set out believing they could collect up to $4 billion in damages, which would have been the largest environmental damages lawsuit in New Mexico history.

Colorado, Wyoming and 11 other states filed briefs in support of New Mexico's case. Industry and business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, sided with GE and AFC.