Wastewater from Colorado mine dumped into Animas river

Sdiver · 08-09-2015, 11:12

The EPA is saying that they "accidently" released this wastewater into the river.

"Accidently" ... Call me paranoid, but I ain't buying it. Out here in the West, "Control the water and you control the population."

Bring up a map and follow the flow downstream and watch were the Animas flows past and what other waterways it flows into.

This incident is going to make the BP Deep Horizon oil spill look like nothing more than a glass of spilt milk.

Quote:

Wastewater from Colorado mine reaches New Mexico

KUSA - Four days after an estimated one million gallons of toxic water and sludge spilled into the Animas River, more is still pouring out of an abandoned Silverton mine.

More than 500 gallons per minute of the orange-colored water is flowing into two rivers in two states.

"We turned off our ditches three days ago," Farmer David Elder told 9NEWS sister station KOB Eyewitness News 4.

Elder isn't the only one. The toxic spill in the Animas River has flowed into New Mexico -- and concerned have residents shut down supplies.

"I have some areas that need water right now. It's significant and when that's your livelihood and there are many on our ditch who are farmers and that's their livelihood," said Danene Sherwood, a San Juan County, New Mexico resident.

The Environmental Protection Agency said the water contains heavy metals including lead and arsenic. It happened after an EPA crew accidentally released waste from an abandoned mine they were trying to clean up.

"If they tell me if you put your hand in the river, the hand's not going to fall off, but don't drink the doggone stuff," said Don Cooper, San Juan County's emergency manager.

Residents want a timeline on when the water can be turned back on and when people can go back into the river, but the EPA isn't giving one.

"I can't give you a firm number of days or weeks that it's going to take," said EPA Region 8 Administrator Shaun McGrath. "This is going to be a long-term impact."

New Mexico officials aren't waiting on the federal government and are conducting their own lab tests of the water. They are warning people to stay out of the river.

"We're committed to working around the clock to keep local communities informed and protected. And we'll do whatever it takes," said New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez.

The water that continues to flow out of the mine is being treated in a settling pond to reduce, not eliminate, the metals and acid in the water before it flows into the river.

EPA officials don't know how much toxic water is left.

http://www.9news.com/story/news/loca...mine/31346785/

.

This page has some great before and after pictures ... http://www.durangoherald.com/assets/...MineWaste.html

Quote:

Action to deal with Animas River contamination slow moving

The Animas River may have regained some of its translucence Saturday, but a complete picture of its toxicity remained murky three days after mustard-yellow mine waste filled the banks.

The Environmental Protection Agency released some water samples Saturday, including pH levels and dissolved metal loads, but it didn't release the total levels of heavy metals, including lead, zinc, arsenic, cadmium, among others. EPA planned to release a more complete report late Saturday or early Sunday. At least two of the heavy metals found in the wastewater can be lethal for humans with long-term exposure. Arsenic at high levels can cause blindness, paralysis and cancer. Lead poisoning can create muscle and vision problems for adults, harm development in fetuses and lead to kidney disease, developmental problems and sometimes death in children, the EPA said.

One thing was certain: The effects of the environmental disaster will be felt for months. The high-water mark left from the pulse of toxic waste deposited a yellow-orange film along large swaths of the Animas River. As the murky water traveled 50 miles from Silverton, it tumbled over rocks that kept it stirred. By the time it arrived in the Animas Valley near Dalton Ranch, the river slowed, which gave minerals a chance to settle on the riverbed. High-water run-off events are expected to stir those sediments and cloud the river during the weeks and months to come.

“It's here for a while, no doubt about it,” said Butch Knowlton, director of La Plata County's Office of Emergency Management.

On the positive side, the EPA completed retention ponds Saturday at the Gold King Mine near Silverton and is now treating polluted water flowing out of the mine.

About 550 gallons per minute of polluted water was flowing from the mine Saturday, down from the 740 gallons per minute Friday, said Shaun McGrath, administrator for the EPA's Region 8 Office in Denver.

The EPA triggered the release of about 1 million gallons of polluted water from the mine Wednesday. Toxic wastewater has continued to flow from the mine ever since.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife placed 108 fingerling rainbow trout in three baskets on Thursday to monitor the effects. Only one fish had died as of Saturday – and that one likely died for unrelated causes shortly after being put into the river, according to EPA officials who held a news conference Saturday afternoon.

The Mountain Studies Institute has found small insects in the river near Durango still alive after 20 hours of exposure to the pollution.

“Continued monitoring may reveal substantial impacts to aquatic life over a longer period of time, but it is good news that widespread acute mortality did not immediately occur,” said Scott Roberts, aquatic ecologist with Mountain Studies Institute.

Once the water testing results are back, EPA technicians will analyze what the results mean for agriculture, wildlife and human contact and consumption.

Toxic wastewater was released about 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, while an EPA crew was moving dirt from the collapsed entrance of the mine. Investigators underestimated the amount of wastewater that was trapped behind a wall of material. During excavation, loose material gave way, opening the mine tunnel and spilling mineral-rich wastewater. It also washed away a small retention area the crew had built.

The EPA administration is going to investigate why EPA staff and contractors allowed the water to be released, McGrath said. Currently, no one has been placed on leave. But McGrath said he would look into anything that could be actionable against personnel.

“I am going to do it sensitively,” he said.

The team was working at one of the many abandoned mines that have been leaching heavy metals into the river for decades.

Silverton residents have long opposed a Superfund listing. But McGrath said conversations about a listing are ongoing.

The Animas River remained closed to recreation Saturday, and officials could not say when the river would be safe again to use.

The metals must naturally settle out of the water into the riverbed, McGrath said. The EPA has no plans to actively dredge the river, because it could cause more damage.

Saturday afternoon, the wastewater was moving about 4 miles an hour and it had reached the confluence of the San Juan River in New Mexico.

Aztec and Farmington had shut down their water intakes and so had irrigators all along the river, EPA officials said.

The spill was expected to reach the Navajo Nation by the end of Saturday.

Saturday mid-day, La Plata County Sheriff Sean Smith was driving up and down the length of the river making sure new closure signs were in place. He had the signs created Friday night using leftover campaign signs from his election in November.

The newly elected sheriff said he didn't know he had the statutory authority to close the river until a few days ago when the county attorney found it in the statutes.

Rainstorms Saturday in the high country were expected to bring additional toxic flows downstream, Smith said.

Knowlton, with La Plata County's Office of Emergency Management, said the water color had improved Saturday, but rain in the high country could increase flow and pick up minerals that settled along the banks and riverbed.

Knowlton spent Saturday identifying wells and water supplies that are influenced by or next to the Animas River. He said there are about 1,000 residents with wells between Bakers Bridge and the Colorado-New Mexico line. County officials are working to identify how many of those are within close proximity to the river and what kind of earthen materials surround them.

Water moves more quickly through boulders and gravel than it does dirt, clay, sand and fine silts, Knowlton said. The county is working with Wright Water Engineering to identify wells that may need to undergo testing for water contamination, Knowlton said.

“It's a frustrating situation for all of us in this community, and the impact that has been created in the community is significant,” he said. “But it's here, we can't turn the clock back, and there are processes now that we're going to have to work through to fully understand the impacts and ramifications of the incident.”

Melissa Lopez, who lives on the river south of Durango, asked for water to be delivered to her house Saturday because she was fearful her well might be contaminated.

“Until we get the test results back and know for sure whether it's safe, we're going to drink water from another source,” she said.

http://www.durangoherald.com/article...AnimasRiverart

MR2 · 08-09-2015, 13:00

And if you didn't clean up after your dog, the EPA's minions would have you on the rack!

glebo · 08-09-2015, 13:37

Haaaa, I guess when you do it, it's ok. EPA slammed Duke energy for coal ash seepages/contamination in a couple of rivers in NC..

I'm glad they took "full responsibility".... blahhh I guess if ya do that, it'll go away...

**Pete** · 08-09-2015, 15:08

Rules are for peons - not the EPA.

But they were probably long term employees so "Bush's Fault".

JJ_BPK · 08-09-2015, 15:43

Trying to use google to see where it will flow.

I think it my be headed for the Grand Canyon??
(see attached, this is a walking route)

Not good..

mugwump · 08-09-2015, 15:46

I was kayaking on that river just four weeks ago. What a tragedy. That river is a treasure of incalculable value.

mugwump · 08-09-2015, 16:16

There is another EPA Superfund project, recently completed above the village of South Fork, Colorado, with a huge holding pond full of mercury, arsenic and lead. It's this big shiny facility smack dab in the middle of the national forest. Really incongruous to see it up there. The stream flowing by it leads directly into the headwaters of the Rio Grande.

The Feds were supposed to turn day-to-day cleanup operations over to the state of Colorado but they refused to accept the turnover because the State engineers determined that the holding "pond" (more like a lake) was improperly built and the processing facility's foundations were already cracking and settling. Colorado says the whole facility needs to be ripped out and replaced. I was told it would take a billion with a 'b' dollars to fix. The locals are furious because the Feds wouldn't allow the State to assess the engineering plans and construction quality while it was being built.

"We're the government and we're here to help."

Sdiver · 08-09-2015, 17:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by JJ_BPK

Trying to use google to see where it will flow.

I think it my be headed for the Grand Canyon??
(see attached, this is a walking route)

Not good..

JJ,

That is exactly where it's headed.

Try using this map .... http://www.bing.com/maps/default.asp...5_Animas+River

The Animas once in New Mexico, empties into the San Juan river at Farmington, then flows past Kirtland and Shiprock NM and into the various N.A. reservations.

That then meets up with the Colorado River and runs into Lake Powel and the Grand Canyon.

Yes, the river upstream around Durango is starting to translucify, but the spring run off is over and what contaminates that don't seep into the ground, are heading towards a major source of drinking and agriculture water for a great many people.

JJ_BPK · 08-09-2015, 18:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sdiver

JJ,

That is exactly where it's headed.

The Animas once in New Mexico, empties into the San Juan river at Farmington, then flows past Kirtland and Shiprock NM and into the various N.A. reservations. That then meets up with the Colorado River and runs into Lake Powel and the Grand Canyon.

That is not going to make the SOCAL farmers happy..

Sdiver · 08-09-2015, 19:44

The latest ... 7:06 p.m. MDT August 9, 2015

Quote:

EPA: Pollution from mine spill much worse than feared

FARMINGTON, N.M. — Officials from the Environmental Protection Agency said Sunday that the Gold King Mine discharged an estimated 3 million gallons of contaminated water, three times the amount previously believed.

The mine continues to discharge 500 gallons per minute, EPA Region 8 administrator Shaun McGrath said in a teleconference call Sunday afternoon, but the polluted water is being contained and treated in two ponds near the site of the spill near Silverton, Colo.

According to preliminary testing data the EPA released Sunday, arsenic levels in the Durango area of the Animas River were, at their peak, 300 times the normal level, and lead was 3,500 times the normal level. Officials said those levels have dropped significantly since the plume moved through the area.

Both metals pose a significant danger to humans at high levels of concentration.

"Yes, those numbers are high and they seem scary," said Deborah McKean, chief of the Region 8 Toxicology and Human Health and Risk Assessment. "But it's not just a matter of toxicity of the chemicals, it's a matter of exposure."

She said the period of time those concentrations remain in one area is short.

Earlier Sunday the city of Durango, Colo., and La Plata County, Colo., declared a state of emergency. The Navajo Nation Commission on Emergency Management also issued a state of emergency declaration in response to the spill.

EPA officials said in the teleconference Sunday afternoon that water quality experts have been deployed to Shiprock and are encouraging people there to take advantage of water quality sampling.

EPA officials said they are also working to provide necessary materials to people in Farmington and Aztec for private well sampling.

New Mexico Environment Department spokeswoman Allison Scott-Majure said testing has not yet been performed in San Juan County.

In San Juan County, restrictions are still in effect along the Animas River, said County Executive Officer Kim Carpenter. The biggest obstacle, he said, is making sure residents and livestock have access to drinking water.

Access to the Animas River is still closed throughout the county, and officials advise residents with wells in floodplains to have their water tested before drinking it or bathing in it.

Carpenter said people and their pets should avoid contact with the river, livestock should not be allowed to drink the water and people should not catch fish in the river. He also instructed people to avoid contact with the wildlife along the river in Berg Park as information on the chemicals in the water is still being released.

In Sunday's teleconference, McGrath said the EPA is looking at the next steps for cleaning up the site.

"We're working to see if we can get this on the National Priorities List for designation as a SuperFund cleanup site," McGrath said.

He qualified the statement a moment later, saying, "It's one option that can be considered."

According to the EPA's website for the Upper Animas Mining District, environmental officials considered adding the Upper Cement Creek area to the National Priorities List in 2008, but decided against it due to a lack of community support.

Such a designation would establish the area as an abandoned hazardous waste site and unlock federal funds to implement a comprehensive cleanup plan.

As the city of Durango, Colo., and La Plata County, Colo., declared a state of emergency early Sunday, La Plata County Manager Joe Kerby said the decision stemmed from the "serious nature of the incident."

Later in the day the Navajo Nation Commission on Emergency Management issued a state of emergency declaration in response to the spill.

Rick Abasta, spokesman for President Russell Begaye, said the commission unanimously approved the state of emergency Sunday afternoon and it now goes before the president for approval. The declaration allows using tribal resources for an incident command center in the Shiprock Chapter.

Abasta said Begaye and Vice President Jonathan Nez toured the Gold King Ming Sunday. He said Abasta was likely to sign it, possibly as early as Sunday evening.

At 27,000 square miles, the Navajo Nation is comparable in size to West Virginia.

Begaye told the Daily Times that he had directed Navajo Nation Attorney General Ethel Branch to assemble a legal team to file a lawsuit against the EPA.

"They are impacting the livelihood of our people," he said.

Begaye said he was disappointed with the EPA's lack of information and disclosure about the types of toxic metals that were discharged into the Animas and San Juan rivers.

Navajo Nation Council Speaker LoRenzo Bates told the Daily Times that residents were concerned about drinking water safety, river access, water for livestock and crops, and the possibility of compensation for failed crops. With irrigation canals shut off, many farmers are concerned about their next step, Bates said.

"If these farmers don't get water in the next week, they'll lose their crops," he said.

The Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA) warned residents to stay away from the river and to refrain from using its water for livestock and other household needs. But it said communities along the San Juan River get their drinking water from the city of Farmington, so it is safe for consumption.

Mustard-colored water flowed this week into Cement Creek, a tributary that runs through Silverton and into the Animas River. In New Mexico, the plume of pollution entered Aztec early Saturday morning and Farmington later that morning. Officials said they expected it to reach the Utah border on Monday and Lake Powell, in Arizona, late Wednesday.

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez said the state's first notification of the spill came from Southern Ute Tribe officials. "It's completely irresponsible for the EPA not to have informed New Mexico immediately," she said after flying over the affected rivers.

State Environment Secretary Ryan Flynn said the EPA did not notify his department of the spill until almost 24 hours after they'd caused it. He said the agency's initial response to the disaster was "cavalier and irresponsible."

http://www.9news.com/story/news/nati...pill/31384515/

Just wondering ... has anyone seen or heard from Billy lately?

**The Reaper** · 08-09-2015, 19:51

I seriously doubt that anyone will be held to account for this tragedy.

TR

Golf1echo · 08-10-2015, 04:28

Not the first time Colorado has experienced major contamination because of the Federal Governments actions.

Rocky Flats Radioactive contamination.......just drill wells and make the stuff disappear. http://www.dailycamera.com/ci_19995436

Rocky Mountain Arsenal Basin F.......... http://www.rma.army.mil/files/7914/1...stepileESD.pdf
With Basin F they are not completely sure what is all down in those deep wells or what it has combined into...

Both instances became " Super Fund Sites", basically the Government making business from the attempted clean up...Big business! As a side note, many of the Geologists and Hydrologists I have known here were Democrats, when asked why, they explain that the EPA is the source of much of their work. A little bit of a self licking ice cream cone.