Mining sites on cleanup list
Gold King and others near Silverthorne are priorities for EPA chief Scott Pruitt.
The Gold King Mine and surrounding mining sites near Silverton are on a list of priorities for federal cleanup that Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt released Friday, which officials say signals better access to manpower and money moving forward.
“By elevating these sites we are sending a message that EPA is, in fact, restoring its Superfund program to its rightful place at the center of the agency’s mission,” Pruitt said in a written statement. “Getting toxic land sites cleaned up and revitalized is of the utmost importance to the communities across the country that are affected by these sites. I have charged the Superfund Task Force staff to immediately and intently develop plans for each of these sites to ensure they are thoughtfully addressed with urgency.”
The news doesn’t come as much of a surprise. During a trip to southwest Colorado this year, Pruitt vowed to keep the Bonita Peak Mining District, which includes Gold King, in his focus for Superfund cleanup.
But it serves as reassurance that despite EPA budget cuts, Silverton may still be poised to get the federal cleanup it was promised, and quickly — unlike other Colorado towns that have spent long periods waiting for the agency’s help.
“I think that’s a real good thing for us,” San Juan County administrator William Tookey said Friday afternoon. “I’m glad to see we were put on it.”
Tookey said he hopes the area’s inclusion on Pruitt’s list shows “that they recognize it’s a priority” and that the EPA will dedicate money toward their cleanup. Silverton for years was reluctant to embrace a Superfund cleanup because of worries the EPA wouldn’t follow through, among other reasons.
“EPA has a unique responsibility at this site,” said Denver’s new regional EPA administrator Doug Benevento, citing the agency’s role in the Aug. 5, 2015, Gold King wastewater spill.
“This is probably unlike other sites that are on the list,” he said. “This is one where the administrator feels a strong obligation that the EPA needs to pay attention to it. If resources are an issue, if money is an issue, (the site’s place on Pruitt’s list) gives us some standing to look for those resources and make a claim for them.”
The EPA says the 21 sites on Pruitt’s list will get his “direct engagement” and that they “have identifiable actions to protect human health and the environment.”
However, the agency said the list will be dynamic, and that sites will move on and off as appropriate.
The Bonita Peak Mining District, which received Superfund designation in September 2016, is the only site in Colorado on the list, though Benevento said others in the state could be added later. Their absence on Pruitt’s list doesn’t mean the EPA is neglecting them, he said.
Gov. John Hickenlooper and U.S. Sens. Michael Bennet and Cory Gardner of Colorado applauded Pruitt’s move.
“I think it really gets the Bonita Peak Superfund project out to a great start,” said EPA Bonita Peak Su- perfund manager Rebecca Thomas.
The EPA has been working to remediate the heavy metals leaching from the Gold King and surrounding sites ever since the massive spill that turned the Animas River mustard yellow. Thomas said EPA construction in the area has wrapped up for the winter, though public outreach and other field work has been ongoing.
The EPA says the next milestone for the Bonita Peak Superfund site, which includes 35 mines and seven tunnels with drainages into the Animas River, is the creation of a remediation plan with short- and long-term objectives.