MINING COMPANY REJECTS EPA ORDER
DURANGO» A mining company says it won’t carry out cleanup work ordered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as part of a Superfund project in southwest Colorado.
Sunnyside Gold Corp. sent the EPA a letter saying the company isn’t responsible for pollution flowing from inactive mines in the area.
The EPA wants Sunnyside to help pay for some of the initial investigations into the Bonita Peak Superfund cleanup, citing the company’s previous mining activity there.
The Bonita Peak Superfund project includes the Gold King Mine, source of a 2015 spill that polluted rivers in Colorado, New Mexico and Utah. An EPAled contractor triggered the spill while excavating at the mine entrance.
RTD launches new low-income fare program.
The Regional Transportation District on Wednesday announced a new lowincome fare program, dubbed LiVE, that will provide a 40 percent discount for riders whose household incomes are at or below 185 percent of the federal poverty level. Enrollment opens July 29 at rtd-denver.com/ LiVE.shtml.
Interested riders between ages 20 and 64 who live in the district will have to qualify and enroll in the LiVE program to receive the discounted fare. The income threshold for a family of four is $47,638 or less, while the limit for a household of just one person is $23,107 or less.
Prison guard arrested after allegedly smuggling drug-packed burrito into prison.
BUENA
VISTA» State prison inspectors have arrested a former prison guard after he allegedly was caught smuggling a burrito packed with illegal drugs into the Buena Vista Correctional Facility, a Department of Corrections spokesperson said.
Officers from the department’s Office of the Inspector General arrested Trevor Martineau at the prison on July 2 on seven criminal charges, according to a news release by CDOC spokeswoman Annie Skinner.
Martineau, who had been hired Aug. 1, was fired, Skinner said. He has been charged with one count of introduction of contraband, three counts of drug possession and three counts of drug dealing, court records show.
Rabid bat found along Fourth of July parade route.
A bat found crawling along the Greeley Fourth of July parade route has tested positive for rabies, according to a statement from the Greeley department of public health.
The bat was picked up by animal control at 13th Street and 10th Avenue after it was spotted by a citizen. A lab confirmed the bat had rabies. Officials warn that if anyone or their pet had contact with the bat, they should notify the Weld County Health Department immediately.