Sad to see this

[BR-549]

http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/09/us/colorado-epa-mine-river-spill/

I deal with the EPA locally fairly regularly regarding asbestos and universal waste. As a demolition contractor we are held to very strict regulations and processes to ensure we do not contaminate land fills or adjacent properties. The penalties are stiff and the landowner, contractor or anyone linked to jobs are held accountable.

Who will be held accountable for this mess I wonder?

 

[bobbydean]

Aztec and Farmington, New Mexico are also negatively affected. Good fishery that you cannot fish with the lead and arsenic in the water.

Total mess. Did the EPA or the mine cause the mess. Will be years in litigation!

 

[Dinkshooter]

Why blame the EPA so heavily? They were not the greedy bastards who ripped the place open and mined then split it in the first place.

 

[Jorgy]

the epa did this.
I woke up this morning and wanted to punch someone after reading this headline in my local newspaper

EPA: No health risks to wildlife after Colorado mine spill

Everything is fine, go back to playing angry birds..................

 

[sbhooper]

But they are the damn fools that turned all the stuff loose. It is suppose to be their job to clean up and protect stuff-not screw it up. Whatever government clown did that, should be fired.

 

[VAspeedgoat]

As a farmer in the chesapeake bay watershed, if that were me, I would have to pay for all of the clean up plus potential fines from the e.p.a. if negligence was involved. So in essence I will still get to pay for this since a government agency is cleaning it up and paying any fines. What a bunch of b.s.

 

[noharleyyet]

Why blame the EPA so heavily? They were not the greedy bastards who ripped the place open and mined then split it in the first place.

..have ridden from Cinnamon Pass to Silverton scores of times..the whole place is almost complete tailings.

Here comes the calvary.

http://www.eenews.net/stories/1060022014

 

[dcopas78]

Total incompetence. I talk to the Ohio EPA nearly every week in management of my water and waste water systems. If I accidentally released all of my biosolids into my receiving waters, I would be out of a job and likely on my way to jail. They shouldn't have been messing with something they apparently didn't know how to handle. It sounds like they punched a hole in the retaining wall for the waste water lagoon from what I have read. The mine might have created the mess, but the EPA sure didn't help in this case. I know mistakes are made but since when does the EPA actually try to fix something like this? I worked several years for an environmental group that put in treatment systems, and containment for sites just like this (many Superfund sites). Does anyone know if this site was on the Superfund list or was headed toward a listing? I looked but didn't see it.

At any rate, that river is ruined for a good while. I feel sorry for the individuals who enjoy it or need it for their water supply. That is a bad, bad deal.

 

[mtmander]

Who does the EPA report to ???

 

[BR-549]

Who does the EPA report to ???

Congress for one.
The Federal level or appointees report to Mr. Obama.... or whoever is president.

Most importantly US!

It will be swept under the rug just like the oil spills are.

 

[utahminer]

Total incompetence. I talk to the Ohio EPA nearly every week in management of my water and waste water systems. If I accidentally released all of my biosolids into my receiving waters, I would be out of a job and likely on my way to jail. They shouldn't have been messing with something they apparently didn't know how to handle. It sounds like they punched a hole in the retaining wall for the waste water lagoon from what I have read. The mine might have created the mess, but the EPA sure didn't help in this case. I know mistakes are made but since when does the EPA actually try to fix something like this? I worked several years for an environmental group that put in treatment systems, and containment for sites just like this (many Superfund sites). Does anyone know if this site was on the Superfund list or was headed toward a listing? I looked but didn't see it.

At any rate, that river is ruined for a good while. I feel sorry for the individuals who enjoy it or need it for their water supply. That is a bad, bad deal.

I couldn't agree more. I deal with the EPA on almost a daily basis (I specialize in mine closure) and can only imagine what they would do to me if I made this mistake. I have been surprised by the level of media coverage. I would have thought it would have been larger. You couldn't get away from the Mount Polley spill for months.

 

[hank4elk]

It's a cluster for sure,who screwed up 1st the chicken or the egg.
EPA has been underfunded and all for years now they are run by complete idiots.
The folks who left the waste pile after mining will never be held accountable,they just sluffed it off and left.90 yrs ago.
Same happens everywhere with all users of public lands who never pay for what they take. Loggers,oil,miners,ranchers now just do what ever they please and never even pay for the use.

the so called World class trout streams and rivers there were already a toxic mess before that ,and I stopped fishing there 20 yrs ago. This crap will will resurface with every storm now. Good thing I live hundreds of miles away in different watershed..............

 

[Big Foot]

Why are you all blaming the EPA when they are charged with cleaning up a mess created by a mining company? Seems awfully short sighted to me. All the sportsman out there who want to bash the EPA should think twice.

 

[Hem]

I feel for all the communities impacted by this travesty.

Wake Up Montana and protect YOUR SMITH RIVER!!!

Guess I am waking up anyway,..has me thinking.

 

[Oneye]

The EPA protects a lot of things for us. And I agree they messed up here, but the mess was already there, they were cleaning it up and something went wrong. It wasn't the EPA who created this mess in the first place.

 

[Oak]

The EPA has wanted to designate the area a Superfund site so that funds would be available for cleanup and mitgation, but the residents of San Juan County have opposed it due to worries that the designation would hurt tourism. Here is a more recent article on the subject. I wonder how Silverton is feeling about that now?

 

[sbhooper]

The EPA protects a lot of things for us. And I agree they messed up here, but the mess was already there, they were cleaning it up and something went wrong. It wasn't the EPA who created this mess in the first place.

I don't know why people are wanting to give the EPA a pass on this. They are not under-funded and they have become an arm of our left-wing idiot white house. They are full of incompetent clowns that do Obama's bidding and never have to answer for anything.

I had to jump through stupid hoops just to get a gravel pit on my property and they never even came out to see it. I understand that we need to have someone monitoring the environment, but for crying out loud do it right and keep the politics out of it. They have wreaked havoc on agriculture over Obama's term. Those fools don't seem to care about where the food comes from. They are more concerned with savings bugs and minnows, than they are with the economic impact of their stupid policies.

They do not answer to us. They answer to their masters in the white house. They are bureaucrats and are either civil servants or political appointees, neither of which we will have any input on. Disgusting.

 

[jryoung]

left-wing idiot...Obama...keep the politics out of it...Obama's term...masters in the white house.....

I see what you did there.

 

[dcopas78]

I fail to see how a "regulatory" agency suddenly became the clean up contractor. The EPA is charged with regulation and oversight. The cleanup work is performed by contractors that have years of training and experience in clean up operations. You can bet that contractors, if they were used for this cleanup, would have had to have had a contingency plan, and a contingency plan for that contingency plan to prevent this type of situation. I understand the lack of funds and the need for action but I can't for the life of me understand WHY they were messing with the containment area without having a way to control any spills.

I did find out it was a Superfund listed site and they were doing site investigation (usually done by a contractor with EPA oversight) when they dug into the dam. I can't believe they thought it was a good idea to dig into a dam directly downstream of a million-plus gallons of water.

I'm not kicking the EPA but they need to hold themselves to the same level of preparation/risk assesment that they have for the regulated.

 

[dcopas78]

The EPA has wanted to designate the area a Superfund site so that funds would be available for cleanup and mitgation, but the residents of San Juan County have opposed it due to worries that the designation would hurt tourism. Here is a more recent article on the subject. I wonder how Silverton is feeling about that now?

Like they just turned the whole river into the next Superfund site....