Earlier last calendar month , the Environmental Protection Agency ( EPA ) tried to strip up the Gold King Mine , but instead released3 million gallonsof contaminated water into the Animas River in southwest Colorado . intragroup documents now show that the EPA knew of the risk of a blowout , theAssociated Pressreports .
The documents include a June 2014 piece of work gild for the contrive cleanup of the Gold King Mine , which no one had access since 1995 , when the entering partially collapse . The document notes that “ This status has belike caused impounding of piss behind the collapse … In summation , other collapse within the workings may have occur creating additional water impounding conditions . ”
“ Conditions may exist that could result in a jamboree of the blockages and cause a release of large volumes of contaminated mine waters and deposit from inside the mine , which contain saturated threatening metals , ” the report says .
The EPA wascriticized for not instantly announcingthe fortuity to locals , which saw initial estimate derail from 1 million gallon of contaminated piddle to 3 million . The EPA is creditworthy for clearing up environmental disasters , not do them – an irony that was not lose ona local resident physician who suggestedthe agency should call itself the “ Environmental Pollution Agency . ”
The contaminated water is thought to contain profound metals , including arsenic , atomic number 80 , smoothing iron , zinc , cop and lead . The EPA is still investigating the health effects of the passing water , which now stretch more than 160 kilometers ( 100 miles ) into neighboring New Mexico . The Animas Riverreopened originally last weekas contamination levels have fallen back to pre - spill levels . The government agency said the spill now salute little danger to locals beyond Lake Powell .
TheAssociated Pressreports that “ A 71 - varlet guard design for the land site included only a few lines describing what to do if there was a spill : Locate the source and stop the flow , start containment and recovery of the spilled materials , and spanking downstream imbibing water systems as postulate . ”
It stay unclear what bump before or after the spill . presently , there are three ongoing investigations trying to expose what triggered the explosion and how it was dealt with . The EPA has not only been criticise by elected officials in the area , but also by the president of Navajo Nation . In reply to the spill , the EPA delivered H2O to sustain agrarian operations and livestock . Tensions increased between the EPA and Navajo Nation when the latter accuse the delegacy of recentlydelivering water in dirty oil cooler . The authority has assure to look into the Navajo Nation ’s allegations .
