The Environmental Protection Agency is dealing with another spill at a mine cleanup site in Colorado, as 2,000 gallons of wastewater spilled into a creek supplying drinking water.
Officials from Crested Butte said the wastewater and gray-colored sediment spilled out of a holding pond at the Standard Mine near the town.
The spill happened mid-day on Tuesday, but the news didn’t come until Thursday.
The Denver Post reported the EPA notified public works officials immediately after the spill but did not tell residents. The town’s mayor wasn’t told until Thursday and the EPA didn’t acknowledge the spill, despite the paper’s questioning for more than 24 hours, until Thursday.
A contractor was removing water from the holding pond at the site, which contained un-mineralized sediment from drilling and water from the lower mine. During that process, the vacuum removing clear water from the top of the pond dipped into the gray sediment.
That led to the discharge of sediment and gray water into Elk Creek, which serves as a source of Crested Butte’s drinking water. Town officials said the impact to the drinking water supply would be negligible.
Crested Butte is a town in western Colorado high in the Rocky Mountains.
The spill comes weeks after another EPA contractor spilled millions of gallons of contaminated water into the Animas River from the Gold King Mine in southwest Colorado.
Rep. Scott Tipton, R-Colo., was furious about the news of the latest spill. He said the EPA had not contacted him about the spill as of Thursday night.
“While initial reports are that the water was not contaminated, another spill caused by the actions of the EPA calls further into question this agency’s ability to adequately execute these types of projects,” Tipton said. “It is troubling and frustrating that the spill occurred … and once again the EPA did not notify our office.”
The EPA said Friday it told the town immediately as well as the state health and environment department.
“EPA immediately notified the town of Crested Butte water treatment plant and called the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment spill hotline reporting that an EPA contractor dewatering a sediment pond into Elk Creek at the Standard Mine Superfund Site released an estimated 2,000 gallons of water and sediment into nearby Elk Creek,” an agency official said in a statement.
“Based on the neutral pH levels, the quantity of water released, and flow levels downstream in Coal Creek, the town of Crested Butte did not close its water intakes. Subsequent investigation found no visible plume or signs of significant impacts in downstream locations. All work on the sediment pond is complete. The EPA continues to coordinate closely with Crested Butte officials on this matter.”
