The EPA causes an environmental disaster

[flockofseagulls104]

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/ ... into-river

Will they hold themselves to the same degree of responsibility as they would hold Exxon, BP or any other evil corporation? I think not.....

[jaybee]

Just think of all the paperwork they will be filling out for this. Gonna kill a lot of trees.

[silvercamaro]

I hope Sprots will weigh in on this, since her city was one of the first populated areas directly affected. What is the local reaction to what the EPA has done so far to alleviate the damage? Is the river still yellow in her area? Is tourism "done" for the rest of the summer or beyond?

[silverscreenselect]

I spent a few days in the area of Durango, CO, before I married Mrs. SSS. The river actually goes through the town of Durango and there are whitewater tours through the downtown area (my party actually got dunked in the river and wound up on both sides of the river). Fortunately, we were within a block of a bridge so we could all cross over and link back up where the raft came to rest. Otherwise it would have been a lot trickier.

I also took an all day train ride on one of those scenic railroads that runs north of Durango along the river. Really spectacular scenery; this is a real shame.

[SportsFan68]

I hope Sprots will weigh in on this, since her city was one of the first populated areas directly affected. What is the local reaction to what the EPA has done so far to alleviate the damage? Is the river still yellow in her area? Is tourism "done" for the rest of the summer or beyond?

We are furious with the EPA. We were contacted right away, and hundreds of people walked down to the river to watch that horrific sludge arrive in town, but did TPTB think that the water stopped flowing at the state line? For all I know, Aztec, Farmington, and the Navajo Nation found out about it from the national news. Very luckily, the next three towns, starting with mine, have secondary water sources, not nearly as good, but plenty if everyone will quit outside watering until the water is declared safe. Anyway, someone at the EPA should have been on the phone instantly to everyone they could reach along the river all the way to Lake Powell. Navajo Nation President Russell Begaye says he is considering suing the EPA over its inadequate response.

So the Guv comes down yesterday and takes a look and reviews the data, which shows normal levels in the river and starts asking why the EPA hasn't declared the water safe and open for recreational use again. EPA officials say that they don't have the data to show that the water is safe and would Gov. Hickenlooper please silence remarks on the health of the river and to stop pushing to reopen it. I added the emphasis. Yeah, right, like they're gonna make the governor shut up. If you want to see a photo of Hickenlooper drinking water straight from the river, with iodine in it to kill giardia (as far as I know, there is no giardia in the river), see www.durangoherald.com

The river looks completely normal except for some awful orange/yellow residue on some banks. The only tourism directly affected were the rafting companies, and they can still salvage the rest of August if the river re-opens soon. The train and other attractions are full steam ahead.

I have to leave for a while to take the doggies for a walk but will be happy to answer any questions that I can when I get back.

[Bob Juch]

The Buck Stops Here...

It just couldn't get any worse. Superfund Blitzkrieg ?!?

http://www.silvertonstandard.com/news.php?id=847

A letter to the editor of The Silverton Standard and The Miner by a retired geologist predicted the disastrous toxic spill in Colorado at the hands of the Environmental Protection Agency exactly one week prior to the accident. Taking it one step further, the author added that they will do this on purpose in order to secure more funding.

On July 30, 2015, Dave Taylor wrote to the editor warning that the EPA is planning a "Superfund biltzkrieg" for the Gold King mine in Silverton, Colorado. If the site were to be granted Superfund status as the EPA has long desired (25 years), they would be entitled to federal monies up-front for any cleanups. And that's exactly what Taylor suggested in his prophetic writing:

Based on my 47 years of experience as a professional geologist, it appears to me that the EPA is setting your town and the area up for a possible Superfund blitzkrieg.

Taylor then went on to explain in detail how millions of gallons of heavy-metal laden water would be released because of the buildup of too much pressure by the EPA plugging the mine. Under this scenario, the EPA would need instant funding to build a treatment plant for the clean up process. Taylor was dead-on.

Just a week after the letter was published, the EPA was onsite attempting to insert a pipe above the mine to help them pump out the toxic water from inside the plugged mind. Yet by admission, they misjudged the pressure and the plug was dislodged sending the yellow/orange sludge into the nearby river systems -- just as Taylor predicted.

[BackInTex]

The Buck Stops Here...

It just couldn't get any worse. Superfund Blitzkrieg ?!?

http://www.silvertonstandard.com/news.php?id=847

A letter to the editor of The Silverton Standard and The Miner by a retired geologist predicted the disastrous toxic spill in Colorado at the hands of the Environmental Protection Agency exactly one week prior to the accident. Taking it one step further, the author added that they will do this on purpose in order to secure more funding.

On July 30, 2015, Dave Taylor wrote to the editor warning that the EPA is planning a "Superfund biltzkrieg" for the Gold King mine in Silverton, Colorado. If the site were to be granted Superfund status as the EPA has long desired (25 years), they would be entitled to federal monies up-front for any cleanups. And that's exactly what Taylor suggested in his prophetic writing:

Based on my 47 years of experience as a professional geologist, it appears to me that the EPA is setting your town and the area up for a possible Superfund blitzkrieg.

Taylor then went on to explain in detail how millions of gallons of heavy-metal laden water would be released because of the buildup of too much pressure by the EPA plugging the mine. Under this scenario, the EPA would need instant funding to build a treatment plant for the clean up process. Taylor was dead-on.

Just a week after the letter was published, the EPA was onsite attempting to insert a pipe above the mine to help them pump out the toxic water from inside the plugged mind. Yet by admission, they misjudged the pressure and the plug was dislodged sending the yellow/orange sludge into the nearby river systems -- just as Taylor predicted.

I would like to add Dave Taylor to my Dead Pool.

[SpacemanSpiff]

I would like to add Dave Taylor to my Dead Pool.

Somebody call?

[Bob Juch]

Taylor did not correctly predict the failure. He said it would be from high water pressure within the mine. In fact it was from breaching a dam at a tailings pond.

Of course the EPA themselves weren't doing the work; it was a contractor, Environmental Restoration LLC of St. Louis. There probably wasn't even an EPA employee at the site.

[flockofseagulls104]

Of course the EPA themselves weren't doing the work

Of course they weren't. They are a government agency. They cannot do anything wrong. Only greedy corporations. Environmental Restoration LLC of St. Louis is probably a subsidiary of Exxon or BP.