A Brief History
On August 5, 2015, Colorado found out the hard way that the Federal Government is capable of massive blunders even when they are trying to “help,” when the EPA managed to spill three million gallons of wastewater and heavy metal tailings from the Gold King Mine into the Animas River.
Digging Deeper
Tasked with keeping our air, water and land safe, the Environmental Protection Agency was created in 1970. In the Gold King Mine disaster, the EPA was working with a private company, Environmental Restoration LLC, to minimize environmental damage from toxic waste created by the closed mine.
When a protective dam was accidentally breached, toxins such as Lead, Cadmium, Arsenic, Beryllium, and Copper were sent gushing into the Animas River which in turn feeds the San Juan River and Colorado River.
The EPA refused to pay for the clean-up, and a truck carrying waste sludge crashed into a creek and released 9 cubic yards back into the watershed!
Question for students (and subscribers) to ponder: What is the worst US environmental disaster?
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Committee on Indian Affairs United States Senate. EPA’s Gold King Mine Disaster: Examining the Harmful Impacts to Indian Country. CreateSpace, 2016.
Thompson, Jonathan. River of Lost Souls: The Science, Politics, and Greed Behind the Gold King Mine Disaster. Torrey House Press, 2018.
