The abandoned Colorado gold mine that contaminated rivers in three states and drew the attention of Oklahoma U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe is now on the Superfund list of the Environmental Protection Agency.
The announcement was made this week by the EPA, the very agency blamed for causing the environmental disaster last year near Durango, Colorado. The agency said it officially put the Bonita Peak Mining District on the National Priorities List, making millions in federal funds available for environmental cleanup. It was an EPA contract doing work at the Gold King Mine that accidentally sent 3 million gallons of mine waste downstream last year.
At the time of the disaster, Sen. Inhofe, chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works was critical of the handling by the EPA. Still, the announcement drew support from some close to the mine.
“What a great benchmark for this community and for our downstream partners, that we go listed,” said Bill Gardner, the town administrator for Silverton.
The designation is only the first step in what will likely be years of cleanup in the San Juan mountains in southwestern Colorado.
But the spill also caused pollution in New Mexico and the state sued the federal government. There was pollution in Utah too and Utah officials say they plan to file suit against the EPA.