The area is popular for tubing and other recreational activities.
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The same area of wilderness in Utah contains well-known red rock cliffs and terraces in Utah, such as Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.
As the contaminated water moved downstream Thursday, its effect was dramatic, according to Butch Knowlton, Director of the La Plata County Office of Emergency Management. “I want to assure you that the EPA absolutely is concerned”.
The Animas River flows on Friday near the border between New Mexico and Colorado, carrying contaminants spilled from a former mine near Silverton, Colo.
Wastewater from the Gold King Mine dumped into Cement Creek, which flows into the Animas River north of Silverton.
The EPA’s team was working with heavy equipment to establish a safe way to enter Gold King Mine and access contaminated water, said Richard Mylott, a spokesman for the EPA in Denver in an interview with The Durango Herald. The EPA says tests also were being done there, but no more information has been released. The lower the pH, the higher the acidity in the water.
“This is a huge tragedy”, Ostrander said. “Typically, we respond to emergencies, we don’t cause them….”
A breach at a Colorado mine is causing environmental concerns in New Mexico. Numerous towns along the way have water-recreation-centric tourism industries. When the spill was reported, the city stopped pumping drinking water from the river, turning instead to the unaffected Florida River as an alternate water supply.
Many were demanding answers including the president of The Navajo Nation.
“Till we all know what we’re up towards and what the consequences might be, we’re saying, ‘Be cautious,”‘ Baker stated. “It is unfortunate that we have to once again tell our people to stay away from the river due to the release of risky chemicals into our water”.
It also said it would assess damage near the mine and any residual releases of mine water. Multi-day trips run from Mexican Hat down to Clay Hills, just above where the San Juan meets Lake Powell.
The disaster happened as the EPA began work to pump wastewater out the leaking mine, which first opened in 1887, and treat it in containment ponds.
While the sediment will settle within the next few days, the agency noted there will be immediate agriculture impacts along the river and future ramifications, including possible closures of the river based on turbulence from spring runoff. “It’s going to kill a lot of those fish off. It’s definitely not how the river is supposed to look”. “There may be disruptions in the future”.
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Friday, EPA regional administrator Shaun McGrath called his agency’s initial response “not appropriate”.
