The announcement comes amid controversy over EPA’s role in the spill. “It’s a part of our life, they say”.
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Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, the chairman of the House Overnight Committee, has said his panel would pursue its own investigation.
Due to the highly variable conditions typical of this segment of the river, additional testing will be conducted, and we continue to work closely with the Navajo Nation EPA on assessing drinking water, agriculture, livestock, and other critical water needs.
A spokeswoman for the EPA declined to comment Monday.
The internal watchdog at the Environmental Protection Agency is launching a combined investigation among its three divisions into the cause of a spill from a Colorado gold mine that unleashed 3 million gallons of contaminated wastewater into rivers that supply water to at least three states.
Roy Etcitty walked from his dead crops to the nearby banks of the San Juan River, where he stood in the mud and cried.
Officials in New Mexico have lifted water restrictions for the Animas and San Juan rivers imposed after the spill.
Lawmakers from both parties have criticized the EPA’s response as slow and overly cautious.
Richard Hepworth, state Division of Wildlife Resources aquatics manager in southern Utah, said he doesn’t expect any immediate impact to fish in Lake Powell, but he wants to “ensure people aren’t eating bad fish” in years to come.
Dr. David Lewis, a former EPA scientist and now the director of research for the Focus for Health Foundation, tells Breitbart News that he is finalizing plans for his independent analysis of current Animas River pollution levels available for public review by as early as next month.
Meanwhile, the EPA released new data for contamination in the San Juan River between Farmington and Shiprock, New Mexico.
“No one will know what the long-term effects are going to be”, Bishop said. “But we’ll be watching for those problems”. Behind the plug were several million gallons of tainted water laced with toxins and heavy metals.
“Had this been a private company, heads would have been rolling well before now”, he said. The fire started from a prescribed burn set by the National Park Service to clear out brush at Bandelier National Monument.
EPA compounded its gross negligence by failing to inform city and state officials or residents and recreationists on the river for a full 24 hours after the event.
“The citizens, businesses and peoples relying on the vitality of the Animas River deserve complete, transparent and expeditious accountability on this matter from the EPA”, Carson said in Durango, Colo. He said there was no reason for the 24- to 48-hour delay.
Federal officials, though, were complimentary of how Utah handled the situation, he said. The contaminants, once bonded with the iron, become heavier than the water and settle out.
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Many fear that even when the San Juan is reopened to agricultural uses, consumers won’t want to buy meat and produce from farms that irrigate with its waters.
