WASHINGTON, D.C. – Legislation to allow organizations the opportunity to clean up abandoned mines with liability protection is on the cusp of being introduced in the U.S. Congress.

Colorado’s U.S. Sens. Michael Bennet, a Democrat, and Cory Gardner, a Republican, are preparing to introduce good Samaritan legislation, along with U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton, R-Cortez.

The bill would allow groups to apply for permits to assist with environmental cleanup efforts at abandoned mines. The draft legislation, called the Good Samaritan Cleanup of Orphan Mines Act, will be discussed Tuesday at the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.

“While there are willing and able good Samaritans who wish to address safety and environmental concerns and improve water quality at orphan mines, the EPA has done little to incentivize them, and the fear of liability for meeting all federal standards during cleanup is too great,” Gardner said of the draft legislation.

Although good Samaritan legislation has previously failed in Congress, the latest effort is a renewed attempt by Colorado’s delegation to address leaking mines in response to the Gold King Mine spill last August.

The spill, caused by contractors working for the Environmental Protection Agency, released more than 3 million gallons of contaminated wastewater, eventually reaching the Animas and San Juan rivers.

“The Gold King Mine spill was a sharp reminder of the imperative to clean up the thousands of abandoned mines in Colorado and throughout the West,” Bennet said. “Part of that solution is to craft a good Samaritan policy with the help of the state, local communities and their partners.”

Groups working to clean abandoned mines would currently be held liable for toxic water contamination under the Clean Water Act, even if they were attempting to limit the pollution. The legislation would remove hurdles faced by willing groups by creating a permit and application system that includes detailed plans for remediation. Organizations that stray from the terms of the permit would be liable for contamination.

The legislation is specifically tailored to address abandoned mine sites “used for the production of a mineral other than coal.”

The Bureau of Land Management reports that there are more than 2,700 abandoned mines in Colorado. The EPA estimates at least 230 of these mines are leaking toxic chemicals into waterways.

One of the benefits of allowing willing groups to undertake mine cleanups is the scope, as well as the cost, of remediating the problem in Colorado and across the United States. The cost of cleaning up the estimated 33,000 leaking U.S. mines would be tens of billions of dollars.

Tipton, who strongly supports good Samaritan legislation and introduced similar legislation in the previous Congress, said the newest bill would “remove regulatory hurdles that currently discourage and prevent these groups from cleaning up contamination in abandoned mines, empowering them to take action.”

egraham@durangoherald.com. Edward Graham is a student at American University in Washington, D.C., and an intern for The Durango Herald.