It seems irrelevant to continue pointing fingers into the past for the admittance the EPA claimed for the Gold King Mine spill. With the river in my life for 15 years, I have experienced paddling through the 5,000 cfs milk-chocolate Animas during spring runoff. I have witnessed the shore covered with ice in the emptiness of the winter months. However, I have never witnessed the heartbeat of Durango look so unpleasant as after the spill.
After the ugly plume made its way through town, the community hit a very fragile state, affecting members of the recreational community to the small-business community. The mustard-colored water was taking its toll in every possible way.
Now, though, we must look to the best possible solution to ensure that the headwaters flowing into the Animas are free of toxic metals and mine waste. Arsenic, lead, copper and cadmium are very dangerous to human health. Exposure to these metals potentially puts the river community at risk, as well as the unique environment that is fueled by the river. Silverton has continued to preserve the mines, working toward its own solution, but I believe that the recent spill should act as a wake-up call.
Silverton should explore an eco-friendly filtration system that will remove all heavy metals and toxic waste that may be harmful to living organisms. A possible solution could include research from the University of Minnesota Duluth Natural Resources Research Institute and the American Peat Technology. They have previously teamed up to clean wastewater from a mine in Minnesota. The team developed a heat-based hardening process that delivered a hard, dense granule that doesn’t break down in water but manages the natural chemical mechanisms that drive the adsorption of dissolved heavy metals.
This process could make the Animas River free of heavy metals running through Cement Creek. In turn, it could serve to keep the water clean for all recreational purposes, fishing, and even further down the road for the Navajo Nation.
Jake Beekmann
Durango
