While the momentum has been shifting with relative warp speed since the Gold King Mine blew out last August, Silverton and San Juan County’s unanimous vote on Monday asking Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper to pursue a Superfund listing for the mine array that is compromising water quality in the Animas River’s headwaters marked an historic turning point. Gone are the decades of discussing what, how and whether to address the metal-laden water that is seeping from dozens of mines above Silverton. Now, the town, county, state of Colorado, our congressional delegation and the Environmental Protection Agency can focus on the pragmatics of cleaning up the problem wholesale. The vote – and what it will yield – is a major achievement for the region.
Rather than conceive of the vote as an end, though, it is more appropriately viewed as a breakthrough instrumental to ushering the action that has long stymied efforts to curb the flows of water rich in cadmium, arsenic and lead – among other metals and minerals – from mines in the Silverton caldera. The town of Silverton and San Juan County took big leaps of faith in calling for the Superfund listing, and in doing so have demonstrated a commitment and concern for water quality and human and environmental health far beyond their boundaries.
That leap came largely in the form of overcoming – or setting aside – mistrust of the EPA. The Silverton community is no stranger to Superfund discussions and has balked at the notion for decades, largely due to concerns that the label would disrupt the town and county’s tourism economy. While Superfund designations from early in the program’s history often did leave scars on communities in the form of decreased property values, slow cleanup progress and inadequate funding, Superfund has evolved significantly since 1980. The EPA has learned to work more closely with the communities affected, and has pledged to do so at an even higher level in this instance.
Indeed, Silverton’s and San Juan County’s insistence on “a seat at the table” in determining the cleanup effort’s scope and pragmatics was a sticking point for the community. The region is insular and insulated and understandably wary about a major federal project. However, both the town and the county understand the need to finally and fully address the century-old problem of mine drainage and the limits of local resources to do so. By seeking the federal Superfund designation – with caveats to include the town and county in decision-making; reimburse them for the professional services they have sought since the Aug. 5 spill; employ the “best available science” in determining cleanup methods; limit the scope of the designation to those mines that directly affect water quality in the Animas River and Mineral and Cement creeks; and mitigate any negative impacts on the community – Silverton and San Juan County demonstrate their commitment to an ongoing, dynamic and collaborative endeavor with regional, if not national, implications.
Monday’s vote was historic and marks the beginning of a new phase for the Silverton community and those downstream. Now, instead of continued conversation about if and how the mines will be addressed, the question shifts to how quickly, with what resources and to what effect. These discussions will require a similar spirit of cooperation and commitment to results, and the work since August in Silverton, Washington, D.C., Durango, Denver, Ignacio and far beyond indicates hope for positive outcomes.
