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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Anger was mounting Monday at the federal
Environmental Protection Agency over the massive spill of
millions of gallons of toxic sludge from a Colorado gold mine
that has already fouled three major waterways and may be three
times bigger than originally reported.

An 80-mile length of mustard-colored water -- laden with
arsenic, lead, copper, aluminum and cadmium -- is working its
way south toward New Mexico and Utah, following Wednesday's
accidental release from the Gold King Mine, near Durango, when
an EPA cleanup crew destabilized a dam of loose rock lodged in
the mine. The crew was supposed to pump out and decontaminate
the sludge, but instead released it into tiny Cement Creek. From
there, it flowed into the Animas River and made its way into
larger tributaries, including the San Juan and Colorado rivers.

"They are not going to get away with this," said Russell Begaye,
president of the Navajo Nation, which intends to sue the EPA.

Visible from the air, the toxic slick prompted EPA Region 8
administrator Shaun McGrath to acknowledge the possibility of
long-term damage from toxic metals.

"Sediment does settle," McGrath said. "It settles down to the
bottom of the river bed."

McGrath said future runoff from storms will kick that toxic
sediment back into the water, which means there will need to be
long-term monitoring.

The toxic waste passed through Colorado's San Juan County on
Saturday, heading west. People living along the Animas and San
Juan rivers were advised to have their water tested before using
it for cooking, drinking or bathing. That was expected to cause
major problems for farmers and ranchers, who require large
quantities of water from the river for their livelihoods.

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez inspected the damage in
Farmington over the weekend and came away stunned.

"The magnitude of it, you can’t even describe it," she said.
"It’s like when I flew over the fires, your mind sees something
it’s not ready or adjusted to see."

The EPA and the New Mexico Environment Department plan to test
private wells near the Animas to identify metals of concern from
the spill. Tests on public drinking water systems are handled by
the state environment department, the agencies said.

Begaye said Saturday at a community meeting in Shiprock, N.M.,
that he intends to take legal action against the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency for the massive release of mine
waste into the Animas River near Silverton, Colorado.

"The EPA was right in the middle of the disaster and we intend
to make sure the Navajo Nation recovers every dollar it spends
cleaning up this mess and every dollar it loses as a result of
injuries to our precious Navajo natural resources," Begaye said.
"I have instructed Navajo Nation Department of Justice to take
immediate action against the EPA to the fullest extent of the
law to protect Navajo families and resources."

Begaye said the plume of sludge has made its way into the San
Juan River and is wending through the Navajo Nation, the
nation's largest Indian reservation. It is expected to reach the
heavily used Lake Powell by Wednesday.

David Ostrander, an EPA spokesman, said last week the agency is
taking responsibility for the incident.

"We typically respond to emergencies, we don't cause them, but
this is just something that happens when we are dealing with
mines sometimes," Ostander said.

The infiltration of toxic material is a haunting memory for the
Navajos who are still reeling and experiencing the adverse
health effects of a uranium waste spill into a river outside of
Gallup, N.M., some 36 years ago. On July 16, 1979, a dam failed
in a uranium waste pond spilling 1,100 tons of solid radioactive
mill waste and approximately 93 million U.S. gallons of acidic
and radioactive tailings solution into a nearby river tributary.

There have been claims the amount of radiation released in the
Churchrock incident exceeded Three Mile Island.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2015/08/10/navajo-nation-aims-to-sue- epa-over-devastating-mining-spill/

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