EPA kept toxic brew from moly mine

QUESTA, N.M. – The Rio Grande flows past Taos. Could it have become as polluted from mining as the Animas River was through Durango?

The Taos News asks that provocative question. Taos has a molybdenum mine near Questa, N.M., and one mine reclamation expert says that the potential was there for much worse pollution than what came from the Gold King Mine.

There were differences. The molybdenum mine operated at Questa until last year and its owner, Chevron, has deep, deep pockets. The Gold King Mine above Silverton, source of the pollution in the Animas River, hasn’t operated in almost 100 years. It has owners, but not ones with deep pockets. And the inter-related mine workings above Silverton are far more complicated.

But New Mexico was galvanized in the 1990s by a fear that Molycorp, the owner of the molybdenum mine, would go bankrupt or simply abandon its mine. In time, says J.R. Logan, the reporter for the News, the underground molybdenum mine would have produced a toxic brew that would have caused damage far greater than seen this month on the Animas.

To prevent that from happening, the New Mexico Legislature adopted a law in 1993 that got tough with mining companies, says Jim Kuipers, a consultant on mine-related environmental and reclamation issues, with experience at both Questa and Silverton.

“New Mexico really got its act together,” Kuipers said. Colorado, he added, was less aggressive in holding mining companies accountable for messes.

Even so, remediation action would probably have gotten bogged down in an endless legal battle had New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson, a Republican, not invited participation by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

“When EPA showed up, it’s not like everyone was thrilled,” Kuipers said. “But there was a recognition that, without EPA’s authority, it wouldn’t get done.”

EPA since then has forced the mine owner to the table and has set in motion an $800 million cleanup that will be paid by the company. Kuipers says the Superfund process quantified how much damage the mine caused and how much it would have to clean up.

Rachel Conn, of the Taos-based environmental group Amigos Bravos, tells the Taos News that details of specific remedies remain to be worked out at Questa. “But I think we’re in a lot better position here then they are on the Animas River,” she says.

Crested Butte wants backup on mine

CRESTED BUTTE – The spilled drainage from the mine above Silverton has caused Crested Butte and Gunnison County to consider the vulnerability of their situation. There, contaminated water from the old Standard Mine is cleaned up before it enters Coal Creek, which flows through Crested Butte, providing drinking water as well as water for recreational purposes.

But what if the mining company that operates the treatment plan should go bankrupt?

With that in mind, town and county officials last week sent a joint letter to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment requesting assurances that the state would step in and ensure water treatment. They say that local governments would be unable to respond adequately to the release of untreated mine drainage.

The Crested Butte News notes that the wobbly financial position of the mining company is a consideration, but so is the fact that the treatment plant uses outdated technology and now operates 20 years beyond the end of its expected life.

A smoky pall cast on the Rockies

WHISTLER, B.C. – Where was it not smoky over the weekend in the Rocky Mountains? Almost everybody was talking about the shrouded skies that cause a vague sense of unease. “Choking on West Coast smoke up here!” wrote an Aspen resident on Saturday.

 “Smoke from all the fires west of us is the heaviest we’ve ever seen in 17 years,” reported a resident of Red Lodge, Mont., during a weekend trip to Yellowstone Lake. “But the Wall Street Journal tells me we don’t have global warming!”

In Sandpoint, Idaho, a resident along the shores of Lake Pend Oreille reported too much smoke to see more than 2 miles. With that much smoke, people are advised to stay indoors.

It was hazy in Taos, too, and even more so in Santa Fe. “Most of this haze is associated with the large fires in the Pacific Northwest,” Pat Pacheco, fire management officer at the Bureau of Land Management Taos Field Office, told the Taos News.

The National Interagency Fire Center reported 76 active large fires, mostly in the Pacific Northwest.

Wolves abound in Banff and Oregon

BANFF, Alberta – Two wolves hunted and killed a deer in a Banff neighborhood recently in what the Rocky Mountain Outlook described as “harsh, yet beautiful display of Mother Nature.”

Lu Carbyn, a wolf biology expert from the University of Alberta, told the newspaper that he believed that the killing was an act of opportunity, not one of desperation. Wildlife officers removed the carcass from a street and to a wooded area, where the wolves presumably finished their meal.

Meanwhile, wolves have moved across the border from Idaho to establish homes in northeastern Oregon. But so far, they haven’t stuck around the Cascades to the west. The Bend Bulletin reports a wolf recently wandered past the Mount Bachelor ski area, but did not tarry. Instead, it practically sprinted through the area.

Pro Challenge pedals for sponsors

DENVER– The USA Pro Challenge wheeled through Colorado last week, attracting large crowds and international television coverage.

But after five years, reports Jason Blevins of the Denver Post, the event still lacks a title sponsor that will keep it alive. Losses for the bicycle races have dropped from an estimated $10 million the first year to $2 million this year.

In this quest for financial sustainability, the USA Pro Cycling Challenge is hardly alone, reports Blevins. Bike races across the world often struggle to find and sustain sponsors.

There may be additional problems for this event. It was launched and is owned by Rick Schaden and his father, Richard, who launched the Smashburger, Quiznos and Live Basil restaurant chains. Rick Schaden’s business reputation has been marked with contentious lawsuits. One unnamed source, identified as “one of the most influential players in Colorado’s tourism industry,” said: “A lot of people have looked at this race, but they have shied away from any association with the owners.”

Steve Maxwell, a business analyst and cycling advocate, sees a broader problem. “You can target a very attractive demographic with bike racing, but apparently that demographic is not big enough to bring in the really big sponsors,” Maxwell said. “And unfortunately the sport keeps shooting itself in the foot with the doping allegations. All that eventually translates into sponsorship troubles.

Colorado’s last big bicycle race was sponsored by Coors, the brewing company based in Golden, just west of Denver. The race series ran from 1979-88, when it died – after Coors pulled its support.

The Schadens have homes in Aspen, and the town has been on the race circuit every year. As do other host towns, it also pays for the privilege, this year at a cost of $300,000 in cash and in-kind services, including $50,000 worth of room nights for racers and support staff. About half of the money came from Aspen’s city government, reports the Aspen Daily News, citing a city memo.

What does Aspen get out of this? Not necessarily a bump in receipts at cash registers, at least not directly. But last year’s event gave the Aspen area two and a half hours of television exposure. That coverage reached 15 million viewers in Europe. In the United States, cable ratings were comparable to an NHL hockey game or an MLS soccer game, according to Aspen special events director Nancy Lesley.

– Allen Best

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