The State of New Mexico declared a state of emergency on Aug. 10, following the spill last week of 3 million gallons of toxic waste into the Animas River near Farmington, NM. The yellow plume of toxins stretches 100 miles. The fouled water contains heavy metals, including lead and arsenic.
At least two of the heavy metals found in the waste water can be lethal for humans with long-term exposure. Arsenic at high levels can cause blindness, paralysis and cancer. Lead poisoning can create muscle and vision problems for adults, harm development in fetuses and lead to kidney disease, developmental problems and sometimes death in children, the Environmental Protection Agency said.The EPA warned people to stay out of the river and to keep domestic animals from drinking from it. Local officials declared stretches of the river off-limits in Colorado and New Mexico. Drinking water systems in the Navajo Nation, spanning parts of New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah, have been forced to shut down water intake systems.
Farms along the Animas and San Juan river valleys in northwestern New Mexico have no water to irrigate their crops after the spill.
Frustrated over the delayed response by the U.S. EPA, Navajo President Russell Begaye said he plans to take legal action. An EPA crew has been blamed for causing the spill while attempting to clean up a mining area at Gold King Mine in the town of Silverton in Southern Colorado.
Water continues to spill from the mine at a rate of about 700 gallons per minute, Joan Card, an adviser to EPA Regional Director Shaun McGrath, said Saturday. Crews were building containment ponds to catch and treat the water.
Corporate greed, environmental racism
Once a again another tragic event has fouled a beautiful place and its source of clean water. While government officials try to down-play the impact of the spill, the farmers and people living in the river valleys face increased pollution and severe risk to the health of their families.
The mine owners and their wealthy cohorts are no doubt basking in luxury somewhere, far from the flowing rivers, unconcerned about the effects on those living there, not to mention the growing threats to planet Earth itself.
Water samples were also tested in New Mexico, but no results had been released.
Officials said the contamination would likely settle into sediment in Lake Powell. Glen Canyon National Recreation Area officials said visitors will be warned starting Monday to avoid drinking, swimming or boating on affected stretches of the lake and river until further notice.
The spill from the mine flowed down Cement Creek and into the scenic Animas River, which is popular with boaters and anglers.
When the spill happened, the EPA-supervised crew was trying to enter the mine to pump out and treat the water, EPA spokeswoman Lisa McClain-Vanderpool said.
