EPA head to visit site of Colo. mine waste spill

The Obama administration’s top environmental official will visit Colorado and New Mexico Wednesday to inspect the recovery from a massive mine waste spill her agency caused.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Gina McCarthy will visit both Durango, Colo., where 3 million gallons of orange sludge spilled into the Animas River, and Farmington, N.M., about 50 miles downstream, where the Animas flows into the San Juan River, EPA spokeswoman Liz Purchia said Tuesday.

{mosads}Officials have closed off both rivers while they test the heavy metals and determine the potential harm from the spill and the next steps. The governors of both states have declared states of emergencies.

McCarthy and state and federal EPA officials have been under intense pressure and harsh criticism since last week’s spill, caused by EPA contractors inspecting the Gold King Mine, which was abandoned in the 1920s.

Earlier Tuesday, McCarthy apologized for the spill and pledged to do all she could to help.

“It is really a tragic and very unfortunate incident, and EPA is taking responsibility to ensure that that spill is cleaned up,” she said. “I am absolutely, deeply sorry that this ever happened.”

Local and state officials have been pushing the EPA to be more transparent about what was spilled and its impacts on the river and communities.

Colorado’s Rep. Scott Tipton (R) and Sens. Cory Gardner (R) and Michael Bennet (D) had asked McCarthy to visit their state.

After her announcement, the lawmakers are now demanding a concrete plan from the EPA to clean up the river.

“The cleanup and mitigation plan should include information on what short and long term water quality tests the EPA will conduct on the Animas River and surrounding watersheds, how often samples will be taken, and when the fully-interpreted, toxicologically-relevant results will be released to the public,” they wrote.

Gardner additionally has called for congressional hearings into the spill, and for federal officials to hold the EPA to the same standard that it holds private companies that pollute.

Other lawmakers are also watching.

Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), chairman of the Environment & Public Works Committee, said his panel is keeping a close eye on how the EPA handles the situation, and House Science Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) demanded that the agency release more information about the incident.