Gold King Mine Release: Utah s Response and Implications for Our Waters

Transcription

1 Gold King Mine Release: Utah s Response and Implications for Our Waters Water Resources Research Institute May 17, 2016 Erica Gaddis, Ph.D. Utah

2 Utah s Inter-agency Response Aug 5: Gold King Mine Release into Cement Creek Aug 7: UDWQ prepares monitoring plan; responds to media requests Aug 8: DWQ crews collect pre-plume samples; EPA modifies release estimate to 3 million gallons Aug 10: Samples collected at 4 sites and driven to SLC for analysis Aug 14: UDAF gives all clear for stock watering Governor Herbert declares state of emergenc y Aug 6: EPA notifies Utah DEQ of a 1 million gallon spill Aug 7: BOR increases release of water from Navajo Dam to dilute spill in San Juan River Aug 9: DWQ crew collects samples every 3 hours in attempt to catch leading edge of plume Aug 11: Navajo Nation declares state of emergency and issue do not use order for drinking and stock water. Aug 19 Analysis of immediat e effects released Aug 12 Aug 24: Daily coordination with DOH, DEM, DDW, DWR, DAF, EPA, Navajo Nation.

3 Monitoring Response Objectives Protect Public Health Real and perceived public health threats Timely data Appropriate screening values Protect Environment Chronic effects on aquatic life associated with legacy metals loading in system Comparison to water quality standards Appropriate background comparison

4 UDEQ Monitoring Aug 11 Aug 21: Daily water quality samples collected and delivered to SLC. Data turnaround time to public in 24 to 36 hours. Sediment samples: Pre- and post- plume Aug 24 October 24: Weekly samples for water quality, sediment, and macroinvertebrates

5 Storm Influence mask signature of plume

6 San Juan River post storm

7 Dissolved Aluminum

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10 Water Quality Screening

11 Recreational Uses

12 Agricultural Water Uses

13 Aquatic Life Uses

14 EPA Long-term Monitoring Plan

15 Monsoonal Storm Influence Exceedances of Water Quality Standards Domestic Source Water Criteria: Aluminum (14 samples) and lead (one sample) Aquatic Life: Cadmium, copper, iron, lead, mercury, and selenium

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17 San Juan River Aquatic Life Impairments Exceedances: Aluminum Cadmium Copper Iron Lead Mercury 17

18 Long-term Work Plan Elements Water Quality Monitoring to Inform Public and Protect Uses of San Juan River Task 1: Surface Water Quality Monitoring Task 2: Real-time Reporting of Water Quality Conditions Drinking Water Quality Monitoring Task 3: Public Drinking Water Systems Monitoring Task 4: Private Well Monitoring Metals Load Analysis and Source Characterization Task 5: Total Metals Load Analysis Task 6: Inventory of Mining Sources in the San Juan River Watershed Accumulation of Metals in San Juan River and Lake Powell Task 7: Sediment sampling in San Juan River and Tributaries Task 8: Sediment Traps in Lake Powell Task 9: Sediment Core Study in Lake Powell Assessing Impacts on Human Health and Aquatic Life Uses Task 10: Ecological Risk Assessment Task 11: Human Health Risk Assessment Coordination and Outreach Task 12: Inter-agency Partnership and Collaboration Task 13: Public Information and Stakeholder Outreach 18

19 Spring Runoff Monitoring Majority of 400,000 kg of heavy metals released remains in the Animas River Like to be mobilized during high flows (spring runoff) Animas River spring runoff flows are 10x higher than storm flows in Fall 2015 EPA monitoring data collected during monsoonal storm events show elevated concentrations of metals that exceed Utah water quality criteria 19

20 Relationship between sediment and metals 20

21 Funding Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment 4300 Cherry Creek Drive South Denver, CO New Mexico Environment Department Harold Runnels Building 1190 Saint Francis Drive Santa Fe, NM Utah Department of Environmental Quality 195 North 1950 West Salt Lake City, UT Navajo Nation Environmental Protection Agency P.O. Box 339 Window Rock, AZ Ute Mountain Ute Tribe 124 Mike Wash Road Towaoc, CO March 23, 2016 Mathy Stanislaus Assistant Administrator Office of Land and Emergency Management (OLEM) Environmental Protection Agency 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington D.C Re: Request from Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Navajo Nation, and Ute Mountain Ute Indian Tribe for funding to implement monitoring associated with spring runoff in response to Gold King Mine release. Dear Mr. Stanislaus, We are writing to request that EPA fund the attached Spring Runoff Preparedness Plan in addition to the $2 million of Clean Water Act funds that EPA has made available to states and tribes for long-term monitoring and assessment. We feel strongly that monitoring during the spring runoff period is a necessary shortterm need (though not the only immediate need) that is in direct response to the Gold King Mine release that occurred on August 5, We have made this request verbally during two recent conference calls with EPA regional and headquarters staff and we are following up with this letter to ensure that you understand the necessity and rationale for this work and to formally request that you fund this plan developed collaboratively by the states and tribes. Considering that Spring 2016 will be the first snowmelt runoff season in the Animas and San Juan watersheds after the GKM

22 Long-term effects on Lake Powell San Juan Arm, Lake Powell Depositional area for historic and current mine releases in San Juan system Historic releases: Estimated release of 8.6 million tons of tailings discharged to river system over life of the mines EPA estimates 5.5 million gallons per day of releases ,000 tons million gallon release

23 Mine Water Released (gallons per day) Legacy Influence of Silverton Mines Historic Mine Releases from Gold King Mine 3,500,000 3,000,000 2,500,000 2,000,000 1,500,000 Gold King 1,000, ,000 0 Jan-04 Oct-06 Jul-09 Apr-12 Dec-14 Sep-17

24 Jul-05 Dec-05 May-06 Oct-06 Mar-07 Aug-07 Jan-08 Jun-08 Nov-08 Apr-09 Sep-09 Feb-10 Jul-10 Dec-10 May-11 Oct-11 Mar-12 Aug-12 Jan-13 Jun-13 Nov-13 Apr-14 Sep-14 Feb-15 Jul-15 Estimated Historic Mine Releases (gallons per month) Cumulative Releases Over a Decade Estimated Historic Mine Releases (gallons per month) 16,000,000 14,000,000 Estimated Gold King (Average) 12,000,000 10,000,000 Gold King 8,000,000 6,000,000 4,000,000 2,000,000 0 Estimated Total Releases over Past Decade = 500 to 850 million

25 Sediment transport

26 Sediment Screening No Exceedence Above Screening Level Prior to Plume Arrival Estimated Plume Arrival Post Plume Arrival Aluminum Antimony Arsenic Barium Beryllium Cadmium Calcium Chromium Cobalt Copper Iron Lead Magnesium Manganese Mercury Molybdenum Nickel Potassium Selenium Silver Sodium Thallium Vanadium Zinc Monitoring Location Screening Level Value for Sediment Site Description Collection Date Collection Time mg/kg mg/ kg mg/k g mg/kg mg/kg mg/kg mg/kg mg/k g mg/k mg/k mg/kg mg/ g g kg mg/kg mg/kg mg/kg mg/kg mg/kg mg/k g mg/kg mg/k g mg/kg mg/ kg mg/kg mg/k g 8/8/2015 1:23:00 PM ND ND ND Stateline 8/15/2015 9:43:00 AM ND ND ND /19/2015 8:15:00 AM ND ND /23/2015 6:30:00 PM ND ND GK06 t McElmo Was 9/23/ :52:00 AM 4920 ND ND ND /8/2015 2:54:00 PM 6140 ND ND ND ND ND /15/ :30:00 AM ND ND ND Montezuma 8/19/2015 9:30:00 AM ND ND /22/2015 5:55:00 PM ND ND /26/2015 2:00:00 PM ND ND /8/2015 4:19:00 PM 7140 ND ND ND ND Sand Island 8/15/ :31:00 AM ND ND ND /19/ :33:00 PM ND ND ND /22/2015 1:59:00 PM 4250 ND ND ND ND /8/2015 5:40:00 PM 8780 ND ND ND /15/ :04:00 PM 7480 ND ND ND ND Mexican Hat 8/19/2015 1:03:00 PM 6470 ND ND ND ND /22/2015 9:56:00 AM 6350 ND ND ND ND /26/2015 4:15:00 PM 5300 ND ND ND ND /15/2015 2:30:00 PM 6160 ND ND ND ND Clay Hills 8/19/2015 3:09:00 PM ND ND ND ND /23/2015 1:50:00 PM 2770 ND ND ND ND ND 1130 ND ND /27/2015 2:45:00 PM 2720 ND ND ND ND ND

27 Lead in Sediment Health based concentration: 400 mg/kg Aquatic Life screening value: 37 mg/kg

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29 Sediment records from Lake Powell

30 Lake Powell - San River Arm Core 3 From USGS

31 USGS sediment traps Deployed from August to November 2015 Three additional traps deployed April 2016 Analyzed for metals representative of sediment loading events (banding) Deployed april 2016 for Spring Runoff

32 Lake Powell Water Quality Monitoring

33 Interagency Response Overall excellent support and coordination across Utah state agencies and local jurisdictions Coordination with EPA Region was challenging Very little coordination with other states and tribes in the immediate weeks after the spill Differences in public messaging Aug 11: Navajo Nation declares state of emergency and issue do not use order for drinking and stock water. Aug 14: UDAF gives all clear for stock watering Applying these lessons to Spring Runoff Response Coordinated planning with NNEPA, NM, and CO Weekly coordinating calls across states and with EPA Discussion on consistent use of screening values for recreational usees

34 More Information deq.utah.gov/topics/water/goldkingmine/