U.S. E.P.A. Delivers Monitoring Project to Evaluate Conditions in the Animas and San Juan Rivers

WASHINGTON - The E.P.A. today released its final monitoring project for the Animas and San Juan rivers following the Aug. 5, 2015, Gold King Mine incident. The agency also posted on its Gold King Mine website the results of surface water and sediment sampling collected as part of its yearlong effort to gather a robust set of scientific data to evaluate ongoing river conditions.

The conceptual monitoring project is designed to gather a robust set of scientific data to consistently evaluate river conditions over time and evaluate impacts to public health and the environment. In September 2015, E.P.A. released the outline conceptual monitoring plan, Post Gold King Mine Release Incident: Conceptual Monitoring Project for Surface Water, Sediment and Biology for comment. Since then, E.P.A. has been working with state, local and tribal partners to develop a consistent monitoring approach to gather scientific data to assess conditions in the Animas and San Juan rivers. The final conceptual monitoring Project is accessible on EPA's website. E.P.A. continues to work with states and tribes on any additional monitoring needs and federal backing to support their activities. States and tribes are also designing complementary jurisdiction-specific monitoring plans. E.P.A. has made $2 million in initial backing accessible to launch these monitoring efforts.

Under the conceptual monitoring plan, E.P.A. is examining water quality, sediment quality, biological community and fish tissue at 30 locations under a variety of flow and seasonal river conditions. The sampling locations are located within Colorado, Southern Ute Indian Reservation, New Mexico, Ute Mountain Ute Reservation, the Navajo Nation and Utah, spanning Cement Creek, the Animas and San Juan rivers, and the upper section of the San Juan arm of Lake Powell.

When fully implemented, the conceptual monitoring Project will provide EPA, state, local governments and tribes a robust set of scientific data about water quality in the rivers and will help to explain the fluctuations over time and location based on seasonal factors that influence river flow, such as precipitation and snow melt. Initial monitoring data collected from 27 locations during the fall are below risk-based recreational screening levels and consistent with pre-event data which are limited in many areas outside the upper Animas. The spring sampling event is currently taking place, and will be followed by additional sampling planned in June and in the fall. E.P.A. will also coordinate with local jurisdictions and tribes to sample the rivers during heavy rain events in the summer.

View the latest sampling results here.

View the final conceptual monitoring Project here.

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