As the new home of WashPIRG's environmental work, Environment Washington can be contacted regarding this news release.
SEATTLE—A
new report released today by the Washington Public Interest Research Group (WashPIRG)
shows that there are 3,800 abandoned metal mines in Washington State, most of
which have never been assessed for their impacts on the environment. The report,
entitled "Washington
Undermined," warns of overlooked and ongoing pollution of the state's
watersheds from heavy metals leaching from these mines. WashPIRG asserts that
too little is being done to identify contaminated mines and protect the public
health.
"Abandoned mines have been leaching lead, arsenic and other toxins into
our streams for decades," said WashPIRG's Mo McBroom. "Unfortunately,
we don't have all the information we need to gage the extent of the problem,
or to go after the polluting companies."
Because many of the mining
companies responsible for the sites have dissolved or gone bankrupt, the report
warns that continued government inaction will mean that taxpayers, rather than
the polluters, will be forced to foot more of the cleanup bills. The report
also explains that, left unaddressed, toxic runoff from abandoned mines can
continue indefinitely, and that the sites pose a threat to children, hikers
and others who are unaware of the dangers. Abandoned mine hazards detailed include:
- Heavy metal exposure:
At the United Copper Mine in Stevens County, local residents have used contaminated
mine waste piles as a race track for off-road vehicles, kicking up dust polluted
with arsenic and heavy metals. At the Nighthawk Mine in Okanogan County, local
parents unknowingly carted away buckets of lead-laden mine waste for use in
their children's sandboxes.
- Watershed degradation:
Discharges from numerous abandoned mines have combined to severely degrade watersheds.
Arsenic levels in the Similkameen, a river popular for its steelhead fishing,
are 10 times higher than those found naturally due to abandoned mine contamination.
The Methow, Spokane and Columbia Rivers are all severely polluted by lead, arsenic
and other toxins coming from abandoned mines.
- Threats to Public Safety:
Over the past three years, over 80 people have died from accidents in abandoned
mines in the U.S. Although there have been no recent fatalities in Washington,
the danger grows as our population moves into high-density abandoned mine areas
such as the Cascade foothills and Okanogan Highlands.
“The state’s rich mining
industry has left us with a toxic mess,” said McBroom. “Washington citizens
shouldn’t have to pay, with our dollars or our health, for the mining industry’s
legacy.”
WashPIRG's report calls
on state and federal officials to:
- Complete an inventory
of the state's largest abandoned mines, and
- Enact federal legislation
that would impose a fee upon active mining operations to pay for the inventory
and cleanup of abandoned mines across the West.
