Lamborn, Udall back tunnel cleanup bill

Two lawmakers Thursday backed a measure to clear what they called a “legal blockage” to fixing the dammed-up Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel.

U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn, a Colorado Republican, held a telephone conference for reporters with Democratic Rep. Mark Udall to announce legislation that clarifies who is responsible for removing water backed up in an underground pool.

Collapses in the tunnel have caused water to build up underground, leading to seepage into the Arkansas River and fears of a catastrophic blowout.

“This will clearly put the responsibility for cleaning up the backlog of contaminated water, 1 billion gallons of it, with the (U.S.) Bureau of Reclamation,” said Lamborn, whose district includes Leadville.

The two-mile tunnel, built during World War II, drains water from many of the historic mines outside Leadville. There has been little work on the tunnel over the years, largely because the Bureau of Reclamation runs a treatment plant at the mouth but does not view maintaining the tunnel as its responsibility.

The plant removes zinc, cadmium and manganese from the mine water and releases it into the east fork of the Arkansas. Water being pumped from the underground pool elsewhere is being tested for contaminants.

Since the water comes from a Superfund site, overseen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Bureau of Reclamation said it lacked the authority to remove it. The EPA is conducting a “risk assessment” of the tunnel.

Lake County commissioners declared a disaster emergency Feb. 13, in hopes of spurring federal agencies to action on the blockage. Since then, numerous lawmakers, officials and federal agencies have gotten involved.

“You’re darn right we’re jumping on the bandwagon,” Udall said Thursday. “We don’t need study. It’s not necessary. We need action.”

Also on the “bandwagon” was U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar, a Colorado Democrat who introduced similar legislation in the Senate on Thursday.

Work began this week to ease pressure on the underground pool.

The EPA is pumping 150 to 200 gallons a minute from a shaft in California Gulch, the site of the first gold discovery in Leadville in 1859. The EPA says it could soon pump up to 800 gallons a minute, and tests have shown the water is not contaminated.

Officials are discussing other solutions, including drilling new wells into the underground reservoir and clearing blockages in other tunnels to relieve pressure.

Leadville is about 100 miles upstream from the Pueblo Reservoir, which provides water for Colorado Springs and numerous other communities.

A major release of contaminated mine water could affect human health, aquatic life on the river and municipal water supplies.

CONTACT THE WRITER: 476-1605 or scott.rappold@gazette.com