A toxic plume of waste water that spilled from Colorado’s Gold King Mine has reached Lake Powell. Initial tests are showing that the plume of waste water does not pose an immediate threat to the lake. Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes will speak with the State Water Development Commission on Tuesday to brief officials on the spill.
Donna Spangler of the state Division of Environmental Quality said that future monitoring of the water will be needed to better understand the spill’s effects.
“The indication that we’re getting is that none of the testing is coming back with any adverse health impact to drinking or recreation,” Spangler said. “The message that we’ve been telling people is that we’re not seeing any real alarming levels or anything that should impact Lake Powell. But again, the caveat, we don’t know for sure. It’s going to require some long-term monitoring. That’s something that we’re going to keep a close eye on.”
Rep. Rob Bishop demanded answers from the Environmental Protection Agency, claiming there was little communication about the problem. Marina Heidt, who vacations with her family at Lake Powell, said that she is not too worried after learning more about the spill.
“We are very interested in it and followed it. The more I watched it, followed it, and learned about it, I came to the conclusion that as it gets down into the San Juan [River] and disperses and becomes diluted… I don’t think it’s going to be quite as dangerous,” Heidt said. “We take our own water there and we always have done that. I don’t want to minimize this but I just think, considering that it is a heavy metal, it’s going to sink to the bottom. I trust the testing that’s being done.”
State officials lifted the advisory against using the water for crops and livestock. The Navajo Nation is doing its own water quality study, with Tribal President Russell Begaye advising Navajos to refrain from using the water for agriculture.
