The bill is the culmination of decades of effort by advocates and lawmakers across the West to address toxic pollution from abandoned mines.
Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
** 'Good Sam' mine cleanup bill headed to Biden's desk
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Wednesday, December 11, 2024
An abandoned mine in Colorado's San Juan Mountains, D&RG Railfan via Wikimedia Commons ([link removed]) , CC BY 3.0 ([link removed])
On Tuesday the U.S. House passed bipartisan 'Good Samaritan' abandoned mine cleanup legislation by voice vote. The bill passed the U.S. Senate unanimously in July, and President Joe Biden is expected ([link removed]∏=alert&prodname=alertmail&linktype=headline&source=email) to sign it into law. The bill's approval by Congress is the culmination of decades of effort ([link removed]) by advocates and by current and former lawmakers, beginning with former U.S. Senator Max Baucus of Montana in the 1990s, and including former U.S. Senator Mark Udall of Colorado and current U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, both of whom championed versions of the bill over the years with bipartisan support from Western members of Congress.
Across the West there are as many as 500,000 ([link removed]) abandoned mines—some dating back to the 1800s, with no party legally responsible for cleanup—that contaminate water and soil with a variety of metals and other toxic pollutants. 'Good Samaritan' organizations that were interested in taking on cleanup of these sites were usually hesitant to do so because they were concerned about taking on liability for the sites and the contamination caused. If signed into law, the legislation passed Tuesday will create a 15-project pilot program that will allow a nonprofit, state agency, or industry group to take on a cleanup project with liability protections from the Clean Water Act and the Superfund law. A Good Samaritan must have no previous connection to the cleanup site.
"For more than 25 years, Good Samaritans have tried to clean up abandoned mines but have faced significant hurdles and liability rules that hold them responsible for all the pre-existing pollution from a mine — despite having no involvement with the mines before their cleanup efforts," Heinrich said in a statement ([link removed]) . "With today’s passage, we’ve now cleared one of the final hurdles preventing these groups from helping to protect the land, water, fish, and wildlife our communities rely on."
** Quick hits
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Congress passes 'Good Samaritan' abandoned mine clean-up bill
Politico ([link removed]∏=alert&prodname=alertmail&linktype=headline&source=email) | Las Vegas Review-Journal ([link removed]) | Santa Fe New Mexican ([link removed]) | CPR News ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])
Supreme Court hears oral arguments in Utah oil train case
Colorado Newsline ([link removed]) | CPR News ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed]) | Associated Press ([link removed]) | NBC News ([link removed])
Opinion: Protecting the Owyhee Canyonlands is up to Biden
Oregon Capital Chronicle ([link removed])
Sen. Heinrich and Santa Fe County, NM, urge national monument status for Caja del Rio
Santa Fe New Mexican ([link removed]) | KUNM ([link removed])
WY governor signs deal to sell Kelly Parcel to Grand Teton National Park for $100 million
WyoFile ([link removed])
Western governors eye public lands for housing development
Summit Daily ([link removed])
‘Zero progress’: Western states at impasse in talks on Colorado River water shortages
Los Angeles Times ([link removed])
Opinion: Implementing Project 2025 would harm Colorado's climate and economy
Colorado Sun ([link removed])
** Quote of the day
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” We must protect the ancient paradigm of living with the land—protection and reverence for tradition and the livelihood of its people. Now is the opportunity to preserve the Caja del Rio for future generations as part of our American landscape.”
—Santa Fe County Commissioner Camilla Bustamante, Santa Fe New Mexican ([link removed])
** Picture This
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@glaciernps ([link removed])
What's green and sings?
Elvis Parsley!
And, anthropomorphized lichen. Well... that could also be orange and singing, or brown and singing, or a sort of chartreuse and singing... you get the point lichen are colorful, and possibly (though not probably) musically talented.
Lichens are composed of two different life forms, a fungus and an algae, which coexist in an odd symbiosis, forming an entirely new organism called a lichen. The fungus provides structure and mineral-gathering capability, and the algae provides photosynthesis to make food for both. Which fungus combining with which algae determines which species of lichen.
NPS Photo of orange, white, and green lichen on rock.
Lichen what you’re hearing? Head over to nps.gov/glac/learn/nature/lichens.htm for more.
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