What Can EPA Do About Abandoned Mines in California? Debbie Schechter US EPA Region 9, Superfund Division Presented at Reclaiming the Sierra: Community Summit on Mining Impacts November 8, 2010 What Can EPA Do about Abandoned Mines in California? EPA and federal land managers have cleanup authority under CERCLA, or Superfund EPA’s Brownfields Program can provide funding and technical assistance to eligible grantees Prioritization is critical: there 47,000 abandoned mines in California 2 CERCLA Cleanup Authority CERCLA authorizes the federal government to respond to releases or threats of releases that may endanger human health or the environment Private land: EPA Public land: federal land mgmt. agency CERCLA provides for liability for responsible parties and authorizes the federal government to compel parties to clean up sites CERCLA authorizes two kinds of responses: Removals (short term) Remedial actions (at sites on the National Priorities List) Iron Mountain Mine, Redding, CA 3 Clean Water Act Authority Regulates pollutant discharges from point sources into navigable waters Designed to address industrial facilities Applies to current owners/operators Acid mine drainage is considered a point source Newton Mine, Amador County, CA 4 Bodie State Historic Park Mono County, Eastern Sierra 250,000 visitors per year Elevated levels of lead, arsenic and mercury in soils, mill tailings, indoor dust and indoor air 300,000 cy tailings pile north of town with elevated lead and mercury levels; mercury found off-site in creek and fish Bodie State Park (Source: CA State Parks Dept) 5 Bodie State Historic Park EPA Administrative Order on Consent with CA State Parks: EPA conducts removal action; State Parks pays Contaminated soils excavated and disposed of offsite Mercury vapor capture system installed in a historic building Tailings pile stabilized with compost and revegetated; drainage channel improved: estimated 99% reduction in off-site migration Stabilization of tailings at Bodie SHP 6 Blue Ledge Mine On private land in Rogue River- Siskiyou National Forest, three miles south of CA-OR border EPA Removal Action in 2006: Stabilization, soil cover, drainage systems to reduce AMD and metal impacts on stream ecosystem USFS Removal in 2010: $9.7 million in Recovery Act funds for removal of ~60,000 tons waste rock into a repository, erosion control measures, topsoil replacement and View of main waste rock pile at Blue Ledge Mine restoration 7 Blue Ledge Mine Significant sources still need to be addressed Contaminated sediments Acid mine drainage from mine adits National Priorities List inclusion allows EPA to: Fully characterize the extent of contamination Pursue historical operators to conduct or pay for cleanup Use Superfund money for cleanup Iron staining from acid mine drainage at Blue Ledge Mine 8 EPA’s Brownfields Program • Brownfields are properties, the expansion, development or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant or contaminant • In 2002, Brownfields amendments to CERCLA provided liability exemptions for: Bona fide prospective purchasers and their tenants Continguous property owners • EPA provides about $80 million per year in grants to assess, clean up and redevelop brownfields, including mine-scarred lands 9 Eligibility for Brownfields Grants Applicant cannot be a potentially responsible party (under CERCLA) Owner of a brownfield site is eligible if they are a bona fide prospective purchaser, an innocent landowner, or they meet another CERCLA liability defense Site is not eligible if it is: Listed or proposed for listing on the NPL Subject to a CERCLA order Under jurisdiction, custody or control of U.S. 10 Nevada City Brownfields Assessment $200,000 EPA grant to Nevada City with Friends of Deer Creek to investigate mine tailings areas within the city. Goal to use areas as part of trail systems and for recreational opportunities Assessments showed arsenic, lead, and cadmium in mine tailings Friends of Deer Creek conduct field sampling at Pioneer Park 11 Nevada City Brownfields Cleanup In 2010, Nevada City received $600,000 in EPA grants for cleanup of Providence Mine and Stiles Mill Goal is to reduce exposure to heavy metals for future users of Tribute Trail system Cleanup plans: Remove lead and arsenic- contaminated soils Stabilize waste rock piles Providence Mine (Source: The Sierra Fund) 12 Prioritizing Abandoned Mines in California Insufficient resources to address all 47,000 abandoned mines (only 5% have been inventoried) No agreement about which mines are worst “Feinstein List”: In 2007, CA and federal agencies prioritized top 100 mines in CA Individual agency prioritization efforts 13 EPA Region 9 Superfund Mine Coordination Group Prioritizes Superfund Division work at inactive and abandoned mine sites Recommends site-specific activities to management for action and resource allocation Coordinates on mine sites within Division and acts as a liaison with other R9 Divisions, other agencies and stakeholders Mines in the Cache Creek Watershed 14 Mine Coordination Group Criteria for Priority Ranking Risk-based criteria; mining- specific; adapted with considerations from several models Five weighted factors Human population exposure Stability Contaminant characteristics Environmental exposure Program management considerations Rand/Kelly Mine, Kern County, CA 15 Conclusions EPA and other federal and state agencies can address a very, very small portion of the abandoned mines universe EPA brownfields grants can assist with some small mine sites with redevelopment potential Joint prioritization of mines (with agencies and stakeholders) is critical to make best use of limited government and private resources Acid mine drainage in Spring Creek at the Iron Mountain Mine Site, Redding, CA 16.