"Missed Warning Signs: Why a Toxic Waste Spill Could Happen Again"

"U.S. officials responsible for the Aug. 5 spill of toxic mine waste in southwestern Colorado had no plan in place for dealing with a catastrophic breach of the kind that fouled a long stretch of the state’s Animas River, an internal inquiry has concluded.

No one, from the local contractor to federal overseers in Washington, saw warning signs of a dangerous build-up in water pressure inside the Gold King Mine, which discharged 3 million gallons of liquid waste when an earthen wall collapsed as cleanup work was underway, investigators said in the report released Wednesday.

The Environmental Protection Agency deployed experienced experts to the mine site and followed a plan that had been vetted by outside technicians, none of whom raised significant concerns, the EPA-appointed investigators said. Yet, the agency’s team lacked crucial information, including a reliable estimate of the volume of water inside the abandoned mine, the report said."

Joby Warrick reports for the Washington Post August 26, 2015.

SEE ALSO:

"Colorado Is Cleaning Up Its Toxic Mining Legacy, One Creek At A Time" (KUNC)