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The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (“CDPHE”) issued on April 30th a Notice of Violation/Cease and Desist Order (“NOV”) to Union Gold, Inc. (“UGI”) addressing alleged violations of the Colorado Water Quality Control Act (“Act”). See IO-240430-1.
The NOV provides that UGI owns and/or operates the Platoro Mine in Conejos County, Colorado (“Facility”).
The Facility is stated to discharge treated wastewater associated with mine remediation. This activity is stated to include the capture of:
…groundwater that comes into contact with mine materials in the underground workings or historical surface deposits.
The Facility is stated to be subject to a Colorado Discharge Permit System and therefore holds a Wastewater Discharge Permit. Such permit authorizes the Facility to discharge treated wastewater into the Conejos River.
The NOV alleges the following violations:
- Failure to comply with permit effluent limitations
- Failure to properly monitor and report
- Failure to provide requested records/information
The NOV requires certain corrective actions including:
- Cease and desist from all violations
- Within 30 calendar days of receipt of the NOV, retain the services of professional engineer registered in the state of California and experienced in mining-related industrial wastewater treatment to perform an evaluation of the Facility and recommend measures to ensure that a fully functioning, permitted, and approved wastewater treatment system is in place that complies with the Act.
- Within 45 calendar days of receipt of the NOV, provide documentation that it has retained the services of the referenced individual
- Within 90 calendar days of the receipt of the NOV, submit a report summarizing the results of the engineering evaluation
- Provide certain quarterly reports
A copy of the NOV can be downloaded here.
