Bill by Sen. Mark Udall facilitates cleanup of old mines by citizen groups

By Michael Riley The Denver Post

Udall's bill would streamline the permitting process for groups who otherwise would have to obtain a permit under the Clean Water Act to clean up an old mine — a process that can sometimes take years — while also shielding those groups from liability for not completing the job to exacting federal standards.

While the idea is supported by groups such as Trout Unlimited, it is opposed by some major environmental groups that believe it would make the Clean Water Act a target for lawmakers who want to weaken the landmark legislation.

"There are some groups that are of the opinion that we can't touch the Clean Water Act because if we do, by God, it will be eviscerated in the Congress. I think that is a playing-not-to- lose offense," according to Chris Wood, chief operating officer of Trout Unlimited.

http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_13564381

Udall introduces new ‘Good Samaritan’ water clean-up legislation

Colorado Independent

By Katie Redding

Calling past opposition a “spirited debate in the environmental community about the best way forward,” Udall pointed to two environmental groups who have already agreed to support the new bill: Trout Unlimited and Earthworks. Trout Unlimited Chief Operating Officer Chris Wood released a statement in support of the bill, pointing to EPA data indicating that abandoned hardrock mines contaminate 40 percent of Western streams.

http://coloradoindependent.com/40122/udall-introduces-new-good-samaritan-water-clean-up-legislation

Udall Sponsors Plan To Clean Up Old Mines

CBS4Denver

By Judith Kohler, AP Writer

Chris Wood, Trout Unlimited's chief operating officer, said in a prepared statement that cleaning up abandoned mines "is one of the single most important, least addressed environmental challenges in the nation." Wood said Trout Unlimited is cleaning up fisheries and water affected by abandoned mines in Utah, Idaho, Montana, Colorado and Nevada.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has had to negotiate deals and issue administrative orders to protect the conservation group from lawsuits.

http://cbs4denver.com/local/Senator.sponsors.bill.2.1248421.html

Neubecker to speak to Alpine Anglers on water diversions

Special to the Trail-Gazette

Ken Neubecker, president of Colorado Trout Unlimited, will speak Thursday on the impact of water diversions from the upper Colorado River."More than half of the water of the upper Colorado is already diverted to the Front Range for agricultural and municipal use," said Neubecker. "Now two new projects could take almost half of what remains."

But as conservation, government and business interests in Grand County geared up for a protracted fight, water developers Denver Water and Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District agreed to work with local agencies to find ways to meet the water needs of the Front Range while minimizing the impact on wildlife and recreation on the Colorado and Fraser Rivers.

Neubecker will speak about the situation at the Alpine Anglers` monthly meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 15 in the Hondius Room of the Estes Park Public Library. The public is invited.

http://www.eptrail.com/ci_13552219

‘Good Samaritan’ legal battle pits greens against greens

  Colorado Independent

By Katie Redding

Elizabeth Russell at nonprofit Trout Unlimited, which is currently working on several acid mine drainage clean-up projects in Colorado, worries that expecting government to clean up the countless draining mines on private property isn’t feasible.

“The government is just not going to do it,” she said. “They don’t want the liability either.”

http://coloradoindependent.com/39698/%E2%80%98good-samaritan%E2%80%99-legal-battle-pits-greens-against-greens