DRMS Comment Objection Intake - DEV 4/1/2024 (41)

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Email Address * Enter a valid email address in this field to receive a confirmation e-mail. ethangmoyer@gmail.com Your Phone Number* Used only to follow up. 7192931512 Extension Alternate Phone Number Used only to follow up. Alternate Phone Extension Connection to Operation Select all that apply Land Owner of affected land Structure Owner within 200' of affected land Mineral Owner O Nearby Resident Adjacent Land Owner Concerned Citizen Government Agency Other DESCRIPTION OF COMMENT OR OBJECTION You are providing a comment or objection to the public record of a permitting action currently under review by the Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety. This form is not intended for reporting of possible violations or illegal activity. Please be as specific as possible. Comment/Objection Narrative * I object to the CJK mill in Leadville. As a professional ecologist with experience in water/soil quality testing in Leadville and the greater Lake County area, we are so far from being anywhere near cleaned up since mining was the main economy in town. However, since the EPA cleanup and a slowdown in mining, the area and tributaries to the Arkansas River have been improving. This mill could tip Leadville's soil and water health back to dangerously unhealthy in any event of an accident with the cyanide leach ponds. All the progress we have made over the course of 20+ years could be lost. That would include a loss of ecological diversity, a crushing blow to the economy of Leadville and all downstream towns that rely on recreation (specifically boating and fishing outfitters), and could make many people in Leadville and the Arkansas valley sick. In an environmental standpoint, the processing of mine waste in the eastside of town is not the best way to remediate the area. There are many other ways to remediate these piles much more safely and would have far less potential for disaster. The water usage is also a big problem. 28,000 gallons a day into the mill, that water would then have to go somewhere else after it's used. It could carry heavy metals into the soil and surface water. Not to mention how deadly toxic cyanide ponds are. These ponds are notorious for attracting wildlife, mainly birds to rest and drink that are killed from the cyanide. Their bodies will be eaten by larger animals that will get 2nd hand poisoned from the cyanide and die and this poison would just continue up the trophic level. For these reasons, our neighbors in Summit County have outright banned cyanide leaching. We have no reason not to follow. And finally as someone who lives in town and has lived here since I was 2 years old, it would hurt to see all the damage from this operation. The town would be busy with trucks carrying toxic waste and sending it into the air. The traffic downtown is already too busy and now with the addition of these trucks hauling waste and water to the mill, downtown could become dangerous for pedestrians just trying to cross the street. The roads in town are already bad, now with trucks hauling the waste and all the water, the roads would completely fall apart. It scares me to think that children might be trying to play in the street by the water refill station with all of these large trucks busting through. This would ruin recreation on the Eastside of town not just for running and cycling but would also make driving ORVs more dangerous. I want to see Leadville continue to get healthier. These people at CJK are not going to be invested in the community and are only here to make quick bucks and leave us with the repercussions.