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Comment/Objection Narrative* <br /> I live in an area on the east side of Leadville known as the Chicken Hill Neighborhood. It is old, historic and <br /> littered with waste piles of every size from mining operations abandoned long ago.Some of these piles are <br /> quite large. One of the largest is directly behind my home. It is just one of many houses still tucked between <br /> these plant-less mounds,old and modest homes occupied by friends and neighbors,some with long memories. <br /> The demographic in this neighborhood is mixed.We are people whose families have lived here for generations <br /> as well as new arrivals.Among us are college students,the elderly, single and married workers of every color <br /> and of various professions.We have cats,dogs, kids and visitors.We walk, bike,skate board,ski, paint,garden <br /> and mostly live quiet lives.We also talk to one another and share stories.We also share the fact that we have <br /> lungs and do not want them filled with toxic dust. <br /> The views from this side of town are beautiful.The tailings are not. But we accept them.We accept them <br /> because we were told to.There are still people on Chicken Hill who remember when the EPA included this area <br /> in their super fund mapping. It was an era of controversy and contention.When all was said and done however, <br /> the tailings seen on the east side today were left undisturbed by the EPA then because they were determined to <br /> be less harmful to human health than if moved.At well attended public meetings, representatives from the EPA <br /> stated that those mounds would never be moved or disturbed in perpetuity.This was part of a formal agreement <br /> with local government as part of a larger settlement.This is what local people remember.Where are those <br /> records now? <br /> What has changed? In the March 14,2024 edition of the Herald Democrat,a Nick Michael,writing as CJK's <br /> 'technical advisor',states in a Letter to the Editor:"In Leadville,the EPA and Colorado Department of Public <br /> Health and Environment have been working to minimize the environmental impacts."This ambiguous sentence <br /> reads like nothing more than a set up for the statement that follows:"CJK Milling is proposing an innovative <br /> solution to advance that goal",as though to suggest that CJK's mission is in alignment with the agenda of both <br /> the EPA and the CDPHE. It is not.The most important decision regarding minimizing harm to human health by <br /> the EPA was to leave the mine waste in place, as in'do not disturb'.As far as I am able to determine,CJK's <br /> goals are as far out of alignment with the interests of all other parties affected by their operation as they could <br /> be.What they propose is the most extreme incursion into the health, safety and well being of an entire <br /> community,all based on exaggeration,false claims and revisionist history. It is a'hit and run'operation for profit <br /> at best.Shut them down. <br /> Permit Number* <br /> Enter valid letter and then numbers,for example M1977999, M1999777UG or C1981201. <br /> M1990057 <br /> Permitting Action Type <br /> Select revision type or leave blank if comment pertains to a new permit application or NOI <br /> Permit Type <br /> County* <br /> Lake <br /> Enter one county only <br /> Site Name <br /> Perm ittee/Operator Name <br /> ADDITIONAL INFORMATION <br /> Are there supporting photos, maps, or documents you wish to upload? <br /> Yes No <br /> By submitting this form electronically you agree to receive any/all follow up correspondence from the Division of <br /> Reclamation, Mining,and Safety at the email address you have provided. <br />