HYDRO25897 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Page 3 Purgatoire River Fish Kill Report 03/24/88 I advised Melby of my investigation to date. I showed Melby the effluent point and where I had walked the river. We went to the river near the Pagnotta residence where Melby was able to observe some of the dead fish in the stretch inventoried on March 6. Melby examined the fish and based on the coloration of skin and gills and absence of clouded, milky eyes determined the fish had not been dead for a long period. He also examined invertebrate life under rocks in the river and felt this trout food base had not been damaged. While parked near the Pagnotta residence a vehicle arrived and the driver identified himself as Martin Mestas. Mestas told us he had seen dead fish further downstream near the Duran residence west of Weston. Mestas said he and his son had seen dead fish while fishing the river and attempted to notify me by telephone on March 6. Mestas said he assumed the fish were dying because of water being pumped out of the mine after a recent flooding problem. Melby and I then went [o an area on the Purgatoire River east of the Duran residence described by Mestas. At this site Melby and I found a dead fish, so we continued east to Weston. At the Wet Canyon Bridge crossing the Purgatoire River we parked and walked the river upstream for approximately 75 yards. We did not find any dead fish in this area. Following our sampling efforts we were met by Area Wildlife Manager Ron Velarde. We took Velarde on a tour of the site to familiarize him with the investigation and probable lower limit of the kill. We also went into the river approximately 1/2 mile east of the Highway 12 Purgatoire River Bridge where I started my second count on the morning of March 7. At this location [here was a cluster of dead fish in a pool in which I counted 20 dead fish. Velarde, Melby and I drove west on Highway 12 to just below Stonewall in an effort to identify other effluent points from Highway 12. We saw none. Melby telephoned Colorado Health Department Representative Gary Soldano from Weston and Soldano advised not to contact the mine as he would inspect the site for sampling on March B. On March 8 I telephoned Gary Soldano to confirm his arrival. Soldano advised that Wyoming Fuel Company had been granted a special discharge permit to run additional water from the flooded Golden Eagle Mine in the Purgatoire River during a meeting on February 19, 1988. I telephoned Melby and advised him of the situation and he said he would contact Woodling to investigate the claim to special discharge dispensation. Shortly after my conversation with Soldano, I received a telephone call from Wyoming Fuel Company environmental coordinator, Dave Stout. Stout said he had heard from mine personnel that there was a problem and we wanted to take water samples. I told Stout that we had discovered a fish kill below Ciruela Canyon and needed water samples to determine if effluent from Ciruela Canyon was the cause. Stout said he had taken water samples on Thursday, March 3, and gave a list of his sample sites and type of samples he utilized. One of SCOUC'a sample StaCions is approximately