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~ ~ III IIIIIIIIIIIIIIII <br />Memo ~ <br />To: Bruce Humphries,, SteveC~len Sorenson <br />From: Harry Posey <br />CC: Mike Long, Bruce Stover, Jim Pendleton <br />ate: 12/04J98 <br />aC . Np..,.vr.~F <br />Re: Creede Superfund Listing -Abandoned <br />A 1995 Preliminary Assessment and Site Inspection (PASI) of the Creede Mineral District, <br />conducted by CDH-HMWMD, reports adverse water quality impacts to the Rio Grande from <br />mining at Creede. That study and prior DOW work show that the levels of zinc and cadmium <br />are high in waters along at least the north bank of the Rio Grande, below Willow Creek. <br />However, trout survive in that river stretch by avoiding the bad water. <br />For the past several months, EPA has been scoping out the situation at Creede to assess a <br />possible National Priorities List (NPL) ranking for the mineral district. As part of the scoping, <br />EPA RPM Ken Wangerud organized and then sought support from local "stakeholders." He <br />also conducted a site walkover, took an underground tour of the Commodore mine, and then <br />quizzed local, state and federal agencies about possible cost sharing. <br />At meetings on November 18 and 24, Mike Long, Bruce Stover, Barb Hom (DOW) and I met <br />with WOCC and HMWMD members then with EPA to discuss the State's interests in such a <br />listing. In these meetings, none of the state agencies spoke in favor of a listing. The state <br />does have an interest in 319 Grant funding for some cleanup or stabilization work, but not in <br />full NPL listing. DMG has interest in the mineral district because of regulatory responsibilities <br />at the Bulldog mine. <br />Because of poor water quality, which is likely due mostly to mining, there are no fish in the <br />lower 1 Y< miles of Willow Creek. Above that, fisheries habitat does not exist because the <br />creek is lined with concrete through the town of Creede. Above the town, fisheries habitat is <br />poor to non-existent because the gradient is too steep. Thus, even with improved water <br />quality, the best that could be anticipated under ideal conditions would be (1) restoration(?) of <br />a fishery in the lower 1 '/a miles of Willow Creek and (2) improvement of several miles of <br />fishery in the Rio Grande below Willow Creek. Because of extensive mineralization at <br />Creede, it is feasible that lower W illow Creek may never have been a fishery. <br />• Page 1 <br />