CDM provided system evaluation and improvement and O&M services for a water treatment plant that treats acid mine drainage at the 1,400-acre Summitville Mine Superfund site, the biggest mine reclamation paid for by Superfund. This isolated, abandoned mine came under EPA control in 1992 when the operators, the Summitville Consolidated Mining Company, Inc., declared bankruptcy and abandoned the site, leaving behind a serious environmental challenge. CDM conducted a complete system audit and made recommendations for improvements and O&M changes that would allow the EPA to achieve the discharge goal of 0.03-mg/l copper. The goal is to treat enough of the water in the 90-million-gallon leachate holding reservoir during the operating season to reduce the possibility of breaching the impoundment during the spring thaw. CDM is also responsible for overall site management and operation of the water treatment plant. Approximately 210 million gallons of contaminated water are detoxified each year.
CLIENT: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region VIII
LOCATION: Del Norte, Colorado