Gold King Mine release (2015): USGS water-quality data and activities Active
On August 5, 2015, U.S. EPA was conducting an investigation of the Gold King Mine near Silverton, Colorado. While excavating as part of the investigation, water began leaking from the mine tunnel, and about three million gallons of water and sediment were released into Cement Creek, a tributary of the Animas River. The USGS provided pre- and post-release water-quality and streamflow data from nearby gages.
On August 5, 2015, a release of about three million gallons of water and sediment occurred at the Gold King Mine near Silverton, Colorado. At the time of the release, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was conducting an investigation of the Gold King Mine to assess the on-going water releases from the mine, to treat mine water, and to assess the feasibility of further mine remediation. During exploratory excavation of the mine portal, pressurized water began leaking from the mine tunnel, releasing water and sediment into Cement Creek, a tributary of the Animas River.
This website provides:
- Easy access to USGS data in the area of the release
- Updates on recent USGS activities in the area of the release
For emergency response concerns or questions: Please contact the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or call the EPA hotline at 844-607-9700. The USGS is not a regulatory, permitting or enforcement agency; Federal government response to the Gold King Mine is coordinated by the EPA.
Current USGS Activities
The USGS Water Science Centers monitor current streamflow and water-quality conditions at various sites in the Animas and San Juan River Basins in Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah.
Streamgages at these sites provide continuous data on streamflow and select water-quality constituents including specific conductance, water temperature, pH, and turbidity. In addition, water samples are collected periodically for lab analysis of more constituents at several of the sites.
Subsequent to the Gold King Mine Release and in addition to USGS and EPA sampling, water-quality samples were collected and analyzed from sites on the Animas and San Juan Rivers by other Federal, State, tribal, and local agencies. All available data were compiled by the EPA Office of Research and Development (ORD) and are being made available to the public through the National Water Quality Monitoring Council (NWQMC) Water Quality Portal (WQP). The WQP is a cooperative service sponsored by the USGS, the EPA, and the NWQMC that serves data collected by over 400 Federal, State, tribal, and local agencies. The USGS is working with the EPA ORD to explore the use of all available data in developing statistical relations between field water-quality parameters and water-quality sampling results. The USGS is collaborating with the EPA ORD to:
- Assess quality of the water-quality data collected by other agencies
- Use these data as appropriate in developing statistical relations (regression models) between field water-quality parameters (indicators) and water-quality sampling results
- Identify gaps in the available data sets
Linear, multiple-linear, or logistic regression techniques may be used, depending on which method results in the best fit to the data and minimizes the error of prediction. If supported by the data and regression statistics, continuous-monitoring data from the USGS water-quality sondes can potentially be used as surrogates for metal concentrations in surface water. The resulting regression models will be published as a USGS Scientific Investigations Report in 2019.
USGS Activities in Response to Gold King Mine Release
At the request of the U.S. EPA, USGS hydrologists conducted an analysis of streamflow data from USGS streamgages along Cement Creek, Mineral Creek, and the Animas River near Silverton, Colorado. The results were used by U.S. EPA to estimate the amount of water released from the Gold King Mine on August 5, 2015.
In addition, the USGS has collected water and sediment samples:
- along Cement Creek upstream from Silverton,
- downstream along the Animas River from Silverton to the confluence with the San Juan River, and
- downstream along the San Juan River in neighboring New Mexico and Utah.
Current conditions of real-time sites:
- Cement Creek at Silverton, CO (09358550)
- Animas River at Silverton, CO (09358000)
- Mineral Creek at Silverton, CO (09359010)
- Animas River below Silverton, CO (09359020)
- Animas River at Durango, CO (09361500)
- Animas River near Cedar Hill, NM (09363500)
- Animas River below Aztec, NM (09364010)
- San Juan River at Farmington, NM (09365000)
- San Juan River at Shiprock, MN (09368000)
- San Juan River at Four Corners, CO (09371010)
- San Juan River near Bluff, UT (09379500)
Digital Database from Integrated Investigations of Environmental Effects of Historical Mining in the Animas River Watershed, San Juan County, Colorado, 1996 to 2001:
- During the USGS Animas River watershed Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative between 1996 and 2001, scientists collected diverse data that describe and characterize the geology, geophysics, geography, biology, mining, and water quality of the Animas River watershed. Team scientists produced and compiled many layers of spatial digital data to support the multiple objectives of the Animas River watershed project.
- Base cartographic data covering the project study area were used to provide geographic reference for display of scientific information and results. The digital database accompanying the report contains these data and provides users with capabilities for viewing these data layers and for utilizing the information for user-defined purposes. The data not only are useful for cartographic displays of scientific results, but also can be used for watershed characterization, investigative analysis, and modeling.
The digital database is available online in the downloads directory as part of:
- Church, S.E., von Guerard, Paul, and Finger, S.E., eds., 2007, Integrated investigations of environmental effects of historical mining in the Animas River watershed, San Juan County, Colorado: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1651, 1,096 p. plus CD-ROM. [In two volumes.]
For a complete description of the database, refer to Volume 2, Chapter G. Digital databases and CD-ROM for the Animas River watershed.
(Note: At this time, the water-quality data in this database are not available in the USGS National Water Information System [NWIS].)
Historical Data
The upper Animas River watershed near Silverton, Colorado, has been an area of extensive interdisciplinary USGS research on abandoned mine lands. Prior to mining in this area, the mineralized rocks were natural sources of metals and acidity to streams. Historical mining also contributed to the metals and acidity in streams of this area. Multiple USGS papers have been published about the environmental effects of unmined mineralized areas and historical mine sites in the Animas River watershed. These reports, and the data contained therein, provide a critical environmental baseline against which the effects of the Gold King Mine release can be assessed. The locations, types of data, and frequency of data vary based on the objectives of the USGS program or study for which they were collected.
Why do we need data from before the release?
Scientists can use data collected before the August 5, 2015, Gold King Mine release to help answer important questions, including:
- What were the water-quality conditions in Cement Creek and other downstream water bodies before the release?
- How did the release affect the water quality downstream?
- How will we know when downstream water bodies have recovered from the release?
Water-quality data
As part of our routine science activities, USGS collects water-quality data around the Nation, and the USGS has collected water-quality samples at a number of sites downstream from the Gold King Mine since the August 2015 release. The region near Silverton, Colorado, has been an area of extensive USGS research on abandoned mine lands and on natural sources of metals and acidity to streams. The locations, types of data, and frequency of data vary based on the objectives of the USGS program or study for which they were collected. Recent water-quality data for the Animas watershed are available from the National Water Information System (NWIS) website. Historical data for the Animas River watershed are available from the Downloads Directory of USGS Professional Paper 1651: Integrated Investigations of Environmental Effects of Historical Mining in the Animas River Watershed. Please visit the Data & Tools tab to see other databases that are available.
Satellite imagery
Satellite imagery of the Gold King Mine area is available from the USGS. The imagery includes both pre- and post-event data. The pre-event imagery starts around June 1, 2015. The post-event imagery continues to be collected. All data are being made available on the USGS Hazards Data Distribution System (HDDS).
To register on the HDDS system and request access to the licensed imagery, please use their instructions. Once registered on HDDS (Step 1), you will also need to follow Step 2: Request Restricted Access for event "201508_Spill_CO".
Please note: while it is possible to search for data on HDDS by event (201508_Spill_CO) without logging in, the search results only include up to 100 responsive items. To see the complete collection of publicly available data, users must register and log in.
The imagery focuses on the area around and downstream from the Gold King Mine, including:
- the Animas River and tributaries (including the headwaters of Cement Creek) and
- the San Juan River and its tributaries down to and including the San Juan Arm of Lake Powell.
Imagery below is being obtained from the following sources:
- WorldView: 1-4 meter data from the DigitalGlobe WorldView satellites. These data are licensed for response use only. Please contact bkjones@usgs.gov for more information.
- GeoEye: 1-4 meter data from the DigitalGlobe GeoEye satellites. These data are licensed for response use only. Please contact bkjones@usgs.gov for more information
- ASTER (Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer): High-resolution (15- to 90-meter) multispectral data from the Terra satellite
- EO-1: 10- to 30-meter multispectral and hyperspectral data from the Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) Extended Mission
- GeoEye's OrbView-3 satellite
- Landsat 8: 15- to 30- meter multispectral data from Landsat 8
- Landsat 7: 15- to 30-meter multispectral data from Landsat 7
For a complete explanation of the satellite data types, refer to the USGS Earth Resources Observation Center (EROS) satellite imagery descriptions.
A news feed (RSS) of the satellite imagery is available.
Please contact bkjones@usgs.gov with questions about the satellite imagery or additional data requests.
Below are other science projects associated with the Gold King Mine release.
Below are multimedia items associated with Gold King Mine.
The region near Silverton, Colorado, has been an area of extensive USGS research on abandoned mine lands and on natural sources of metals and acidity to streams. For a selected bibliography of past reports, see the USGS Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative Upper Animas River area reports. For additional USGS reports about this area, please visit the USGS Publications Warehouse.
Environmental effects of historical mining in the Animas River watershed, southwestern Colorado
Geochemistry of Surface and Ground Water in Cement Creek from Gladstone to Georgia Gulch and in Prospect Gulch, San Juan County, Colorado
Formation of mixed Al-Fe colloidal sorbent and dissolved-colloidal partitioning of Cu and Zn in the Cement Creek - Animas River Confluence, Silverton, Colorado
Integrated investigations of environmental effects of historical mining in the Animas River Watershed, San Juan County, Colorado
Remote sensing characterization of the Animas River watershed, southwestern Colorado, by AVIRIS imaging spectroscopy
Quantification and simulation of metal loading to the Upper Animas River, Eureka to Silverton, San Juan County, Colorado, September 1997 and August 1998
Identification of spectrally similar materials using the USGS Tetracorder algorithm: The calcite-epidote-chlorite problem
Hydrology, metals, and aquatic physical habitat in the Upper Animas watershed, Colorado
Changes in the substrate of rivers in historic mining districts
Application of Tracer-Injection Techniques to Demonstrate Surface-Water and Ground-Water Interactions Between an Alpine Stream and the North Star Mine, Upper Animas River Watershed, Southwestern Colorado
Water quality and aquatic toxicity data of 2002 spring thaw conditions in the upper Animas River watershed, Silverton, Colorado
Assessment of metal loads in watersheds affected by acid mine drainage by using tracer injection and synoptic sampling: Cement Creek, Colorado, USA
Historical water-quality and geospatial data related to the Gold King Mine release or collected near the Silverton, Colorado, area can be found at in USGS Professional Paper 1651: Integrated Investigations of Environmental Effects of Historical Mining in the Animas River Watershed, San Juan County, Colorado (2008). Additional NWIS data from the time of the release are available for downl
Below are news stories associated with Gold King Mine.
- Overview
On August 5, 2015, U.S. EPA was conducting an investigation of the Gold King Mine near Silverton, Colorado. While excavating as part of the investigation, water began leaking from the mine tunnel, and about three million gallons of water and sediment were released into Cement Creek, a tributary of the Animas River. The USGS provided pre- and post-release water-quality and streamflow data from nearby gages.
On August 5, 2015, a release of about three million gallons of water and sediment occurred at the Gold King Mine near Silverton, Colorado. At the time of the release, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was conducting an investigation of the Gold King Mine to assess the on-going water releases from the mine, to treat mine water, and to assess the feasibility of further mine remediation. During exploratory excavation of the mine portal, pressurized water began leaking from the mine tunnel, releasing water and sediment into Cement Creek, a tributary of the Animas River.
This website provides:
- Easy access to USGS data in the area of the release
- Updates on recent USGS activities in the area of the release
For emergency response concerns or questions: Please contact the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or call the EPA hotline at 844-607-9700. The USGS is not a regulatory, permitting or enforcement agency; Federal government response to the Gold King Mine is coordinated by the EPA.
Current USGS Activities
The USGS Water Science Centers monitor current streamflow and water-quality conditions at various sites in the Animas and San Juan River Basins in Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah.
Streamgages at these sites provide continuous data on streamflow and select water-quality constituents including specific conductance, water temperature, pH, and turbidity. In addition, water samples are collected periodically for lab analysis of more constituents at several of the sites.
Subsequent to the Gold King Mine Release and in addition to USGS and EPA sampling, water-quality samples were collected and analyzed from sites on the Animas and San Juan Rivers by other Federal, State, tribal, and local agencies. All available data were compiled by the EPA Office of Research and Development (ORD) and are being made available to the public through the National Water Quality Monitoring Council (NWQMC) Water Quality Portal (WQP). The WQP is a cooperative service sponsored by the USGS, the EPA, and the NWQMC that serves data collected by over 400 Federal, State, tribal, and local agencies. The USGS is working with the EPA ORD to explore the use of all available data in developing statistical relations between field water-quality parameters and water-quality sampling results. The USGS is collaborating with the EPA ORD to:
- Assess quality of the water-quality data collected by other agencies
- Use these data as appropriate in developing statistical relations (regression models) between field water-quality parameters (indicators) and water-quality sampling results
- Identify gaps in the available data sets
Linear, multiple-linear, or logistic regression techniques may be used, depending on which method results in the best fit to the data and minimizes the error of prediction. If supported by the data and regression statistics, continuous-monitoring data from the USGS water-quality sondes can potentially be used as surrogates for metal concentrations in surface water. The resulting regression models will be published as a USGS Scientific Investigations Report in 2019.
USGS Activities in Response to Gold King Mine Release
At the request of the U.S. EPA, USGS hydrologists conducted an analysis of streamflow data from USGS streamgages along Cement Creek, Mineral Creek, and the Animas River near Silverton, Colorado. The results were used by U.S. EPA to estimate the amount of water released from the Gold King Mine on August 5, 2015.
In addition, the USGS has collected water and sediment samples:
- along Cement Creek upstream from Silverton,
- downstream along the Animas River from Silverton to the confluence with the San Juan River, and
- downstream along the San Juan River in neighboring New Mexico and Utah.
Current conditions of real-time sites:
- Cement Creek at Silverton, CO (09358550)
- Animas River at Silverton, CO (09358000)
- Mineral Creek at Silverton, CO (09359010)
- Animas River below Silverton, CO (09359020)
- Animas River at Durango, CO (09361500)
- Animas River near Cedar Hill, NM (09363500)
- Animas River below Aztec, NM (09364010)
- San Juan River at Farmington, NM (09365000)
- San Juan River at Shiprock, MN (09368000)
- San Juan River at Four Corners, CO (09371010)
- San Juan River near Bluff, UT (09379500)
Digital Database from Integrated Investigations of Environmental Effects of Historical Mining in the Animas River Watershed, San Juan County, Colorado, 1996 to 2001:
- During the USGS Animas River watershed Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative between 1996 and 2001, scientists collected diverse data that describe and characterize the geology, geophysics, geography, biology, mining, and water quality of the Animas River watershed. Team scientists produced and compiled many layers of spatial digital data to support the multiple objectives of the Animas River watershed project.
- Base cartographic data covering the project study area were used to provide geographic reference for display of scientific information and results. The digital database accompanying the report contains these data and provides users with capabilities for viewing these data layers and for utilizing the information for user-defined purposes. The data not only are useful for cartographic displays of scientific results, but also can be used for watershed characterization, investigative analysis, and modeling.
The digital database is available online in the downloads directory as part of:
- Church, S.E., von Guerard, Paul, and Finger, S.E., eds., 2007, Integrated investigations of environmental effects of historical mining in the Animas River watershed, San Juan County, Colorado: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1651, 1,096 p. plus CD-ROM. [In two volumes.]
For a complete description of the database, refer to Volume 2, Chapter G. Digital databases and CD-ROM for the Animas River watershed.
(Note: At this time, the water-quality data in this database are not available in the USGS National Water Information System [NWIS].)
Historical Data
The upper Animas River watershed near Silverton, Colorado, has been an area of extensive interdisciplinary USGS research on abandoned mine lands. Prior to mining in this area, the mineralized rocks were natural sources of metals and acidity to streams. Historical mining also contributed to the metals and acidity in streams of this area. Multiple USGS papers have been published about the environmental effects of unmined mineralized areas and historical mine sites in the Animas River watershed. These reports, and the data contained therein, provide a critical environmental baseline against which the effects of the Gold King Mine release can be assessed. The locations, types of data, and frequency of data vary based on the objectives of the USGS program or study for which they were collected.
Why do we need data from before the release?
Scientists can use data collected before the August 5, 2015, Gold King Mine release to help answer important questions, including:- What were the water-quality conditions in Cement Creek and other downstream water bodies before the release?
- How did the release affect the water quality downstream?
- How will we know when downstream water bodies have recovered from the release?
Water-quality data
As part of our routine science activities, USGS collects water-quality data around the Nation, and the USGS has collected water-quality samples at a number of sites downstream from the Gold King Mine since the August 2015 release. The region near Silverton, Colorado, has been an area of extensive USGS research on abandoned mine lands and on natural sources of metals and acidity to streams. The locations, types of data, and frequency of data vary based on the objectives of the USGS program or study for which they were collected. Recent water-quality data for the Animas watershed are available from the National Water Information System (NWIS) website. Historical data for the Animas River watershed are available from the Downloads Directory of USGS Professional Paper 1651: Integrated Investigations of Environmental Effects of Historical Mining in the Animas River Watershed. Please visit the Data & Tools tab to see other databases that are available.
Satellite imagery
Satellite imagery of the Gold King Mine area is available from the USGS. The imagery includes both pre- and post-event data. The pre-event imagery starts around June 1, 2015. The post-event imagery continues to be collected. All data are being made available on the USGS Hazards Data Distribution System (HDDS).
To register on the HDDS system and request access to the licensed imagery, please use their instructions. Once registered on HDDS (Step 1), you will also need to follow Step 2: Request Restricted Access for event "201508_Spill_CO".
Please note: while it is possible to search for data on HDDS by event (201508_Spill_CO) without logging in, the search results only include up to 100 responsive items. To see the complete collection of publicly available data, users must register and log in.
The imagery focuses on the area around and downstream from the Gold King Mine, including:
- the Animas River and tributaries (including the headwaters of Cement Creek) and
- the San Juan River and its tributaries down to and including the San Juan Arm of Lake Powell.
Imagery below is being obtained from the following sources:
- WorldView: 1-4 meter data from the DigitalGlobe WorldView satellites. These data are licensed for response use only. Please contact bkjones@usgs.gov for more information.
- GeoEye: 1-4 meter data from the DigitalGlobe GeoEye satellites. These data are licensed for response use only. Please contact bkjones@usgs.gov for more information
- ASTER (Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer): High-resolution (15- to 90-meter) multispectral data from the Terra satellite
- EO-1: 10- to 30-meter multispectral and hyperspectral data from the Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) Extended Mission
- GeoEye's OrbView-3 satellite
- Landsat 8: 15- to 30- meter multispectral data from Landsat 8
- Landsat 7: 15- to 30-meter multispectral data from Landsat 7
For a complete explanation of the satellite data types, refer to the USGS Earth Resources Observation Center (EROS) satellite imagery descriptions.
A news feed (RSS) of the satellite imagery is available.
Please contact bkjones@usgs.gov with questions about the satellite imagery or additional data requests. - Science
Below are other science projects associated with the Gold King Mine release.
- Multimedia
Below are multimedia items associated with Gold King Mine.
- Publications
The region near Silverton, Colorado, has been an area of extensive USGS research on abandoned mine lands and on natural sources of metals and acidity to streams. For a selected bibliography of past reports, see the USGS Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative Upper Animas River area reports. For additional USGS reports about this area, please visit the USGS Publications Warehouse.
Filter Total Items: 44Environmental effects of historical mining in the Animas River watershed, southwestern Colorado
The U.S. Geological Survey has completed an extensive environmental study of the effects of historical mining on water and sediment quality and aquatic and riparian habitat in the Animas River watershed upstream from Silverton, Colorado. Results from this study are being used by Federal and State agencies and by the local watershed stakeholders group to implement remediation and cleanup activitiesAuthorsStan E. ChurchGeochemistry of Surface and Ground Water in Cement Creek from Gladstone to Georgia Gulch and in Prospect Gulch, San Juan County, Colorado
In San Juan County, Colo., the effects of historical mining continue to contribute metals to ground water and surface water. Previous research by the U.S. Geological Survey identified ground-water discharge as a significant pathway for the loading of metals to surface water in the upper Animas River watershed from both acid-mine drainage and acid-rock drainage. In support of this ground-water reseAuthorsRaymond H. Johnson, Laurie Wirt, Andrew H. Manning, Kenneth J. Leib, David L. Fey, Douglas B. YagerFormation of mixed Al-Fe colloidal sorbent and dissolved-colloidal partitioning of Cu and Zn in the Cement Creek - Animas River Confluence, Silverton, Colorado
Transport and chemical transformations of dissolved and colloidal Al, Fe, Cu and Zn were studied by detailed sampling in the mixing zone downstream from the confluence of Cement Creek (pH 4.1) with the Animas River (pH 7.6). Complete mixing resulted in circumneutral pH in the downstream reach of the 1300 m study area. All four metals were transported through this mixing zone without significant loAuthorsLaurence E. Schemel, Briant A. Kimball, Robert L. Runkel, Marisa H. CoxIntegrated investigations of environmental effects of historical mining in the Animas River Watershed, San Juan County, Colorado
This publication comprises a Volume Contents of chapters (listed below) and a CD-ROM of data (contents shown in column at right). The Animas River watershed in southwest Colorado is one of many watersheds in the western United States where historical mining has left a legacy of acid mine drainage and elevated concentrations of potentially toxic trace elements in surface streams. U.S. GeologicalRemote sensing characterization of the Animas River watershed, southwestern Colorado, by AVIRIS imaging spectroscopy
Visible-wavelength and near-infrared image cubes of the Animas River watershed in southwestern Colorado have been acquired by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Airborne Visible and InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) instrument and processed using the U.S. Geological Survey Tetracorder v3.6a2 implementation. The Tetracorder expert system utilizes a spectral reference library containing more thanAuthorsJ.B. Dalton, D. J. Bove, C.S. MladinichQuantification and simulation of metal loading to the Upper Animas River, Eureka to Silverton, San Juan County, Colorado, September 1997 and August 1998
Drainage from abandoned and inactive mines and from naturally mineralized areas in the San Juan Mountains of southern Colorado contributes metals to the upper Animas River near Silverton, Colorado. Tracer-injection studies and associated synoptic sampling were performed along two reaches of the upper Animas River to develop detailed profiles of stream discharge and to locate and quantify sources oAuthorsSuzanne S. Paschke, Briant A. Kimball, Robert L. RunkelIdentification of spectrally similar materials using the USGS Tetracorder algorithm: The calcite-epidote-chlorite problem
A scheme to discriminate and identify materials having overlapping spectral absorption features has been developed and tested based on the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Tetracorder system. The scheme has been applied to remotely sensed imaging spectroscopy data acquired by the Airborne Visible and Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) instrument. This approach was used to identify the minerals caAuthorsJ.B. Dalton, D. J. Bove, C.S. Mladinich, B.W. RockwellHydrology, metals, and aquatic physical habitat in the Upper Animas watershed, Colorado
The Upper Animas River watershed in southwestern Colorado is a watershed with historic mining districts with many small mines and mills and a few larger mines and mills. The numbers of trout may be limited by high flows during the spring runoff period and by winter streamflows. In some locations there are large particles on the stream surface that may provide cover to trout. but the presence of fiAuthorsR.T. MilhousChanges in the substrate of rivers in historic mining districts
The restoration of rivers in watersheds with historic mining districts has become a topic of interest during the last decade. Rivers restoration in these areas is difficult because the mines and mills can be scattered over a wide area and often small. Many have also been abandoned. This paper presents two substrate related factors that are important in the evaluation of river restoration alternatiAuthorsR.T. MilhousApplication of Tracer-Injection Techniques to Demonstrate Surface-Water and Ground-Water Interactions Between an Alpine Stream and the North Star Mine, Upper Animas River Watershed, Southwestern Colorado
Tracer-injection studies were done in Belcher Gulch in the upper Animas River watershed, southwestern Colorado, to determine whether the alpine stream infiltrates into underground mine workings of the North Star Mine and other nearby mines in the area. The tracer-injection studies were designed to determine if and where along Belcher Gulch the stream infiltrates into the mine. Four separate tracerAuthorsWinfield G. Wright, Bryan MooreWater quality and aquatic toxicity data of 2002 spring thaw conditions in the upper Animas River watershed, Silverton, Colorado
This report presents hydrologic, water-quality, and biologic toxicity data collected during the annual spring thaw of 2002 in the upper Animas River watershed near Silverton, Colorado. The spring-thaw runoff is a concern because elevated concentrations of iron oxyhydroxides can contain sorbed trace metals that are potentially toxic to aquatic life. Water chemistry of streams draining the San JuanAuthorsD. L. Fey, L. Wirt, J.M. Besser, W. G. WrightAssessment of metal loads in watersheds affected by acid mine drainage by using tracer injection and synoptic sampling: Cement Creek, Colorado, USA
Watersheds in mineralized zones may contain many mines, each of which can contribute to acidity and the metal load of a stream. In this study the authors delineate hydrogeologic characteristics determining the transport of metals from the watershed to the stream in the watershed of Cement Creek, Colorado. Combining the injection of a chemical tracer, to determine a discharge, with synoptic samplinAuthorsB. A. Kimball, R.L. Runkel, K. Walton-Day, K.E. Bencala - Web Tools
Historical water-quality and geospatial data related to the Gold King Mine release or collected near the Silverton, Colorado, area can be found at in USGS Professional Paper 1651: Integrated Investigations of Environmental Effects of Historical Mining in the Animas River Watershed, San Juan County, Colorado (2008). Additional NWIS data from the time of the release are available for downl
- News
Below are news stories associated with Gold King Mine.