We're all downstream or downwind from something.
That became all too visible last week as what's now listed as 3 million gallons of orange toxic waste from a long-abandoned gold mine above Silverton made its way down the beautiful Animas River, through Durango, and into New Mexico.
We too often take our rivers and clean water for granted until something like this happens.
I saw a lot of people angry and grieving as they waited for the mine sludge to reach Durango, and as it passed through. People stood on bridges or along the shore watching the water. Durango water customers were asked to cut their water use. Bottled water disappeared off store shelves.
One doesn't have to live in or near Durango to feel that this is "our" river that was desecrated. Friends did healing rituals for the river.
It was encouraging that the water looked a lot better on Sunday and continues to get better. It remains to be seen what the long-term effects will be on fish and on the small creatures at the bottom of the food chain that the fish depend on.
Are you letting that water into your irrigation ditch yet? Who will make up the income for local river rafting companies and their employees?
The situation has drawn national news coverage and the attention of people in high places, like our governor, our two U.S. Senators, and the head of the Environmental Protection Agency which is credited with causing the huge spill.
So far, none of them has waved a magic wand and made everything right. All the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put Humpty together again.
Some people are wondering if the EPA will impose a monster fine on itself, like it would if anyone else caused this. Many locals don't like the EPA. But orange toxic water is our legacy from the good old days when there were no evil guv'mint regulations to interfere with profit maximization.
One good thing that can come from this is a general public awareness of the toxic water that flows out of a lot of old abandoned mines in Colorado and other places with a mining history. You can block up the mine portal to stop it, but the water accumulates until it comes out someplace else.
As of early this week, there were still 550 gallons per minute of toxic water coming out of the Gold King mine. Last week's spill was just a lot more visible than the usual toxic flows.
Back East, rivers have been contaminated by coal ash from power plants and other toxins. Those spills reflected shoddy maintenance of facilities intended to control toxins. But hey, maintenance is expensive and reduces profits.
Maybe it's time to consider what's more valuable in the larger scheme of things. Gold? Oil and gas? Short-term profit maximization?
Or good clean water?
