ELR Citation: ELR 20120
No(s). 89-B-76 (D. Colo. May 24, 1990)

The court holds that the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Land Reclamation are liable for 6,333 violations of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) at the Leadville Drainage Tunnel in Lake County, Colorado. The tunnel drains a number of inactive mines and discharges into the East Fork of the Arkansas River. The court holds that it has jurisdiction and that plaintiffs have standing. The court also holds that defendants have violated FWPCA §301(a) consistently since 1975 by discharging pollutants from the tunnel in violation of the effluent limitations in its national pollutant discharge elimination system permit and by violating the permit's monitoring and reporting requirements.

[On the same day, the court approved a consent decree between the environmental groups and the Department of the Interior. The decree requires defendants to build a water treatment plant and to meet acid mine drainage limits. A previous decision in this litigation is published at 20 ELR 20650.]

Counsel for Plaintiffs
Adam Babich
Cornwell & Blakey
1225 17th St., Ste. 2650, Denver CO 80202
(303) 295-2500

Counsel for Defendants
Richard B. Stewart, Ass't Attorney General
Environment and Natural Resources Division
U.S. Department of Justice, Washington DC 20530
(202) 514-2000

William Pharo, Ass't U.S. Attorney
1961 Stout St., Denver CO 80294
(303) 844-2081

J. Steven Rogers, Margaret Kane Harrington
Environment and Natural Resources Division
U.S. Department of Justice, Washington DC 20530
(202) 514-2741