Inter-office Memorandum

To:  Warren Doroneski

From:  Elaine Green

Date:  Tuesday, November 12, 2002

Subject:  Trout Lake hearing regarding potential of Superfund designation

            The hearing at Trout Lake in Silver Cliff took place last night.  Overall, it went fairly well, for all concerns were addressed, and no one got too angry from the answers they received.

The main concern for these residents is that, assuming Trout Lake becomes a Superfund site, dredging will occur during the summer months.  The process would thus eliminate recreation for themselves and the tourists on whom they depend for revenue.  The residents, as well as members from the Chamber of Commerce and other tourism organizations, do not seem to understand the severity of the contamination issue.  The State Public Health Department has already found homes with well water nearing the MCL of 15 mg/dL for lead along Slippery Creek.  Once our guys have completed their testing of the lake, we will know how fast the lead has spread from the creek.

The Mayor (Jake Millhouse) of Silver Cliff showed up halfway through the hearing.  His family started MH Mining, and he was the last owner of the company.  Before anyone placed any blame, he got defensive, stating that federal funds should pay for the cleanup process.  I anticipate great difficulty in collecting the required funding from him if we do find Millhouse responsible for the contamination.  Unfortunately, he left the hearing before I had a chance to talk more with him.

After the hearing concluded, I spoke with Megan Lee Jones of Slippery Toxics Action Committee.  She seems to be very competent, knowledgeable, and full of questions.  She will be a good resource if we deem the area as a Superfund because she has expertise in the area’s history and environmental issues.  Ms. Jones was concerned at first that the dredging will cause the sediments to further break up and contaminate the water, but I explained that the likelihood of her scenario occurring is minimal.

Earlier in the day, I met with William Burroughs of the SPHD because he was not able to attend the hearing.  He explained the issues occurring with the residents surrounding Slippery Creek.  Most of them are low-income Hispanics who feel victimized and helpless.  Burroughs described the conflict:  the residents attribute their recent increase in health problems to the newly-discovered water problems rather than appropriately to their lifestyle habits and living environments.  It seems probable that these residents will welcome the EPA to the area because they truly see the health hazards that the contamination presents.  From my conversation with Burroughs, I am fairly confident that the people of Slippery Creek will demand a clean-up of the creek in addition to the lake.

Assuming that our field team finds high levels of lead in the lake and the area becomes a Superfund site, residents will no doubt fuss.  I think with the interactions of people like Megan Lee Jones, as well as the support from William Burroughs and a planner from the county, opposing residents of Trout Lake will come to understand that dredging is a must.