printThis statement is immutably true: Were we unencumbered by the Environmental Protection Agency, “three million gallons of toxic slurry” would not now be flowing “down the rivers of the West,” “at a rate of 740 gallons a minute.” The sludge was released by “the E-men” into “a creek that is a tributary of the Animas River.” (WSJ)
The reason similar catastrophes are likely to reoccur courtesy of government is because these stooges of the state legislate themselves the kind of legal immunity denied to private companies.
Naturally, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980, known as the Superfund law, gives EPA clean-up crews immunity from the trial bar when they are negligent. Yet the Durango blowout was entirely avoidable.
For the same reason, these lethal idiots were disinclined to “warn state and local officials” for a full 24 hours. Locals “learned about the fiasco when they saw their river become yellow curry.”
And Americans want more government!
… The plume of lead, arsenic, mercury, copper, cadmium and other heavy metals turned the water a memorable shade of yellow-orange chrome. The sludge is so acidic that it stings upon touch. Colorado, New Mexico and the Navajo Indian reservation have declared states of emergency as the contamination empties into Lake Powell in Utah and the San Juan River in New Mexico.
The ecological ramifications are uncertain, though the San Juan is designated as “critical habitat” for the Colorado Pike Minnow and Razorback Sucker fish. The regional economy that depends on recreational tourism like rafting, kayaking and fly fishing has been damaged. Drinking water is potable only because utilities closed their intake gates, but pollution in the water table has deprived farmers and rural residents of a source for wells, livestock and crop irrigation. …
UPDATE (7/5/2018):
Nothing even alleged against Pruitt is remotely as bad as the Obama EPA poisoning the Animas River. pic.twitter.com/09ZoHKRaZy
— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) July 5, 2018