FWS, and other trustee agencies, release final plan to assess damage to natural resources caused by Alpine County's Leviathan Mine

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is one of the Natural Resource Trustees of the Leviathan Mine Council which has released a plan to assess damages to natural resources as a result of releases of hazardous substances from the Leviathan Mine in Alpine County, California.

To view or download the plan as a PDF file, click here: Final Plan

Background:

For decades, the inactive sulfur mine has released acid mine drainage into Leviathan Creek, Aspen Creek, Bryant Creek and the east fork of the Carson River. The State of California acquired the mine in 1984 to reduce and ultimately eliminate pollution. Jurisdiction over the site rests with the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board, a state agency, which has been working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to develop a long-term cleanup plan for the mine. The mine is part of the national Superfund program administered by the USEPA.

As trustees for the area's natural resources, the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Washoe tribe, the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs, the U.S. Forest Service, the California Department of Fish and Game, and the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection prepared this plan to quantify natural-resource injuries and calculate the monetary value of those damages.

Actions outlined in the assessment plan include detailed monitoring of water quality in area creeks and impacts to fish and invertebrate populations. The overall goal of the trustees is to restore the injured natural resources.

For more information:

http://www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/npl/nar1580.htm

http://www.swrcb.ca.gov/rwqcb6/Leviathan/LEVI_Index.htm

An overview of the Leviathan mine site Alpine Co., near Markleeville, CA.

Runoff from Leviathan mine adds a reddish tinge to the water of Leviathan Creek.