Residents Concerned As Water Looks Like Carrot Juice In Creek Near Rollinsville
ROLLINSVILLE, Colo. (CBS4) - In Gilpin County some people in Rollinsville are concerned about their water as a creek near their homes looks a lot like carrot juice.
The historic Perigo gold mine just south of Rollinsville is near an area called Gamble Gulch, and this weekend the Gamble Creek was bright orange. A complaint was filed with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, but state officials had a tough time getting to the mine Monday because the road is still covered in snow.
"On this site we're just looking to see exactly what happened. Did the mine have a surge event where the water came out?" Jeff Graves with the Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety said.
The area isn't a new site for the state to be dealing with. While CBS4 was in the area there the iron-oxide and mine waste all over. Such places are called "legacy sites."
There have been a few blowouts of the Perigo mine over the past decade -- the last being in 2011. State officials say blowouts are common, especially for old mines like the Perigo mine. It was last used in the 1930s.
There's a collapsed portal so it's not safe for state engineers to get inside and find the exact problem. But when water builds up it can find a way out.
Engineers are not yet sure if the wet spring and big snowpack in that area are what caused the mine waste to be picked up this year. But officials say while the color is scary, there's not a big danger in the water.
"It's mostly a danger to the aquatic life. So fish and then the bugs the fish feed on. From a human standpoint, really very little danger," Graves said.
Because the mine has leaked for so long, there hasn't been much life in Gamble Creek. A remediation project has been planned, and Monday's sight visit might continue to move it forward.
