Pilot Project
The Ben Butler Mine
WARM’s initial project, which is being undertaken by Masters in Environmental Management (MEM) students at Western Colorado University, will be aimed at one limited portion of the Bonita Peak Superfund site: the Ben Butler Mine. It is anticipated that this process will continue for a considerable number of years, providing many students in different fields with the opportunity to learn—and potentially providing other masters’ students with the opportunity to pick up where the current students leave off.
Board member Dave Ellerbroek and advisory board member Scott Effner calibrating field water quality equipment with an MEM student below the Ben Butler Mine in July 2018.
The site visit
In August 2018, WARM conducted a site visit to the Ben Butler Mine and collected 20 rock samples using EPA waste rock sampling guidelines and under the guidance of the Division of Reclamation, Mining, and Safety; the Bureau of Land Management; and the US EPA. Dr. Jennie DeMarco of Western Colorado University supervised the collection of soil samples using 50-foot transects perpendicular to the Ben Butler trench, and water quality data were also recorded. MEM students completed a geochemical analysis plan in accordance with EPA-mandated quality assurance protocol to guide the analysis of these rock samples.
MEM students completed a mineralogy characterization for each of the 20 rock bags prior to splitting them for analysis.
The analysis plan
We have used rigorous federal guidelines for quality assurance of our project and our data of the waste rock we collected onsite. In collaboration with local contractors at Whetstone Associates, MEM students created an analysis plan for the waste rock that will serve as a guideline for WARM’s future site assessments. We have acquired funding to send our rock samples to a NELAC-accredited laboratory and will use data validation methods to ensure that our data is high-quality and useful to our organization, federal agencies, stakeholders, and future remediation efforts to the Ben Butler Mine.
Analysis
Following the creation of an analysis plan, MEM students prepped samples generated the leachates. Results of analysis procedures were compiled into a geochemical report to deliver to decision makers to inform closure actions at the mine.
Next Steps
After closure work at the Ben Butler Mine by the Colorado Division of Reclamation Mining and Safety there is mandatory 5 year monitoring of this site. This will provide an excellent opportunity for future students to gain hand on experience.
Innovations in Mine Reclamation
Biochar research
In addition to providing services to the reclamation community through geochemical studies of mine sites, WARM also strives to find innovative solutions to mine reclamation problems. Colorado has approximately 23,000 abandoned and inactive mines that adversely impact the health of watersheds. Many of these mines are in remote locations where it is difficult transport material needed to reclaim them, often times material need to be flown using a helicopter. Limestone is traditionally used as an amendment material, but the cost of transporting limestone can be cost prohibitive to reclamation. Biochar is a light weight material that is known to adsorb metals and change pH which could reduce transportation costs. However, the effects of biochar on water chemistry at mine sites has not been quantified.
WARM is currently conducting research on biochar’s suitability for use as an amendment determine: 1) how long biochar able to sorb metals in low pH environments such as those found at mine sites and 2) how much biochar is needed to adsorb the quantity of metals leaving a mine. Results from this study are expected by fall of 2020.
Growing our impact
Future Horizons
Our short-term vision is to develop a portfolio of three to four mine sites in western Colorado at which graduate or undergraduate students, under the supervision of faculty and experienced outside experts, can learn about and perform site assessment, remedial planning, monitoring, and, where appropriate, implementation, as they make a contribution to remediation of a part of Colorado’s abandoned mine legacy.
Our long-term plans include reaching out to collaborators in other mountain regions to establish exchanges where Colorado-based students or faculty can work on mine reclamation in mountain regions affected by past mining in other countries, or faculty and students from other countries work alongside us here in Colorado. We also hope to create a fellowship at Western Colorado University to attract talented, passionate young land managers to Colorado to further WARM’s mission while furthering their studies in environmental management.
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