{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://www.barrasso.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=0455697e-c4a5-4961-8cc8-5478cd2a9dbf", "Barrasso: Gold King Mine Disaster Highlights Incompetence of Environmental Protection Agency", "2015-09-17", "2015", "2015-09", "Republican", "House", "WY", "John Barrasso", "B001261", "www.barrasso.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, D.C. Today, U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor regarding the Gold King mine disaster.\r\nTranscript of Senator Barrassos remarks:\r\nI want to speak today about a tragedy that hit the American West last month that didnt get nearly as much attention as it should have.\r\nIm talking about whats been called the Gold King Mine spill, which happened on August 5.\r\nThats when the Environmental Protection Agency spilled three million gallons of toxic waste water into a tributary of the Animas River in Colorado.\r\nThis is water that contained toxic substances like arsenic and lead.\r\nThe agency was doing some work at an old mine when water under very high pressure started rushing out.\r\nThis disturbing incident raises serious questions about how the EPA does business.\r\nFirst of all, it raises questions about the agencys responsiveness.\r\nAfter the EPA had this accident, apparently it never occurred to them to immediately call the towns downstream  and to let anyone know that this toxic plume was headed their way.\r\nThe Animas River connects to the San Juan River, which connects to the Colorado River, and to Lake Powell.\r\nThese are some of the most beautiful natural resources in America.\r\nThey also provide water for communities all along their runs.\r\nThey provide recreation, and water for irrigation of crops, and for homes.\r\nThis water that was polluted by the Environmental Protection Agency flows from Colorado to New Mexico and into Utah.\r\nIt flows through the land of the Navajo Nation, and the Southern Ute Indian Tribe.\r\nThese waterways are a sacred part of the culture of Native Americans who live near them.\r\nSo why didnt the EPA get on the phone?\r\nThe Navajo Nation was not informed until a full day after the spill.\r\nIt got the news from the state of New Mexico  not from the agency that caused the disaster.\r\nAt first, EPA didnt even want to admit how bad the spill really was.\r\nThey said that it was one million gallons of waste water.\r\nDays later, they admitted that they actually spilled three times that amount.\r\nFour days after the spill, EPA still had not reported to Navajo leaders the presence of arsenic in the water.\r\nIt took five days for the agency to set up a unified command center in Durango, Colorado.\r\nYesterday, I chaired a hearing of the Indian Affairs Committee that looked at how this disaster affected tribes along its route.\r\nThe agencys explanations were very disappointing.\r\nThis disaster happened six weeks ago.\r\nThe EPA is still not giving detailed answers about what went wrong.\r\nThis tragedy also raises questions about the EPAs basic competence.\r\nAccording to a preliminary review by the agency, the EPA failed to take basic precautions.\r\nThe agency never even checked how high the water pressure was at the mine.\r\nThis report did say that the EPA knew about the risk of a blowout 14 months before it actually happened.\r\nThey never bothered to figure out a worst-case scenario, and what they would do if water started rushing out.\r\nThe people who live along these rivers are frustrated by the agencys incompetence, and they are frightened.\r\nPeople are afraid of what the long-term health effects might be for them and for their children.\r\nFarmers and ranchers are being devastated by this disaster. They are uncertain about whether the agency will be compensating them for their full losses. Losses that are a result of the EPAs own competence.\r\nAt our hearing yesterday, we heard from Gilbert Harrison, who has a 20-acre farm on the Navajo Reservation. He grows corn, alfalfa, watermelons and other crops.\r\nHe estimates that hes going to lose 40 to 50 percent of some of his crops because he couldnt use the river water to irrigate.\r\nThis farmer told our committee yesterday: This spill caused by the U.S. EPA created a lot of chaos, confrontation, confusion and losses among the farming community.\r\nThis was a man-made disaster. Obama administrations Environmental Protection Agency inflicted it upon Americans in these communities.\r\nIve spoken with tribal leaders who say that the EPAs mishandling of this spill has seriously damaged their trust  the tribes trust - in the agency.\r\nI dont blame them.\r\nFinally, the EPAs failure in this incident raises questions about the agencys priorities. The Obama Environmental Protection Agency has expanded its authority and seized control over one area after another.\r\nLook at its destructive new rule on waters of the United States.\r\nThis agency has declared that only Washington can be trusted to protect Americas rivers and streams.\r\nHow then do they justify grabbing all of this new power when they cant even protect rivers from themselves? They caused this problem.\r\nDoes this look like the work of a bureaucracy that should be in charge of protecting Americas precious waterways?\r\nThe Obama administration has focused on its radical climate change agenda, neglecting its most basic responsibilities.\r\nDo we really think that Washington should have more control over rivers and streams? Does anyone in America believe that?\r\nWashington did this.\r\nWashington poisoned this river.\r\nThe so-called Environmental Protection Agency must be held accountable.\r\nWhen any private company is accused of violating the Clean Water Act, the EPA has aggressively pursued civil fines against that company and the individual people involved as well. Even criminal prosecution occurs.\r\nIf this were a three million gallon toxic spill caused by private citizens, the EPA would act aggressively against those people. \r\nThe EPA would not accept the kind of feeble half-apologies and explanations weve heard so far from this administration and from the director of the EPA, who testified yesterday.\r\nThere is clearly a double standard between the way the EPA treats itself and how it treats everyone else. \r\n\"The Environmental Protection Agency failed to do the proper planning before it caused this disaster.\r\nI believe it also failed to do the proper work before writing regulations like its Waters of the United States rule, and its so-called Clean Power Plan.\r\nWith this spill, the agencys careless approach has done terrible damage to Americans living along the Animas River and other waterways.\r\nIts reckless and irresponsible regulations will have a devastating effect on the jobs and lives of millions of Americans all across the country.\r\nAt our hearing yesterday the EPA administrator continued to try to downplay the impact of its actions.\r\nThe agency needs to step back, and rethink its priorities.\r\nThis disaster happened because the EPA is inept at its job.\r\nThere should be no more trying to deflect attention from its failure. No more trying to grab additional power that it can use to do more damage.\r\nThe Environmental Protection Agency has been out of control for too long.\r\nIts time for Congress and President Obama to hold the EPA accountable for its failure.\r\nIts time to rein in this runaway bureaucracy before it does more damage.\r\n###\r\nhttps://www.barrasso.senate.gov\r\nTwitter | Facebook | You Tube", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://www.barrasso.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=0455697e-c4a5-4961-8cc8-5478cd2a9dbf"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.4993143267929554, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}