EPA Region 8 Brownfields Program
From Smelter Site to Affordable
and Energy Efficient Housing in
San Juan County, Colorado
A former smelter site near Silverton, Colorado is being redeveloped into an energy efficient,
affordable housing complex that will allow the local workforce to transition from renters to owners.
Silverton—a Town without Affordable Housing
The Town of Silverton (population 531), which is located
within San Juan County in Southwestern Colorado, had a
thriving mining economy from 1876 to 1991; nearly 400 jobs
were lost when the mines closed. Recently, the area has seen
an increase in tourism with its mining history and the scenic
narrow gauge railroad serving as its anchor. Many of the
houses of former miners have been sold as vacation, seasonal,
and second homes, resulting in a lack of affordable housing in
the county and the median home price climbing to $300,000.
In addition to the high cost of housing, the Town of Silverton
(elevation 9,300 feet) averages 200 inches of snow and only
two to three frost-free weeks annually. Silverton residents
often pay as much for heating as they do for housing. The
cumulative result is that the majority of the area's workforce
spends 50% or more of their income on housing costs.
In an effort to provide affordable and energy efficient housing,
San Juan County and its partners have been planning the future
Anvil Mountain Neighborhood, which will include single
and multi-family affordable housing units that incorporate
sustainability features, historical preservation, trails and open
space amenities. The town decided to develop the project on
the former Martha Rose/Walsh Smelter site, as its terrain and
location adjacent to Silverton made it an ideal spot.
Cleanup Needed to Reuse the Former Smelter Site
KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Cleaned up arsenic and lead contamination
Leveraged more than $2 million for cleanup and
redevelopment activities
Identified energy conservation options and funding
sources for new homes
On schedule to begin construction of new
development in 2010
The 13-acre Martha Rose/Walsh Smelter site is a former ore crushing facility and coal-fired blast furnace that produced
silver, lead, and some gold. Operations at the site began in October 1882 and continued sporadically through 1893, when
the facility was closed and dismantled. This was just one small component of the former thriving mining economy. The
site sat idle for more than 100 years until demand for developable land (the majority of San Juan County's land base is
under federal ownership) spurred the community to begin looking into how the site could be reclaimed and reused.
Colorado Housing Inc. and Housing Solutions for the Southwest funded preliminary environmental assessments in 2003 and
2004, as due diligence before the County purchased the property. A more detailed Targeted Brownfields Assessment was
completed in 2005 using contractual support from the EPA. The assessments identified lead and arsenic in the soil, slag, and
cinders. After the assessments, San Juan County was awarded an EPA Cleanup Grant; after which the county entered the site
into the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) Voluntary Cleanup Program, which provides
technical support to facilitate environmental cleanup and provides assurance against regulatory enforcement.
Site cleanup began in December 2008 and was completed in December 2009, using funds from an EPA Brownfields
Cleanup Grant, the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, CDPHE, and San Juan County. There were some delays in
the cleanup due to unanticipated site conditions and a shortened field season, due to Silverton's high elevation. In the
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end, the lead- and arsenic-contaminated slag and soil was
consolidated, contained, and capped in an engineered
onsite repository. The repository site will be re-vegetated
and landscaped to be used as open space for the new
housing community. A portion of the repository may be
used as a trail.
Incorporating Sustainable Components into
Building Design
The Anvil Mountain Neighborhood project was selected as
an EPA Brownfields Sustainability Pilot, which provided
$50,000 in technical assistance to identify and evaluate
energy savings and alternative energy options as well as
additional funding resources and approaches. As part of
the pilot, the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) National
Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) developed models
of energy conservation strategies that integrate sustainable
design concepts (e.g., building orientation and window
types). The county adopted NREL's energy conservation
options as part of the baseline building code for the Anvil
Mountain Neighborhood.
The final Sustainability Pilot report outlines strategies
on how to implement green building and infrastructure
designs, and additional funding resources for
implementation of these ideas on formerly mine-scarred
lands. Not only will these strategies save money in the
design phase, but they will enable homeowners to realize
savings overtime.
Reuse Supports the Economy and the Environment
A unique public/nonprofit partnership will likely break
ground on the Anvil Mountain Neighborhood development
beginning in fall of 2010 or spring of 2011, after funding
is finalized. It will include up to 53 housing units,
ranging from 700 to 2,200 square feet. The project will
include a few market-value homes to help subsidize the
remaining affordable units. In addition to housing, 40%
of the property will be utilized as open space, including
a park and a historic, interpretive area to showcase the
community's mining and rail history.
The Anvil Mountain Neighborhood affordable and energy-
efficient housing project will provide many benefits to
LEVERAGED RESOURCES
$686,000 from the Colorado Department of Local Affairs
for cleanup and infrastructure
$585,000 from EPA through a Targeted Brownfields
Assessment, Brownfields Sustainability Pilot, Brownfields
Cleanup Grant and Brownfields Stimulus Grant for site
grading
$514,000 from San Juan County for property purchase
and matching funds
$124,000 from a Colorado Department of Transportation
Enhancement Grant for historical interpretation and
landscaping
$100,000 from the Colorado Department of Public Health
and Environment for cleanup
$60,000 from Housing Solutions for the Southwest for
property purchase
$60,000 from Colorado Housing Inc for property purchase
$6,100 from a State Historical Fund Grant for a historic
assessment
Technical assistance through DOE's Weather and
Intergovernmental Program
In-kind support from the U.S. Bureau of Land
Management
In-kind support from Fullmer Construction
the community. Primarily, the project will help low- to
median-income Silverton residents transition from renters
to homeowners. From an environmental perspective,
cleanup of the Martha Rose/Walsh Smelter site prevents
any future releases of contaminants to the natural
environment, reduces the use of fossil fuels from the use
of efficient green buildings, and creates new open space.
In addition, the area's rich mining and rail legacy will be
preserved by using architecture design similar to mining-
era buildings in the town, preserving former railroad
components on the property, and incorporating interpretive
signage with historical photos.
For more information on EPA's Sustainability Pilots, please visit:
www.epa.gov/brown1ields/sustainjlts/index.htm
For additional information, please contact:
San Juan County: (970) 387-5766 • www.sanjuandevelopment.org
EPA Region 8 Brownfields Program: (303) 312-7074 • www.epa.gov/region8/brownfields
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Region 8
Brownfields
EPA 908-F-10-001
April 2010
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