^tosrx
A
I NONPOINT SOURCE SUCCESS STURY
v,y'
Cleaning Up Cold Springs Creek
TVtW JAexitv
Waterbody Improved Po"ution from Past mining activities at the Royal John Mine in
Grant County led the New Mexico Environment Department
(NMED) to add Cold Springs Creek to the list of impaired waters in 2012. The U.S. Forest Service, in
conjunction with NMED, removed lead and cadmium pollution sources from the creek by moving
historic mine tailings and waste rock away from the stream banks into a secure underground
repository. Samples of these metals downstream of the mine went from elevated levels prior to
reclamation to non-detectable levels after. As a result, NMED removed cadmium as a cause of water
quality impairment in the 2022-2024 Integrated Report; data indicate that the lead impairment
could be removed in the next reporting cycle.
Problem
Mining activities dating from 1916 to 1969 at the
Royal John Mine and Mill site in southern New
Mexico polluted Cold Springs Creek, a tributary to
Hot Springs Creek and the Mimbres River (Figure 1).
The approximately 2,000-acre mine site contained
numerous adits, cuts, and waste rock piles from the
historical mining operations. Mine tailings were piled
on both the banks and the channel of the creek, at
the on-site mill, and at a depository about a half mile
downstream. Water quality samples collected in 2009
detected elevated ievels of iead and cadmium. NMED
listed Cold Springs Creek as impaired on the 2012
Integrated Report due to these metais interfering with
the Coid Water Aquatic Life designated use. Portions
of the upper watershed burned during the 2013 Silver
Fire, which exacerbated erosion during Intense sum-
mer rains. Site Investigation by the U.S. Forest Service
in 2014 and consultants in 2016 included conducting
soil, sediment, and waste rock sampling, which showed
elevated ievels of lead and other heavy metals (alu-
minum, arsenic, cadmium, copper, iron, manganese,
and zinc). These pollutants posed a significant threat
to aquatic life and human health based on NMED soil
screening levels and the potential for transport from
the site via surface water runoff.
Story Highlights
In 2018 the Forest Service hired the Engineering
Remediation Resources Group, Inc. (ERRG) to remedi-
ate the Royal john mine and mill site. The goal was
to reduce the potential for exposure of chemicals of
concern in the waste materials arid surface water.
US Forest
Service Land
Royal John Mine \
Silver City
TVuth or
Consequences
©
©
Hatch
® OpviStcdMap (ami) eenbHulBU CCW-OA 9»>
-------
Figure 2. Mine waste was buried under a vegetated
earthen cap at the Cowboy Flat Repository.
where it was buried under an earthen cap with a silty
clay layer and the topsoil to support native plants. This
cap was designed to keep the underlying waste mate-
rial mostly dry and minimize contaminant transport. A
total of 24,476 cubic yards of contaminated mill tailings
were removed from the banks of Cold Springs Creek.
An additional 22,070 cubic yards of waste rock with
elevated lead levels were removed from other areas
of the mine. The waste materials were buried safely in
Cowboy Flat Repository, thus greatly reducing the risk
of exposure to hazardous materials (Figure 2). Some of
the mine adits were sealed off completely; other adits
were identified as important habitat for bats and were
closed off with bat-friendly grates.
Table 1. Water quality data: Cold Springs Creek
2009-2021).
Date
Lead (mg/L)
Cadmium (mg/L)
03/23/2009
0.012
0.001
07/20/2009
0.017586
0.002213
08/24/2009
0.015
0.002
11/17/2009
0.014
0.002
June 2013
Silver Fire
10/22/2014
0.016
0.001
May 2019
Reclamation in progress
06/05/2019
0.019
Nondetect
06/05/2019
0.011
Nondetect
09/17/2020
0.002
Nondetect
10/21/2021
Nondetect
Nondetect
Note: mg/L= milligrams per liter
Results
NMED staff sampled Cold Springs Creek for metals
downstream of the Royal John Mine before and after
reclamation (Figure 3; Table 1). After reclamation, sam-
ples from 2019 and 2020 showed a decrease in lead,
and no cadmium was detected. In 2021, both cadmium
and lead levels were below detection. Therefore, the
NMED Surface Water Quality Bureau (SWQB) removed
cadmium as a cause of water quality impairment in the
2022-2024 Integrated Report. Based on current data
trends, it appears likely that the lead impairment could
also be removed in the next reporting cycle.
Partners and Funding
The primary partners on the cleanup of Royal John Mine
and Cold Springs Creek were the Forest Service Regional
Office, Gila National Forest, and their contractor,
ERRG. The Forest Service funded the restoration effort
($1,642,459 total). NMED's SWQB and Ground Water
Quality Bureau (GWQB) staff provided comments,
guidance, and inspection during the planning and
reclamation process through the Mining Environmental
Compliance Section of GWQB. Staff from the SWQB
conducted the water quality monitoring.
Figure 3. An NMED staff member collects samples
from Cold Springs Creek, after reclamation.
&
*L PRO^°
2
o
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Water
Washington, DC
EPA 841-F-23-0Q1E
April 2023
For additional information contact:
Daniel Guevara
NM Environment Department
505-946-8956 • daniel.guevara@state.nm
------- |