Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2512 would seek to address the abandoned Three Kids Mine in Nevada. The Three Kids Mine site is an abandoned manganese mine and mill near Las Vegas. Today, the abandoned mine has open mine pits and significant volumes of toxic manganese tailings containing arsenic, lead, and diesel fuel, which the BLM has said pose significant risks to public health, safety, and the environment. H.R. 2512 would direct the BLM to convey the Federal portions of the Three Kids Mine site to the Redevelopment Agency of the City of Henderson, Nevada, and require remediation and reclamation of the site. We support the goals of H.R. 2512 to clean up the toxic abandoned mine site and commend the sponsors of the legislation on their innovative thinking with respect to addressing this problem; however, the estimates of the cost addressing this abandoned mine site are large and uncertain. According to the Bureau of Land Management, the cost of reclaiming and remediating this abandoned mine site is estimated to be between $300 million and $1.3 billion. We continue to have concerns about who would assume responsibility for these costs should the cleanup be abandoned for any reason in the future because this legislation would release the United States from all liabilities related to the Three Kids Mine site, including under environmental laws such as the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act.…”