Tom Udall

Having no cell phone reception is not just an inconvenience for people, it can mean not being able to call 911 in an emergency.

We need solutions, as Senator Gardner said, to address this pollution all across the West.

We should reform the 1872 Mining Law to make sure that mining companies pay royalties to taxpayers.

It is long past time for us to address this issue.

I thank the Senator. I wish you Godspeed on that train headed to Wilmington because you have a wonderful wife.

The RRIF Program is very much open for business.

You have urged the EPA to designate the upper Animas as a Superfund site. That is something I support.

We will stand with you to make sure it improves every day into the future as you go through and work through all these difficult issues.

I believe in the principle of polluter pays.

Those on the Navajo Nation and others affected by this spill must be compensated.

The Native American community across the Country uses this Committee as a great oversight entity.

Some of the people who have looked at this area say the 1872 mining law and its supervision of mining is some of the most lax public oversight of any industry.

I demanded that the EPA act with urgency to protect our health and safety and to repair the damage inflicted on this watershed.

Mistakes have been made. We need to do everything in our power to make sure they are not made again.

The President of the Navajo Nation has requested that EPA designate the Upper Animas District as a Superfund site. I support this and believe it should be a priority for funds and remediation.

I would like to get your commitment here at the hearing that EPA is dedicated to prioritizing funding and resources for long term monitoring of the river and for compensation for those impacted.

We cannot let history repeat itself over and over and over again.

The Federal Government must own up to this tragedy.

It is urgent that EPA address this and address it now because there is another disaster of this proportion ready to happen.

For far too long, Indian Country has been left to fend for itself in dealing with the impacts of mining.

This can be done if we put our heads together and work with each other.

Who says they should be able to pollute drinking water that our two States use on a daily basis?

I just want to tell you how much I appreciate you calling this hearing because I think what you are trying to do is get to the bottom of what really happened.

What happened last summer at the VA was a betrayal of our veterans.

The behavior you have described is just absolutely appalling to me.