Amendment will initiate a study of potential contamination of local water resources in Humboldt County

September 22, 2009

Washington, D.C. -- Nevada Senator Harry Reid today introduced and led the U.S. Senate in passing an amendment to the Interior Department Appropriations Bill that would fund a study by the U.S. Geological Survey to evaluate the impact of seepage from California trash at the Jungo Disposal Site. The study would look at the likely contamination of local aquifers and possible impacts on Winnemucca and the Humboldt River.

Waste that California is attempting to dump in Nevada includes, but is not limited to such toxic products as asbestos, discarded tires and sludge from waste water treatment plants. This investigation would evaluate the amount of time it will take waste seepage from the disposal site to contaminate local water resources, the distance contamination will travel in 95 and 190 years, the potential impact of seepage on the Rye Patch Reservoir and the Humboldt River, the size and elevation of the aquifers and any impact that waste seepage from the Jungo Disposal Site will have on Winnemucca’s municipal water.

“The proposal to dump mountains of California trash in our state – one full train load, five days a week for the next 95 years - is a clear environmental and public health hazard,” Reid said. “What’s more, it is a threat to Nevada’s sovereignty and dignity. This study by the U.S. Geological Survey will carefully examine the risks of this proposal and protect the residents of Humboldt County now and in the future.”