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The Alarming New Report You Should Read If You Live Near A Dam
Image source: CBC
Homes and entire communities could be covered with billions of gallons of water and toxic sludge because of the collapse of poorly built mining dams, which number more than 900 across the United States, according to new data.
The threat to public safety and even to drinking water is in the spotlight following such a catastrophe at the Mount Polley copper and gold mine in central British Columbia last year.
On August 4, 2014, a dam on a tailings pond collapsed and released 6.6 billion gallons of arsenic laced sludge into a creek and a lake, depriving 300 people and the entire town of Likely, British Columbia, of drinking water.
The cause of the disaster was a poorly designed dam and the practice of storing waste from mining in giant ponds next to mines, a panel of experts convened by British Columbia’s government found, according to the The Vancouver Sun. The panel’s findings prompted the province’s Minister of Mines to inspect all 123 mining dams in British Columbia.
It Could Happen Here
“The U.S. has more than 900 mining dams that could wreak havoc like Mount Polley’s did, threatening towns, streams, and people from coast to coast,” BuzzFeed reported.
Source: http://www.offthegridnews.com/current-events/the-alarming-new-report-you-should-read-if-you-live-near-a-dam/
