Mine Reclamation
The initial stages for reclamation of the mine and mill sites in the watershed involved characterization of the leaching potential for waste rock and tailings piles.  In 2001 and 2002, the WCRC addressed the fourteen primary waste rock and tailings piles in the watershed.  The objective was to ascertain the type, degree, and extent of contamination of surface and shallow depth soils.  A summary of this work is provided in the Report on Characterization of Waste Rock and Tailings Piles Above Creede, Colorado.  This report is available as the complete report (5 MB) or the report without site diagrams (410 KB).  Please refer to the WCRC's Sampling and Analysis Plan for Site Reclamation and Surface Water, Groundwater, Biological, and Waste Rock Sampling (rev. 5/03) for detailed information on methodology. 
The next stage for reclamation involved site-specific implementation of consolidation, capping, revegetating, and/or construction of drainage structures.  In September 2003, the WCRC, in cooperation with the Colorado Division of Minerals and Geology and the U.S. Forest Service, addressed the Phoenix, Gormax, Midwest, and Park Regent Mines and the Phoenix Park Mill site.  Please see the 2003 Reclamation Plan for details.  
Over the summer of 2007, WCRC assisted in conducting reclamation work on two mine sites - the Amethyst Mine and the Last Chance Mine. Both these projects were funded by the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Non-point Source Program. 

For details about the Amethyst Mine Reclamation Project, please click here. For details about the Last Chance Mine Reclamation Project, please click here. Photographs will be posted soon. 

Please click here to download photographs of our work.