The San Benito County Integrated Waste Management Department
will use federal grant money to track down who is responsible for
the toxic New Idria Mercury Mine.
Hollister – The San Benito County Integrated Waste Management Department will use federal grant money to track down who is responsible for the toxic New Idria Mercury Mine.
On Tuesday, the board of supervisors approved the department’s request to hire an outside firm to locate the person or entity responsible for the polluted site. The board will then go to court to force a clean up, according to Mandy Rose, director of the integrated waste management department.
Located south of the Panoche Valley in San Benito County, the New Idria Mine was the nation’s largest mercury producer during parts of the 19th and 20th centuries. The last mining operation left 30 years ago. Since then, acidic water has flowed out of the mountainside, turning the water in a nearby creek orange.
In October, the county received a $200,000 federal grant to be used to assess the extent of the pollution at the New Idria site. It is a portion of that money that will be used to identify the responsible party.
An environmental consultant has estimated that cleaning up the site will cost between $1.5 and $2.5 million. The county has no liability for the mine, according to Rose.
The district attorney’s office started its own search nearly a year ago.
“Our intention is to bring a lawsuit, either civilly or criminally,” DA John Sarsfield said.
Sarsfield said the condition of the mine site – which consists of dilapidated buildings and a mess of processed ore – is “shocking.”
“There’s a large pond that looks like something from a bad horror movie,” he said. “It appears to be dead.”
Luke Roney covers politics and agriculture for the Free Lance. Reach him at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or at [email protected].
