WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Martin Heinrich’s (R-N.M.) legislation, the Good Samaritan Remediation of Abandoned Hardrock Mines Act, today passed the Senate unanimously. This legislation would make it easier for “Good Samaritans,” such as state agencies, local governments, nonprofits, and other groups, to clean up abandoned hardrock mines. The bill has broad support with 41 bipartisan cosponsors in the Senate.
“Today’s Senate passage of our Good Samaritan Remediation of Abandoned Hardrock Mines Act puts us one step closer to cutting the red tape that has prevented good faith actors from cleaning up long-abandoned hardrock mines,” said Risch. “I urge the House of Representatives to take up and pass this commonsense legislation to allow Good Samaritans to conduct this important remediation work.”
“Good Samaritan organizations are ready to help clean up abandoned mines that are threatening our communities and polluting the land, water, fish, and wildlife we rely on. I’m proud of the work we have done to advance our commonsense, bipartisan legislation to create a path for these groups to clean up sites in New Mexico and across our country,” said Heinrich. “Efforts to get this done started well before I came to Congress. It’s been an honor to get it across the finish line in the Senate, and I won’t stop working on this until it’s law.”
The U.S. has over 140,000 abandoned hardrock mine features, of which 22,500 pose environmental hazards according to the GAO. Organizations that have no legal or financial responsibility to an abandoned mine – true Good Samaritans – want to volunteer to remediate some of these sites. Unfortunately, liability rules would leave these Good Samaritans legally responsible for all the pre-existing pollution from a mine, even though they had no involvement with the mine prior to cleaning it up.
The Good Samaritan Remediation of Abandoned Hardrock Mines Act creates a pilot permitting program to enable not-for-profit cleanup efforts to move forward, while ensuring Good Samaritans have the skills and resources to comply with federal oversight. This pilot program is designed for lower risk projects, which will improve water and soil quality or otherwise protect human health.
The Good Samaritan Remediation of Abandoned Hardrock Mines Act is supported by a host of industry and conservation groups including, the American Exploration and Mining Association, the National Mining Association, Trout Unlimited, Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, and Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation.
“The mining industry has the desire, the experience, the technology, the expertise, and the capital to remediate and reclaim AMLs. For more than two decades, AEMA has collaborated with industry allies and conservation groups on this effort. Today’s bipartisan win marks a monumental step forward. We’re grateful for the strong bipartisan support demonstrated by the original cosponsors in the Senate and House. We applaud Senators Heinrich and Risch for their leadership on this legislation and we urge the U.S. House of Representatives to follow suit,” said Mark Compton, Executive Director American Exploration and Mining Association.
“Today’s Senate passage of bipartisan Good Samaritan legislation is a deeply important step forward in tackling the long-overdue cleanup of legacy abandoned mine sites,” “This bill allows mining companies and local stakeholders to utilize their equipment and technical expertise to clean up abandoned sites without fear of incurring additional legal liability, removing key obstacles that have prevented the remediation of legacy land and water resources for far too long. We commend Senators Heinrich and Risch for their shared vision and leadership to advance the environmental progress we all desire, and we urge the House to send the bill to the president’s desk,” said Rich Nolan, National Mining Association president and CEO.?
"Passage of the Good Samaritan legislation is the perfect demonstration of the application of common sense to common problems for the common good, and it validates TU’s approach of bridging divides to care for the lands and waters that sustain our great nation. We thank Senators Risch and Heinrich for their unwavering commitment to cleaning up historic mine pollution and advancing the work of Good Samaritans across the country,” said Chris Wood, president and CEO of Trout Unlimited.
