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Operations Director Robert Quint said he could not support H.R. 5511, which would give the Interior Department responsibility for fixing the tunnel, before the bureau completes a risk assessment that is due out in June.

Meanwhile, the bureau, U.S. EPA and state and local authorities are working on a short-term solution to alleviate pressure on the tunnel from as much as 1 billion gallons of toxic water. EPA has authority over contamination in the tunnel under Superfund law, though the bureau owns it.

About 300 residents of the historic mining town of Leadville live in an 80-unit mobile home park just outside the tunnel's entrance, placing them in the flood path should the tunnel burst. EPA has installed a pumping system into the Gaw mine shaft in hopes that it will lower water levels in the mine pool. The agency also is installing a relief well that should be complete by this summer.

Quint said any metals or toxins in the water do not exceed legal limits for the state of Colorado, and therefore the water could be released into the Arkansas River.

But Michael Hickman, chair of the Lake County Colorado Board of Commissioners, said although it is legal to discharge that water, it is still much more contaminated than water treated by the plant and should be treated.

Other bills

The committee also took up H.R. 155, which would provide compensation to the Lower Brule and Crow Creek Sioux tribes of South Dakota for damage to tribal lands caused by Pick-Sloan projects along the Missouri River.

The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-S.D.), would increase funds in the Lower Brule trust from $39 million to $130 million, while the Crow Creek trust would receive a $41.5 million boost, increasing its trust to $69 million.

"The United States took our best land and our water ... to produce electricity," Michael Jandreau, chairman of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, told the committee. "None of the proceeds from the sale of the electricity generated with our water on the lands that were tribal land goes to the tribes."

The tribes received less than equitable treatment, he concluded, noting that the legislation would enable the tribes to move forward with badly needed health care, justice programs, education, transportation, broadband and other projects. "This legislation would be full and final compensation," he said.

The committee looked at H.R. 5710, which would authorize a project designed to deliver approximately 16,500 acre-feet of water per year from the Ute Reservoir to nearby cities. It would authorize up to $327 million in funding for the project (E&E Daily, May 5).

Rep. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) said the bill is critical to the well-being of counties in eastern New Mexico. He said an aquifer currently fulfilling all municipal water demands and much of the area's agricultural needs could be depleted in 25 years.

However, Quint said the administration is concerned it would become the primary source of funds for the project. "We are working with the [Eastern New Mexico Rural Water] Authority and the state to bring the project to a point where a feasibility determination is possible," he said.