SCOPING COMMENTS DUE MONDAY JANUARY 30th

The geologically unique Paradox Valley is formed by a collapsed salt dome that created a brine aquifer near the surface. As the Dolores River crosses the valley, it naturally picks up over 200,000 tons of salty brine each year, contributing to high salinity levels downstream in the Colorado River Basin.

To reduce that salinity, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation operates a deep injection facility near Bedrock which removes 110,000 tons of salt each year from the Dolores River. Salty brine is pumped from shallow wells before it can intercept with the river, and then is injected into a  15,932 foot well. The Bureau of Reclamation is considering replacing the injection system with an evaporative pond complex because of concerns over seismic activity, the receiving aquifer is filling up, and it is expensive to build a new well.

The Bureau of Reclamation is taking scoping comments to conduct an Environmental Assessment (EA) and begin an Evaporation Pond Pilot Study to determine whether large-scale evaporation is feasible in Paradox Valley. They propose building a pilot pond between 15 and 40 acres in size that would require mitigations such as flashing lights, bioacoustics and noise cannons, water sprays and coloring of the brine. Netting to prevent migratory birds from accessing the pond may also be required. Once the pond reaches capacity, the salt evaporate is toxic waste. The pond would be reclaimed and managed permanently as a toxic waste landfill.

If evaporation is found to be a feasible alternative for salinity control in Paradox Valley, the Bureau then could proceed with building a large-scale complex of evaporative ponds. It would take an estimated 800 acres of ponds to match the current amount of salt removed by deep injection. Once the ponds reach capacity (estimated 3 to 11 years) they would most likely be reclaimed as landfills on site in Paradox Valley because the cost of relocating the waste would be prohibitive.

SMA and other conservation groups have asked the Bureau of Reclamation to conduct a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Paradox Valley Evaporation Pond Pilot Study and to thoroughly evaluate the impacts to the Dolores River and the environment. Because the Paradox Valley project is so important to the government’s salinity control efforts in the Colorado River Basin and the impacts are so significant, the Bureau of Reclamation should conduct a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for the Colorado River Salinity Control Program. The real causes of salinity should be addressed and the best range of alternatives to improve the condition of the rivers should be developed.

Read scoping and background documents.

Scoping comments are due Jan. 30 and should be addressed to: