Denver (October 30,2024): The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment's Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division is announcing a landmark agreement to address lead contamination in the Town of Rico under the State’s Voluntary Cleanup and Redevelopment Program.
Rico is a historic mining town located next to the Dolores River in Dolores County. For many years, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment worked closely with Rico and Atlantic Richfield Company to develop an innovative and multi-faceted lead mitigation program. The Rico Voluntary Cleanup and Redevelopment Program will remediate elevated levels of lead in Rico’s soil, which are present throughout the town. Under the Rico Voluntary Cleanup and Redevelopment program, Atlantic Richfield will remediate developed properties and provide funding and technical support for the remediation of roads and undeveloped properties as those properties are developed. CDPHE approved the remedial approach and Voluntary Cleanup Plan in May 2023 and will provide oversight throughout program implementation. This site-specific approach will protect public health while allowing Rico and property owners to retain control over the remediation process.
This month, Rico town officials went a step further and adopted a land use ordinance that will apply to digging and excavation activities on properties in the town and will require steps to maintain the remedy and protect human health and the environment for future generations. Both Rico and the CDPHE will have the power to enforce the land use ordinance authorized by an intergovernmental agreement finalized in October 2024. This approach avoids the need for deed restrictions for individual properties located within the excavation areas.
“The Rico Voluntary Cleanup and Redevelopment Program is an important step for protecting public health in the Town of Rico,” said Tracie White, CDPHE’s Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division Director. “We are happy to see stakeholders joining together to voluntarily address historic soil contamination in a way that meets the needs of the Town and its residents.”
“This is a big win for the Town of Rico,” said Nicole Pieterse, Mayor of the Town of Rico. “The Rico Voluntary Cleanup Program provides Rico with the assistance and resources it needs to clean up lead in soil while keeping Rico in control of that clean-up and minimizing disturbance to Rico’s natural beauty.”
Colorado’s Voluntary Cleanup and Redevelopment Program was created in 1994 to facilitate the redevelopment and transfer of contaminated properties. CDPHE has overseen over 1,500 Voluntary Cleanup and Redevelopment Program projects throughout Colorado since the program’s inception in 1994.
You can find additional information on CDPHE’s Voluntary Cleanup and Redevelopment Program on their website or reach out to Mark Rudolph at mark.rudolph@state.co.us.
For additional information from the Town of Rico, please contact Tom Bloomfield at Kaplan Kirsch LLP, tbloomfield@kaplankirsch.com or 303-825-6390, who represented the Town throughout these negotiations.
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