NEW MEXICO ENVIRONMENT DEPARTMENT
The New Mexico Environment Department(NMED), New Mexico Attorney General’s Office, and the New Mexico Office of Natural Resources Trustee announced Wednesday an $11 million settlement associated with the 2015 Gold King Mine blowout that released tons of toxic metals and acidic waste into the Animas and San Juan Rivers. The settlement is between the State of New Mexico and defendants Sunnyside Gold Corporation, which oversaw the construction of bulkheads that caused the Gold King Mine and nearby mines to fill with acidic mine water, and its parent companies Kinross Gold Corporationand Kinross Gold U.S.A., Inc. The $11 million paid to the State of New Mexico includes $10 million for environmental response costs and lost tax revenue, as well as $1 million to the Office of the Natural Resources Trustee for injuries to New Mexico’s natural resources.