{"id":2456490,"date":"2020-03-30T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-03-30T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/?p=323500"},"modified":"2020-03-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2020-03-30T06:00:00","slug":"marble-quarry-operators-violated-clean-water-act-army-corps-of-engineers-finds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/marble-quarry-operators-violated-clean-water-act-army-corps-of-engineers-finds\/","title":{"rendered":"Marble quarry operators violated Clean Water Act, Army Corps of Engineers finds"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"swift-gallery p402_hide\" readability=\"6.7454545454545\">\n<ul id=\"imageGallery-323500-700\" class=\"gallery list-unstyled\">\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/03\/marblequarry-atd-033020-1-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/03\/marblequarry-atd-033020-1-1024x768.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Heather Sackett\/Aspen Journalism | These marble blocks stamped with quarry owner's name, Red Graniti, and operator's initials, CSQ, line the banks of the Crystal River near the company's load-out area in the town of Marble. The Army Corps of Engineers has determined quarry operators violated the Clean Water Act when they diverted Yule Creek, a tributary of the Crystal, from its natural channel.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"2.5\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"16\">\n<p><strong>These marble blocks stamped with quarry owner&#8217;s name, Red Graniti, and operator&#8217;s initials, CSQ, line the banks of the Crystal River near the company&#8217;s load-out area in the town of Marble. The Army Corps of Engineers has determined quarry operators violated the Clean Water Act when they diverted Yule Creek, a tributary of the Crystal, from its natural channel.<\/strong><br \/>Heather Sackett\/Aspen Journalism<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/03\/marblequarry-atd-033020-1-1024x768.jpg\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" alt=\"These marble blocks stamped with quarry owner's name, Red Graniti, and operator's initials, CSQ, line the banks of the Crystal River near the company's load-out area in the town of Marble. The Army Corps of Engineers has determined quarry operators violated the Clean Water Act when they diverted Yule Creek, a tributary of the Crystal, from its natural channel.\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/03\/marblequarry-atd-033020-1-1-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/03\/marblequarry-atd-033020-1-1-1024x768.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Heather Sackett\/Aspen Journalism | Marble blocks line the banks of the Crystal River where County Road 3C, known as the Quarry Road, crosses the river. Marble quarry operators Colorado Stone Quarries was fined $18,600 by the Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety for an October diesel spill.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"1\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"13\">\n<p><strong>Marble blocks line the banks of the Crystal River where County Road 3C, known as the Quarry Road, crosses the river. Marble quarry operators Colorado Stone Quarries was fined $18,600 by the Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety for an October diesel spill.<\/strong><br \/>Heather Sackett\/Aspen Journalism<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/03\/marblequarry-atd-033020-1-1-1024x768.jpg\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" alt=\"Marble blocks line the banks of the Crystal River where County Road 3C, known as the Quarry Road, crosses the river. Marble quarry operators Colorado Stone Quarries was fined $18,600 by the Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety for an October diesel spill.\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"caption-toggle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/marble-quarry-operators-violated-clean-water-act-army-corps-of-engineers-finds\/#\" class=\"show-captions\">Show Captions<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/marble-quarry-operators-violated-clean-water-act-army-corps-of-engineers-finds\/#\" class=\"hide-captions\">Hide Captions<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">MARBLE \u2014 The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has determined that the operators of a local marble quarry violated the Clean Water Act when they diverted a tributary of the Crystal River to make way for a mining road.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">In the fall of 2018, Colorado Stone Quarries, which operates the famed Yule Quarry just outside the town of Marble, diverted Yule Creek from its natural channel \u2014 located on the west side of Franklin Ridge, a rock outcropping \u2014 to the east side of the ridge. Operators piled the original streambed with fill material, including marble blocks.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Although this move probably spared Yule Creek the impacts of a <a id=\"N0x2077d00N0x22a9e00:N0x2077d00N0x224ea08\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/diesel-spill-halts-operations-at-marble-quarry\/\">diesel spill last October<\/a>, it was done without the proper permits or oversight, according to the Army Corps.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, a project requires a permit from the Army Corps if it includes the discharge of dredged or fill materials into waters such as rivers, streams and wetlands. CSQ did not obtain a permit for the project because company officials thought the work was exempt, citing the temporary nature of the access road and creek diversion.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Army Corps officials disagreed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cThe work performed does not qualify for an exemption,\u201d states a March 5 letter from Army Corps Colorado West Section chief Susan Nall, as the work \u201cis being utilized for purposes other than moving mining equipment (e.g., hauling mined marble, accessing other portions of the mine, fuel staging area, and performing spill cleanup and monitoring activities) as required by the applicable exemption.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Nall\u2019s letter then declares: \u201cTherefore, the work is a violation of the Clean Water Act.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">In order to remedy the situation, the Army Corps wants Yule Creek returned to its original alignment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cOur preference is always to preserve the physical waterway if possible,\u201d Nall said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">CSQ is considering a few different alignments for Yule Creek.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cThe current alignment does accomplish the goal of creating separation between the creek and mining activities, which benefits the watershed,\u201d CSQ general manager Daniele Treves said in a prepared statement.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The company plans to apply for an \u201cindividual permit,\u201d which will require a 30-day public notice, public review and comments. The final decision on the Yule Creek alignment rests with the Army Corps.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The diversion of Yule Creek came to the attention of Army Corps staff after October\u2019s diesel spill, which released roughly 5,500 gallons of fuel from storage tanks onto the ground.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Although CSQ notified the Army Corps in 2018 that they were planning to divert about 1,500 feet of the creek, the company didn\u2019t follow the proper procedure and the Army Corps didn\u2019t realize the scope of the work it was planning, according to Nall.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cWe did not realize it was a formal request for concurrence of an exemption,\u201d Nall said. \u201cThat might have been an error on our part. \u2026 We didn\u2019t object, and they took it as a concurrence. Nothing is exempt until we say it is. They really should have obtained it from us in writing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText Subhead\">DRMS penalty<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">On Wednesday, the board of the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety levied a $18,600 penalty for the October spill. The accident resulted in the <a id=\"N0x2077d00N0x22aa0a0:N0x2077d00N0x224f2c0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/quarry-in-marble-facing-scrutiny-from-federal-state-regulators-in-wake-of-diesel-spill\/\">quarry\u2019s violation of three state statutes<\/a>: unauthorized release of pollutants into groundwater, failure to minimize disturbance to water quality and failure to comply with the conditions of the permit.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\"> DRMS determined September\u2019s relocation of generators and the diesel-fuel tanks that supplied them was not approved and was a violation of CSQ\u2019s permit. The diesel tanks were not put in secondary containment structures.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">CSQ has agreed to pay the fine.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cWe are always more interested in gaining compliance than the monetary aspect of it,\u201d said Russell Means, minerals program director for DRMS.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">According to an agreement between quarry operators and state regulators, CSQ also will continue to clean up the site, including bioremediation treatments to remove hydrocarbons from the soil and long-term water-quality monitoring.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Means and Nall said CSQ has been cooperative throughout the process.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cI think everybody\u2019s interest is the same \u2014 we would all like to see the spill area cleaned up and the best thing for Yule Creek,\u201d Nall said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The quarry, now known as The Pride of America Mine, is <a id=\"N0x2077d00N0x22aa160:N0x2077d00N0x224f740\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/italians-opening-new-portal-to-yule-quarry-in-marble\/\">owned by Italian company Red Graniti<\/a> and employs about 30 to 40 people. According to CSQ, there are enough marble reserves contained in its six galleries to continue mining at the current rate for more than 100 years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText Tagline\">Aspen Journalism collaborates with The Aspen Times and other Swift Communications newspapers on coverage of water and rivers. For more, go to aspenjournalism.org.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/marble-quarry-operators-violated-clean-water-act-army-corps-of-engineers-finds\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: The Aspen Times<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>These marble blocks stamped with quarry owner&#8217;s name, Red Graniti, and operator&#8217;s initials, CSQ, line the banks of the Crystal River near the company&#8217;s load-out area in the town of Marble. The Army Corps of Engineers has determined quarry operators violated the Clean Water Act when they diverted Yule Creek, a tributary of the Crystal, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2456490","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-local-news"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-08-18 07:04:56","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSPN The Valley&#039;s Quality Rock","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2456490","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2456490"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2456490\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2456490"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2456490"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2456490"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}