To direct the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, to remedy problems caused by a collapsed drainage tunnel in Leadville, Colorado, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3123) to direct the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, to remedy problems caused by a collapsed drainage tunnel in Leadville, Colorado, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3123, introduced by our colleague Representative Lamborn, will direct the Bureau of Reclamation to remedy problems caused by collapses in the Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel. Due to structural deterioration, contaminated water has backed up in the tunnel, posing a public health and environmental threat.

I ask my colleagues to support the bill's passage.

Mr. Speaker, I submit for the Record the following exchange of letters between the Committee on Natural Resources and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure concerning H.R. 3123.

House of Representatives, Committee on Transportation and

Infrastructure,

Washington, DC, September 8, 2009.

Hon. Nick Rahall,

Chairman, Committee on Natural Resources, House of

Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman Rahall: I write to you regarding H.R. 3123, a

bill to direct the Secretary of the Interior to remedy

problems caused by a collapsed drainage tunnel in Leadville,

Colorado.

H.R. 3123 contains provisions that fall within the

jurisdiction of the Committee on Transportation and

Infrastructure. I recognize and appreciate your desire to

bring this legislation before the House in an expeditious

manner and, accordingly, I will not seek a sequential

referral of the bill. However, I agree to waive consideration

of this bill with the mutual understanding that my decision

to forego a sequential referral of the bill does not waive,

reduce, or otherwise affect the jurisdiction of the Committee

on Transportation and Infrastructure over H.R. 3123.

Further, the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

reserves the right to seek the appointment of conferees

during any House-Senate conference convened on this

legislation on provisions of the bill that are within the

Committee's jurisdiction. I ask for your commitment to

support any request by the Committee on Transportation and

Infrastructure for the appointment of conferees on H.R. 3123

or similar legislation.

Please place a copy of this letter and your response

acknowledging the Committee on Transportation and

Infrastructure's jurisdictional interest in the Congressional

Record during consideration of the measure on the House

Floor.

I look forward to working with you as we prepare to pass

this important legislation.

Sincerely,

James L. Oberstar, M.C.

Chairman.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, the Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel was

originally constructed by the Federal Bureau of Mines in the forties and fifties to facilitate the extraction of lead and zinc ore for the World War II and Korean War efforts. The Bureau of Reclamation acquired the tunnel in 1959, hoping to use it as a source of water for the Frying Pan, Arkansas, project. Although the tunnel was never used for that project, water that flows out of the tunnel is considered part of the natural flow of the Arkansas River.

With the passage and subsequent signing into law of H.R. 429 during the 102nd Congress in 1992, the Bureau of Reclamation constructed and continues to operate a water treatment plant at the mouth of the tunnel. Groundwater levels at the tunnel have fluctuated in recent years. In addition, a collapse inside the tunnel has increased the tunnel's mine pool significantly, leading to new seeps and springs in the area. Estimates suggest that at one time, up to 1 billion gallons of water may have built up within the mine pool.

In November 2007, the EPA sent a letter to the Bureau of Reclamation expressing concerns over a catastrophic blowout, and in February 2008 the Lake County Commissioners declared a state of emergency.

Emergency measures are currently being undertaken by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Bureau of Reclamation to relieve water pressure in the vicinity. Their success has been notable to date. However, many of the problems reported at this site are not new. Legislation addressing this matter and authorizing the Secretary of the Interior to rehabilitate its tunnel dates back to at least 1976.

In response to the request for action from the local community, I have again worked together in a bipartisan manner with Senator Mark Udall from Colorado and reintroduced H.R. 3123. This bill would direct the Bureau of Reclamation to relieve water pressure behind certain blockages in the tunnel, permanently manage the mine pool behind any blockage to prevent releases of contaminated water, and manage the tunnel in such a way to prevent failure of the structure.

I look forward to seeing this situation remedied so that concerns about human safety and environmental integrity may be appropriately and responsibly addressed. I remind Members that only minor technical changes have been made since the bill was originally passed by the House of Representatives in the previous Congress.

I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

I yield back the balance of my time.

I thank my colleague for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, the Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel was originally constructed by the Federal Bureau of Mines in the 1940s and 1950s to facilitate the extraction of lead and zinc ore for the World War II and Korean war efforts. The Bureau of Reclamation acquired the tunnel in 1959 hoping to use it as a source of water for the Fryingpan-Arkansas project.

With the passage and subsequent signing into law of H.R. 429 during the 102d Congress in 1992, the Bureau of Reclamation constructed and continues to operate a water treatment plant at the mouth of the tunnel. This treatment plant removes metal contaminants from the water.

Groundwater levels at the tunnel have fluctuated in recent years.

In addition, a collapse in the tunnel has increased the tunnel's mine pool significantly, leading to new seeps and springs in the area. Estimates suggest that at one time up to 1 billion gallons of water may have accumulated.

Emergency measures are currently being undertaken by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Bureau of Reclamation to relieve water pressure in the vicinity. However, legislation attempting to address this matter and authorizing the Secretary of the Interior to rehabilitate this tunnel dates back to at least 1976.

In response to the request for action from the local community, I have again worked together with Senator Mark Udall of Colorado in a bipartisan manner and reintroduced H.R. 3123. The bill would direct the Bureau of Reclamation to relieve water pressure behind blockages in the tunnel, permanently manage the mine pool behind any blockage to prevent any releases of contaminated water, and manage the tunnel in such a way to prevent failure of the structure.

I remind Members that only minor technical changes have been made since this bill was originally passed by the House of Representatives in the previous Congress. I respectfully request each Member to support this legislation. Human safety and environmental integrity need to be appropriately and responsibly addressed.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3123) to direct the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, to remedy problems caused by a collapsed drainage tunnel in Leadville, Colorado, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3123, introduced by our colleague, Representative Doug Lamborn, would direct the Bureau of Reclamation to remedy problems caused by collapses in the Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel. Due to structural deterioration, contaminated water has backed up in the tunnel, posing a public health threat and an environmental threat.

I ask my colleagues to support the bill's passage.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no additional requests for time and would inquire of the minority whether they have any additional speakers.

Mr. Speaker, I again urge Members to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise in support of this legislation offered by our Colorado colleague, Doug Lamborn. This legislation has been supported on a bipartisan basis and deserves passage today because it will help prevent a potential human safety disaster in Leadville, Colorado.

The Leadville Mine Tunnel was supposed to be used for a nearby Federal water project; however, it has ended up becoming a public danger because of its potential to burst with chemical-laden water on nearby residents. Since the Federal Government owns this tunnel, it is therefore a Federal responsibility.

I urge my colleagues to support this necessary legislation which fell victim to party politics earlier this year.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Lamborn).

Mr. Speaker, the minority has no additional speakers, and with that I yield back the balance of my time.