Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah has added the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and a contractor as defendants in the state's lawsuit over a mine waste spill in Colorado that polluted rivers in three states.
The Utah Attorney General's Office said Friday it is still negotiating with the EPA and the contractor, Weston Solutions Inc., over damages from the spill, but it added them as defendants to preserve the state's legal rights.
Neither the EPA nor Weston Solutions immediately responded to after-hours emails seeking comment.
Utah sued mine owners and other contractors in August seeking unspecified compensation for the 2015 spill at the Gold King Mine. An EPA-led contractor crew inadvertently triggered the spill while excavating at the mine entrance.
The spill tainted rivers in Colorado, New Mexico and Utah with heavy metals.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
