The Environmental Protection Agency's internal watchdog says there is an ongoing criminal investigation into last year's massive wastewater spill from an abandoned Colorado gold mine. Several members of Congress had pressed for a criminal investigation into the EPA's role in causing the disaster. The EPA's Office of Inspector General sent letters to members of Congress saying it couldn't answer some questions about its review of the Gold King Mine spill without jeopardizing a criminal investigation being conducted with the Justice Department. The EPA is now considering whether to designate the Gold King Mine and other nearby abandoned mines as Superfund sites to help fund more extensive cleanup efforts. An EPA-led contractor inadvertently triggered the Aug. 5, 2015, spill while doing preliminary cleanup work at the old mine.

Source: Fox News August 01, 2016 20:15 UTC