Lake Combie mercury removal project crosses another hurdle

Reed Lukens

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Yup... nothing new there. But now that they lost on the dredging ban we should spearhead a way to go clean Combie ourselves while canceling out Sierra Funds contract and having them return our tax dollars to us.
 

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Hefty1

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[h=1]Notice they are all standing around a spiral wheel?

TSF leads three more successful tours[/h] Posted on December 18, 2014December 19, 2014
Over the last three weeks, TSF has led three tours to showcase two project sites under our “Reclaiming the Sierra” initiative to asses and address legacy mining contamination.
board-member-tour-sized-for-web.jpg
TSF board members at Combie Reservoir, December 8, 2014

Two tours of Combie Reservoir were arranged in early December for regulators from the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board and TSF Board Members. The Nevada Irrigation District (NID) is piloting a Sediment and Mercury Removal Project at Combie Reservoir. Tour participants had the opportunity to witness the mercury removal process, which is carried out with innovative centrifuge technology called the Knelson Concentrator.
 

Bill_saf

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what a joke!
I would like to know if they had a hasmat clean up for the ground where he's letting the water run out of that bucket and I bet he threw the exam gloves in the trash. And there all about mercury contamination ya right.
 

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Hefty1

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Notice they are all standing around a spiral wheel?

TSF leads three more successful tours


Posted on December 18, 2014December 19, 2014
Over the last three weeks, TSF has led three tours to showcase two project sites under our “Reclaiming the Sierra” initiative to asses and address legacy mining contamination.
board-member-tour-sized-for-web.jpg
TSF board members at Combie Reservoir, December 8, 2014

Two tours of Combie Reservoir were arranged in early December for regulators from the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board and TSF Board Members. The Nevada Irrigation District (NID) is piloting a Sediment and Mercury Removal Project at Combie Reservoir. Tour participants had the opportunity to witness the mercury removal process, which is carried out with innovative centrifuge technology called the Knelson Concentrator.

I am wondering if they even have that..."innovative" LOL Knelson Concentrator there anymore?
 

fowledup

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The saddest thing of all about Combie and the future of Mercury remediation is that non evasive, natural, permanent processes exist, processes that enhance and work with the natural processes already in action. Processes they refuse to acknowledge, yet history overwhelmingly supports. Systems that don't transfer waste from one location to another, or create additional waste streams and cause undo destruction to the lake bottom and surrounding habitat by invasive mechanical means. There are proven treatment techniques allready in use, such as Phytoremediation, Bioremediation, algae biomass curtains, etc. Why not spend a fraction of the millions they're getting on establishing a few algae biomass curtains that simply float around the reservoir naturally remediating as they go. They can be easily cultivated or maintained and the waste recyled into livestock feed and natural fertilizers. Or introduce plants whose cell structures naturally attract heavy metals- heck, might as well get a few other bad boys out besides mercury. You know why they say these won't work? CAUSE IT WONT CREATE AN ONGOING REVENUE STREAM FOR THEM! Instead they are gonna take a lap or two around the lake chewing up the lake bottom as deep as those cutter head teeth will reach, catch what little Mercury they may, collect a check and move on to the next body of water and pile o' gold. Every few years, about the amount of time it will take for the lake bottom to recover they'll comeback around saying it needs to be done again. They couldn't have picked a more inefficient, environmentally unfriendly method or financially burdensome process. And they are the ones being called "GREEN". I call B__L S__T! Mother Nature is far more adept at and capable of cleaning up the environment than the self proclaimed environmentalists ever will be, but they are too idealistic, greedy, and egotistical to truly care or see it.
 

Alex Burke

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The saddest thing of all about Combie and the future of Mercury remediation is that non evasive, natural, permanent processes exist, processes that enhance and work with the natural processes already in action. Processes they refuse to acknowledge, yet history overwhelmingly supports. Systems that don't transfer waste from one location to another, or create additional waste streams and cause undo destruction to the lake bottom and surrounding habitat by invasive mechanical means. There are proven treatment techniques allready in use, such as Phytoremediation, Bioremediation, algae biomass curtains, etc. Why not spend a fraction of the millions they're getting on establishing a few algae biomass curtains that simply float around the reservoir naturally remediating as they go. They can be easily cultivated or maintained and the waste recyled into livestock feed and natural fertilizers. Or introduce plants whose cell structures naturally attract heavy metals- heck, might as well get a few other bad boys out besides mercury. You know why they say these won't work? CAUSE IT WONT CREATE AN ONGOING REVENUE STREAM FOR THEM! Instead they are gonna take a lap or two around the lake chewing up the lake bottom as deep as those cutter head teeth will reach, catch what little Mercury they may, collect a check and move on to the next body of water and pile o' gold. Every few years, about the amount of time it will take for the lake bottom to recover they'll comeback around saying it needs to be done again. They couldn't have picked a more inefficient, environmentally unfriendly method or financially burdensome process. And they are the ones being called "GREEN". I call B__L S__T! Mother Nature is far more adept at and capable of cleaning up the environment than the self proclaimed environmentalists ever will be, but they are too idealistic, greedy, and egotistical to truly care or see it.

You nailed it! I actually researched this project this fairly extensively as a way to get a dredge in the river. I even sent in the permits to the EPA in DC to handle hazardous waste:) I bought the domain name CaliforniaPCBRemoval.com and started researching how to get equipment like centrifuges that clean dirt lol. My weird dream was to somehow be able to support myself and put dredgers to work but the more I talked to actual scientists and enviro engineers the more I realized it really messes up a fairly pristine area unless it is really needed. I strongly encourage those interested in this subject to see what they are doing or did in New York to remove the PCB's from factories up the Hudson many years ago. Maybe it was needed there I don't know but I thought it seemed a viable way to help the environment and dredge on a very large scale but the more I looked into it the more I saw it wasn't really the best thing to do. In the end it makes no sense because the pure scale of clean-ups like this are hugely expensive and are essentially sanitizing dirt which do you really want to see happen or is it really needed at Yankee Jims? (just an example of an area technically high in PCB's) As mentioned in the comment above mine nature will figure out a way.

This is not to say small scale dredging is bad in fact it is good for the environment our economy and our culture! I believe in the mining rights act of 1872!. I really believe in mining rights especially small scale miners and believe in this day and age to strip their rights while running backroom deals to mining on much larger scales is sad. If you have a viable clean up project that really needs to be done then sure do it but all of these deals should be done way more out in the open especially where public lands are being used.
 

Alex Burke

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I am wondering if they even have that..."innovative" LOL Knelson Concentrator there anymore?
Yeah that's crazy they are running a blue bowl on some cons that is classic, looks like a screen-shot from Gold Rush Alaska:)
 

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Hefty1

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Yeah that's crazy they are running a blue bowl on some cons that is classic, looks like a screen-shot from Gold Rush Alaska:)

Not to be picky, but in their picture they are using a spiral wheel. Not a blue bowl, but wouldn't surprise me if they have one.
 

Hoser John

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HAHAHAHA where are my hipboots, shovel and wheel barrel to remove all the bs manufactured to feed the radical buraurtz/environutz. A simple flair jetted 8"-12" over under would clean 100 times more, faster and take months NOT years. It is a proven fact by the Grass Valley Catchment cleanup done in Trinity County by MINERS for the state/feds. This farce is ever expanding, thanx much for latest insanity -John
 

ncclaymaker

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To the californicated many... just follow the money. The people that are getting the "contract" ON Californians, apparently know the rule - pay to play. Politicians aren't interested in their electorate, just getting reelected. Here in NC, we've the very same genre of politicos, but we take them to court where they loose every time.

Wake up, get smart, vote with your feet and tax dollars, go elsewhere. There's a whole new world out there waiting for your suction dredges and tax dollars.
 

Alex Burke

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They never do these projects in a random creek with said Hg problems, these projects always happen right on the gold! Although we are not willing to sell out, lie, create fake science, spend hundreds of thousands on bs studies and get awarded a contract by a local govt we have to think about how we can get the word out about this and at least get them to admit they are pulling gold from the rivers at a large scale in these projects. We will continue to lose areas to prospect in at a higher rate as these remediation projects expand and our resources as Americans are being essentially back room dealt away. Here is the link please read. Alex

Quote from piece:
Based on the results of the Brownfields Assessment, EPA awarded three Brownfields Cleanup Grants to the City of Nevada City for the Stiles Mill and Providence Mine sites. Cleanup work coordinated by Sierra Streams began in 2011 and was completed in 2015". http://www.sierrastreamsinstitute.org/friends.html
 

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Hoser John

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thanks Reed as I did not want breakfast anyhow. WOW what we've done for free is now a holy cash cow for the environutz/treehuggers sic sic sic. :skullflag: John
 

Hoser John

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At the water board meeting last night the "evidence" was pictured in a glass jar. 2 1/2 grams of mercury removed for $2.35 million yes MILLION . I did not find that particular info but shown on a huge screen at a official water board meeting workshop so take it for what it's worth. Environutz removing mercury :tongue3: ban the dredge so Sierra Fund can make millions dredging none existant mercury contaminent in reservoirs SIC SIC SIC INSANE (*&^%$#@---John PS. Latest scam with Fleck/Alpers boyz is the whole delta is FULL of killer mercury so they want to flood the delta with flocculants and collect all that nasty natural mercury even though NONE in wildlife chain but they know it's there ...my god billions to kill the delta. Oh well won't matter as once Jerrys tunnels are dug to steal all the water the ocean will ingress, salinate and kill it all YAHOO. What a cluster *&^%
 

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