Now that the Environmental Protection Agency has plan approval, its contractors are authorized to start removing contaminated soil down to a depth of 18 inches on yards in the milewide Eilers cleanup site in Pueblo. The Eilers Heights neighborhood is at the center of the Colorado Smelter Superfund study area, which also spills over into a corner of Bessemer.

“It’s good news that we can finally start digging dirt,” said Pueblo County Commissioner Terry Hart, a member of the local Colorado Smelter Community Advisory Group. “It was our understanding that if we had a plan, then we would be in line to keep getting the money we need to clean up the area.”

The understanding is that the EPA will continue to be funded for Superfund sites that have gone beyond the preliminary stage to a remedy for actual cleanup even while President Donald Trump’s administration reviews the Superfund program in general.

Read more at The Pueblo Chieftain.