LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – Blowing dust is a major concern for neighbors in Las Vegas. The cleanup of the old Three Kids Mine and the asbestos and toxic metals there is well underway. After years of planning, work began there in May. It’s all to make way for up about 3,000 homes.
“We are very excited that the mill site is finally being cleaned up it has been sitting here dormant for years. We are keeping a very close eye on things out here and making sure that the public is protected that the environment is protected,” shared Alan Pineda who is overseeing the cleanup for the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection.
The manganese mine, operational from 1917 to 1961, left behind toxic metals and asbestos throughout the site.
“That asbestos is actually not being placed into the pits. It is being taken off site to a landfill,” Pineda explained.
Water trucks are constantly spraying the site to keep dust down and there are air monitors throughout.
“There is dust control monitoring equipment located around the perimeter of the site. There are four stations: three downwind and one upwind to make sure the contaminants don’t leave the site,” Pineda revealed.
NDEP is using the EPA Superfund cleanup process, the process with the highest level of scrutiny.
“Even though the site itself is not a Superfund site, it is just a very comprehensive way of cleaning up a site,” Pineda contended.
Materials that were taken out of the pit long ago were dumped into tailings ponds.
“The tailing ponds are found to the west of the site here…Excavation of those it underway, I would say they are about 70 percent cleaned up,” Pineda pointed out to FOX5 during an interview near the site.
That dirt removal from the tailing ponds is going back to where it originally came from.
“Once that material is put back in the pits, the site is going to be covered with ten feet of native soil,” Pineda described.
NDEP tells FOX5, asbestos removal will be complete by the end of next month, the tailings by the end of December.
Cleanup will continue through 2026 but the first of the thousands of homes could be built much sooner we are told by the end of next year.
NDEP is on site at least once a week. You can look at the data for the air quality monitors here: NDEP – Three Kids Mine
To express any concerns, Project Manager for NDEP Alan Pineda can be reached at: alan.pineda@ndep.nv.gov or (702) 668-3925
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