<\/p>\n
Colorado Parks and Wildlife staff were back on the Animas River Thursday to monitor the health of the fish and other wildlife, after the release of 3 million gallons of heavy-metal waste that turned the river orange.<\/p>\n
After The Denver Post published a picture of a dead fish and Parks and Wildlife staff found a dead sucker and brown trout in the water at Santa Rita Park staff members decided to do a sweep of the river to check on wildlife out of \u201can abundance of caution,\u201d said Joe Lewandowski, a spokesman for the agency.<\/p>\n
They did not find anything concerning Thursday, to Lewandowski\u2019s knowledge.<\/p>\n
So far, aquatic wildlife seems to have survived the initial plume of pollution.<\/p>\n
The agency placed 108 fingerlings in the Animas River on Aug. 5 and they all survived except for one, which did not die from the pollution.<\/p>\n
Another Parks and Wildlife fish survey is planned for the week of Aug. 22.<\/p>\n
But measuring the long-term effects of the Gold King Mine accident could be difficult because heavy metals from the Silverton mines have been flowing into the river for years, he said.<\/p>\n
To report large fish dieoffs in the Animas to Parks and Wildlife, call 247-0855<\/p>\n