UA SRP Talks to Community Advisory Board and Dewey-Humboldt Town Council at the Iron King Mine and Humboldt Smelter Superfund Site
July 7, 2016
The UA SRP has been involved with the Ironk King Mine and Hunboldts Smelter Siite (IKMHSS) since it was listed as a Superfund site in 2008. In addition to conducting field studies, the SRP has played a pivotal role in community outreach and communication. Specifically, the UA SRP has helped the town of Dewey-Humboldt to form its first Community Advisory Board (CAB) and now facilitates quarterly CAB meetings. The SRP also updates the town on the progress of research and cleanup activities at quarterly Town Council meetings.
Our most recent trip on June 7th, 2016, was to facilitate the second quarterly CAB meeting for 2016, as well as to provide an update on our research to the Dewey-Humboldt Town Council. This trip was attended by Drs. Raina Maier, Monica Ramirez-Andreotta, and Paloma Beamer (UA SRP Director, Investigator, and Collaborator, respectively); as well as Denise Ramirez Moreno and Becca Cammack (UA SRP Community Engagement and Research Translation Coordinators); and UA SRP Trainee, Yoshira Ornelas Van Horne. During the afternoon, the group talked with the CAB about research findings and resulting implications for the Dewey-Humboldt community, as well as opportunities and directions available for expanding the role of the CAB. That evening, Maier addressed the Town Council and provided project-specific updates for the research being conducted in the area. Maier commented on the drive home: “I was inspired by the uniformly positive feedback from community members who stated that they appreciated the research and outreach being done at the site”. The entire team brought home a renewed sense of commitment to support this community that is living through the life cycle of a Superfund site.