State, EPA describe GiltEdge Superfund cleanup financing and land‑purchase steps
June 19, 2026 | 2026 Legislature SD, South Dakota
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Roberta Hudson updated the board on the GiltEdge (Broome) Superfund site and federal‑state coordination.
Hudson said EPA currently pays 90% of remediation costs at the site and the state pays the remaining 10%; when EPA completes cleanup the state will take on full responsibility for water collection, treatment and site maintenance. She summarized the state’s GiltEdge fund balances — roughly $9.9 million from a forfeited bond plus about $12 million in settlement payments — and said those totals have increased since March of the prior year.
Hydrogeologic Incorporated, the site contractor, managed routine acid water collection and treatment in 2025; Hudson reported about 70,100,000 gallons treated during the year and 28,100,000 gallons held in storage at year‑end, primarily in the Anchor Hill mine pit. She noted annual precipitation in 2025 was 33.16 inches compared with 21.7 inches in 2024, which affected site flows.
Hudson described EPA’s proposed final remedy elements (backfilling and caps for certain pits, liners for heap leach areas, removal and treatment of acidic fill) and summarized field activities in 2025, including new wells to evaluate groundwater flow. She said the federal GiltEdge Conveyance Act (approved November 2022) enabled the state to apply to the U.S. Forest Service to purchase Forest Service lands within the Superfund boundary; the state completed surveying in June 2025 and is hiring an appraiser to support the purchase.
Board members had no questions recorded on the update; Hudson concluded the presentation and the meeting proceeded to public comment.
Hudson said EPA currently pays 90% of remediation costs at the site and the state pays the remaining 10%; when EPA completes cleanup the state will take on full responsibility for water collection, treatment and site maintenance. She summarized the state’s GiltEdge fund balances — roughly $9.9 million from a forfeited bond plus about $12 million in settlement payments — and said those totals have increased since March of the prior year.
Hydrogeologic Incorporated, the site contractor, managed routine acid water collection and treatment in 2025; Hudson reported about 70,100,000 gallons treated during the year and 28,100,000 gallons held in storage at year‑end, primarily in the Anchor Hill mine pit. She noted annual precipitation in 2025 was 33.16 inches compared with 21.7 inches in 2024, which affected site flows.
Hudson described EPA’s proposed final remedy elements (backfilling and caps for certain pits, liners for heap leach areas, removal and treatment of acidic fill) and summarized field activities in 2025, including new wells to evaluate groundwater flow. She said the federal GiltEdge Conveyance Act (approved November 2022) enabled the state to apply to the U.S. Forest Service to purchase Forest Service lands within the Superfund boundary; the state completed surveying in June 2025 and is hiring an appraiser to support the purchase.
Board members had no questions recorded on the update; Hudson concluded the presentation and the meeting proceeded to public comment.
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