EPA: Metal Mining Industry Nation’s Top Toxic Polluter

As the EPA analysis explains, the metal mining industry successfully sued to exclude from the TRI most toxics in waste rock. Consequently, beginning with the 2002 reporting year, more than one third of the metal mining industry's toxics –which are still released into the environment every year – go unreported. If included for the 2010 reporting year, the metal mining industry would have reported a whopping 2.1 billion pounds and accounted for almost half of all toxics reported in the United States. This is especially significant because – thanks to loopholes in the Clean Water Act and a recent Supreme Court decision – mining companies can dump toxics directly into rivers, lakes and streams.
http://www.earthworksaction.org/media/detail/epa_metal_mining_industry_nations_top_toxic_polluter