Quick, who was the real villain in 1984’s Ghostbusters, which turned 32 years old Wednesday?
Most think about the iconic Stay Puft Marshmallow Man, or serious fans might recall Gozer the Gozerian. Actually, it was a guy from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Walter Peck.
It was Peck who ignored the Ghostbusters’ warnings and shut down a device, causing a massive explosion that unleashed hundreds of specters across New York City and allowed demigod Vince Clortho to summon Gozer with Zuul.
That scenario is oddly similar to the EPA-caused Gold King Mine spill.
Like the Ghostbusters, residents living just downstream from the mine in Silverton, Colo. begged the EPA to stay away for decades. Similarly, Gold King Mine owner Todd Hennis, among others, warned the agency that a blowout was likely. (RELATED: Gold King Mine Owner Fears EPA’s ‘Limitless Legal Budget’)
Yet the federal agency ignored locals’ pleas and continued working in the region and ultimately breached Gold King Mine – not unlike Peck dismissing the Ghostbusters’ warnings.
The breach unleashed a flood of three million gallons of toxic waste into the Animas River, turning it bright yellow and poisoning drinking water for three states and the Navajo Nation with 880,000 pounds of dangerous metals like lead and arsenic. (RELATED: EPA’s Gold King Mine Blowout Was No Accident)
The EPA has since concealed crucial details. Its numerous reports have failed to assign blame, and no agency officials have been punished or fired. Yet EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy has said she would hold her agency accountable. (RELATED: EPA’s Gold King Mine Explanations Leave Gaping Holes)
Similarly, Peck – who Dan Ackroyd’s character famously called “dickless” – lied to the fictitious New York City mayor and blamed the Ghostbusters.
The Ghostbusters ultimately crossed the streams and cleaned up the EPA’s mess, but went into poverty soon after. Likewise, Silverton residents fear that EPA work in the region would destroy tourism – one of their main industries – and lower property values.
The EPA recently proposed to designate Gold King and 47 other mines a Superfund site, which residents worry could justify those fears.
The Ghostbusters at least saw some justice served when a flood of marshmallow goo fell on Peck. No real EPA officials, however, have been fired or punished for polluting Silverton’s river.
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