By Roger McKinney

rmckinney@joplinglobe.com

TREECE, Kan. — The U.S. Senate on Thursday approved legislation that could lay the groundwork for a federal buyout of Treece residents, said U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan.

“It’s a first step,” Roberts said by phone from Washington, D.C.

Roberts said the information is included as an amendment in the annual Interior and Environment Appropriations Act. He said it provides a pathway for relocation of Treece residents using buyouts of their homes.

“The Treece amendment was adopted by voice vote,” Roberts said.

He said the legislation allows the Environmental Protection Agency to further analyze the situation and gives the EPA authority to do a buyout.

Roberts, U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., and U.S. Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., introduced the amendment that was accepted by a voice vote to the appropriations bill.

Mine waste from decades of lead and zinc mining contaminate the town. Residents of Picher, Okla., neighboring Treece to the south, already have received a federal buyout from the EPA.

Top EPA officials visited Treece last month, getting an earful from residents frustrated by the situation.

The current estimate for a Treece buyout is about $3 million. The EPA currently is using federal stimulus money to pay for a $66 million cleanup in Treece and Baxter Springs. The project may take 10 years.

Roberts said he was optimistic about Thursday’s Senate action.

“I think we’ll see something positive fairly quick,” Roberts said.

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