New Idria is a California Historical Landmark (#324) and home of the world’s first Gould Rotary Furnace, which revolutionized ore processing technology worldwide. On July 30, 2010, a fire destroyed 13 buildings on the north side of town. Superfund Site In 2011, New Idria was re-listed as a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Superfund site, owing to unchecked mercury run-off and contamination. As of June, 2012, the entire section of the former town site on the south side of New Idria/Clear Creek road is fenced-off. Environmental concerns in the area The New Idria Mercury Mine was initially investigated in the 1990s by the EPA, for possible inclusion on the EPA's National Priorities List, but the site did not rank high enough at that time to be listed. A site reassessment was begun in 2002, and an expanded site assessment begun in 2009, which was concluded in October 2010. In March 2011, the EPA proposed New Idria to its National Priority List. Elevated levels of mercury were found downstream of the town, as well as significant levels of mercury and other heavy metals found within tailings piles on the site. The region has a long history of mining, with asbestos and chromium being mined in addition to mercury; the EPA's 2004 Risk Assessment for the nearby Clear Creek Management Area identified 86 separate abandoned mines in the vicinity. The natural rock formations in the area have been shedding asbestos-rich debris into stream valleys for millions of years The average New Idria rock contains 5-15% by volume short fiber asbestos. The 2010 edition of Rand McNally's The Road Atlas labels the area immediately south of New Idria as an "Asbestos Hazard Area". Mineral collecting The New Idria Mining District is known for its abundance of rare minerals such as benitoite, named after the San Benito River. Gem quality benitoite is only found in this area of the world. New Idria is also home to serpentinite rock. Many thousands of tectonic events acting on the serpentinite have produced extensive deposits of short-fiber asbestos. See also New Idria Mercury Mine Mercey Hot Springs, California Paicines, California Panoche, California State Route 25 San Benito Mountain References External links Former settlements in San Benito County, California Ghost towns in California Mining communities in California Diablo Range California Historical Landmarks History of San Benito County, California 1854 establishments in California