GOP State Rep. Don Coram on Montrose says he will introduce a bill when the legislature convenes next month allowing the state to sue the EPA over the Animas River spill to recover financial damages.

“The idea behind the bill is that it encourages them to settle this in a gentlemanly manner,” Coram told the Durango Herald.

We applaud Coram’s initiative and wish him the best, especially since the EPA refuses to take full responsibility for the mess it created and has tried to blame the state.

Plus, there’s the little roadblock otherwise known as Gov. Hickenlooper to bypass. Even if the state has the power to sue the EPA, will Hick allow us?

Will he challenge that lawsuit in the state supreme court like he tried when Attorney General Cynthia Coffman sued the feds to block other EPA and Interior Department regulations?

More than 40 claims have been filed against the agency for the spill, which EPA Chief Gina McCarthy assured us in the aftermath of the spill would allllll be taken care of.

But here’s what they say now:

“The EPA’s claims officer is carefully reviewing the findings and conclusions of existing reports and investigations, and will continue to assess additional information as it becomes available,” an EPA spokeswoman told The Durango Herald.

Like we said, best of luck, but we’re not holding our breath.