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raccoon, beaver, muskrat, striped skunk and weasel. Many species of birds are also found within <br />the permit boundary. Of special interest are various species of waterfowl, raptors (including the <br />golden and bald eagles), the sandhill crane, Columbian sharptail grouse and the Greater sage <br />grouse. Fish species in the Williams Fork River, within the affected area, include various <br />suckers and minnows, mottled scuplin, rainbow trout and mountain whitefish. <br />Cultural and Historic Resources. Exhibit 6 of the Williams Fork Mines permit contains the <br />extensive results of cultural and historic resources inventories that were conducted within and the <br />permit area and in portions of the surrounding area. <br />Land Uses. Land uses within the surface disturbed area are cropland, pastureland and <br />rangeland /wildlife habitat. Mining has occurred within the permit area since the 1930s. Much of <br />the area has been previously disturbed by surface and /or underground mining activities. The <br />Williams Fork Mines have been in existence since 1971. <br />Summary of the Mine Operation Plan <br />Current Operational Status. Operations at the Williams Fork Mines were placed in temporary <br />cessation on December 3, 1995 due to market conditions. In 2008 -2010, MCM conducted <br />several reclamation activities at the site and the operation was placed back into active status. In <br />July of 2013, the Division approved MCM's request to be placed back in temporary cessation <br />status. Currently, only maintenance and hydrologic monitoring activities are being conducted. <br />The Williams Fork Mines consist of three underground mines, the Nos. 5, 6, and 9, and a <br />reclaimed surface mine known as the Williams Fork Strip Pit No. 2 and the Utah Tract which <br />was an area mined and reclaimed by Utah International (Trapper Mining, LLC.'s predecessor). <br />The No. 5 portal was permanently sealed in 1997 and partially backfilled. The coal storage area, <br />surface conveyors, silos and No. 5 yard and warehouse area remain intact. The Mine No. 5A <br />portals were sealed in 2003. The 5A portal ventilation fan was idled and awaits resumption of <br />mining activities. The No. 9 Mine permanently ceased mining activities in 1985. The portal area <br />of the No. 9 Mine was used for a coal processing waste pile, as approved in the permit <br />application, and has been reclaimed but has not been released from any reclamation liability. <br />MCM ceased pumping water out of the No. 5 Mine workings. Water previously pumped was <br />pumped through ponds 5 -P5, 5 -P6 and 5 -P7 (in sequence) and discharged into the Williams Fork <br />River. The discharge point (at 5 -P7) is an NPDES discharge point ( NPDES 003) and is <br />monitored for various NPDES parameters. <br />MCM did complete some reclamation and demolition in the spring of 2008. The buildings that <br />were demolished include the compressor house, old shop, Oakie Plaza well shop, No. 9 <br />warehouse, B &S shop, bathhouse, guard shack and fence, lab trailer and sample building, well <br />house by B &S shop, little shed south of Wise Hill portal, old carpenter shop and contractor <br />staging area, old (AML) mine site, rock dust tank 91 and rock dust tank #2. All of these areas <br />were regraded, the topsoil was replaced where possible, and the areas were seeded with the <br />rangeland seed mix. The demolition debris was buried in the solid waste disposal area on the <br />east side of Colorado highway 13, by the waste disposal area. The solid waste disposal area was <br />permitted through Technical Revision 34. <br />Williams Fork Mines 10 Permit Renewal 06 <br />C- 1981 -044 December 8, 2014 <br />