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Mine Site Inspection <br />Mine Name: Elk Creek Mine <br />Permittee: Oxbow Mining, LLC. <br />Permit ID #: C- 1981 -022 <br />Inspection Date: 10/28 - 29/2014 <br />Start Time: 8:00 a.m. <br />Inspection Type: Coal Partial/Topic Specific- Methane Drainage Boreholes <br />Weather Conditions: Clear, Dry and Sunny <br />Participants: <br />Christine Belka, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement <br />OSMRE) #182 <br />Jim Kiger, Oxbow Mining, LLC. <br />Spencer Shumate, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement <br />(OSMRE) #545 <br />Jim Stark, Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining, and Safety (DRMS) <br />Background: <br />The purpose of this oversight inspection was to determine whether DRMS is effectively <br />implementing its program by ensuring that reclamation of methane drainage boreholes <br />is successful and offsite impacts are prevented at borehole locations in accordance with <br />applicable rules. <br />Elk Creek is an active, non - producing coal mine. A mine fire forced Oxbow to cease <br />operations in 2013. Oxbow had to abandon its longwall in panel 18 and has sealed the <br />current mine works, but is pursuing an east coal lease to reinitiate operations. Because <br />Oxbow was mining in panel 18, it had drilled gob vent boreholes (GVB) through panels <br />18 and 19 in advance of anticipated mining operations. GVBs typically have a two to <br />three -year lifespan at this mine. Each is drilled the year prior to mining advance, is open <br />during active mining operations, and is retained open to vent gob behind active mining <br />operations. After the third year most GVBs will be sealed. However, Oxbow may retain <br />some temporarily in support of mining operations. <br />Inspection: <br />Prior to and following the field evaluation, the Team reviewed recent DRMS inspections <br />reports and permit documents pertaining to GVBs. Recent DRMS inspection reports <br />indicated several maintenance items at the GVBs including missing, degraded, and <br />improperly installed straw wattles, missing well casing caps, inadequate vegetation / <br />sediment control structures on topsoil stockpiles, and necessary weed maintenance. <br />The Team reviewed the following permit documents in order to gain an understanding of <br />the typical bore pad configuration, the number and location of borehole pads, borehole <br />pad reclamation status, borehole sealing practices, and to plan the inspection: DRMS <br />