2015-02-27_REPORT - M1982020 (3)

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9 GROUNDWATER QUALITY Future Water Uses The patented mining claims are owned by the operator, thus it is most likely that the future use of the property will continue to be mining. An alternate possibility is that the mining land could be converted to use as summer cabins. However, this conversion could only occur after mining has ceased and reclamation has been completed. The publicly owned lands surrounding the patented claims are overseen by the Federal Government, and the current political climate is such that any higher use of those public's lands beyond grazing will be unlikely. In fact, it is possible that in the future, all beneficial uses of the public lands by the public will terminate, and in that event there will be no use of the groundwater. The same possible fate could possibly be in store for the patented mining claims. Recorded water wells, water courses, and known potentially affecting subsurface features are shown on the map (Location of Springs, Wells, and Watercourses Map). As can be seen, no significant use of water occurs in the general area beyond that by agriculture and the Lucky Strike Mine. At the extreme south end of the two -mile circle, a series of wells are shown that are currently associated with summer cabins. Surface and groundwater collection program As the property has been producing for over 100 years, with the most recent operator being on site for nearly 30 years, the establishment of baseline numbers does not exactly describe what is being demanded. Instead, because of DRMS's recent redefining of the status of an existing operation, the collection program is actually the beginning of active testing of an already active site. Due to business difficulties and personnel issues, it was only possible to collect one set of groundwater samples during the first quarters of 2014, and the results of those samples are shown below. Additionally, as defined in the letter demand, it would not have been possible to collect five quarters of samples when only four quarters of time has passed between the September 2013 order and the present. It is unknown whether groundwater quality standards will be maintained within the mine while it is production, and it is quite likely that the water quality within the mineralized zones located inside the general district do not normally meet Colorado groundwater standards due to the natural mineral sources. In the future, one quarterly water sample will be collected from the mine to monitor the condition of the groundwater at the mine. That sample, due its proximity to the mill will also provide information from shallow sources from the mill and tailings area.