2015-06-15_INSPECTION - M1985112

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PERMIT #: M-1985-112 INSPECTOR'S INITIALS: PSH INSPECTION DATE: June 11, 2015 periods of time and the well went completely dry on April 15, 2015 according to the tenant living at the property. The Division was not able to pursue the March 2015 complaint (CT -03) because the well was not registered with the Office of the State Engineer. The well was registered with the Office of the State Engineer on Apri' 30, 2015. The well permit number is 297435. The Division met with Mr. Clarence Lopez, contact person for the complainant, and Mr. Marcos Hernandez, property owner prior to the inspection of the Loloff Mine. The well and pump house were observed and GPS surveyed by the Division. The well appeared unchanged since the March 12, 2015 inspection. Four plastic 50 - gallon drums containing water were observed on the well house in the backyard. The drums are the current source of water for the residence according to Mr. Hernandez. The Division GPS surveyed the locations of the dewatering trench and the top of the highwall in the northwest corner of the site with a Trimble Juno 3B. The elevation of the top of the dewatering trench and the top of the highwall were also surveyed. A copy of the GPS survey map is attached. The pit depth in the northwest corner of the site was estimated at forty feet during the March inspection and 36 feet (11 meters) during this inspection from the top of highwall to top of the dewatering trench. The total depth of mining in the northwest corner is estimated to be fifty five feet when mining is concluded in the area. Based on the GPS data and calculations from Google Earth Pro, the Division estimates the Hernandez pump is located 1,386 feet (422.5 meters) from the edge of the pit highwall. The pit radius of the dewatered portion of the pit was estimated at 270 feet (82 meters). Using the USGS Analytical and Numerical Simulation of Steady -State Hydrologic Effects of Mining Aggregate in Hypothetical Sand -and -Gravel and Fractured Crystalline -Rock Aquifers, Report 02-4267, the Division calculated a drawdown of 5.25 feet (1.6 meters) of the Hernandez well due to the dewatering of the Loloff Mine. The approved Groundwater Impact Mitigation Plan for the site states should the levels in the existing wells change by 2-4 feet then Loloff Construction, Inc. will mitigate by recharging at locations along the pit to increase the levels of the groundwater so that the impact from dewatering is minimized. If the recharging method is not effective the mitigation measures would be: Work with the well owners that is affected to re -set their existing pumps to a lower level in order to mitigate any flow impacts to the existing well. 2. If the method in Number 1 is not effective then drilling a new well or deepening the existing well or providing water service from the City of Greeley or North Weld Water. The Division believes sufficient evidence exists to support the Hernandez complaint that the current dewatering activity at the Loloff Mine is affecting the groundwater well located at 160 N. 1st Avenue, Greeley, CO 80631. This is a problem related to Rule 3.1.6 of the Mineral Rules and Regulations of the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Board for the Extraction of Construction Materials and CRS 34-32.5-116(4)(h) of the Colorado Land Reclamation Act for the Extraction of Construction Materials. As cited as a problem requiring corrective action by the Operator on Page 1, Loloff Construction, Inc. must implement the approved mitigation plan for the site and drill a new well, deepening the existing well or Page 2 of 5