2015-10-08_REVISION - C1981041 (12)

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about the property line with adjacent Carey property. It was estimated that approximately 2 cfs were flowing to the Carey Pond and as much as 1 cfs was flowing in the new ditch. The water at the end of the new ditch that runs to the north and turns abruptly to the west seemed to disappear into the ground (see Photo No 40). The location where the water was seeping into the ground is above in elevation and to the southwest of the South Portal backfill. The dip of the coal and surrounding strata in this locale is to the northeast, so the water application is immediately up gradient of the South Portal. The inspection then continued down to the South Portal where we noted a higher than usual flow in the french drain that drains from the portal backfill. The flow was significantly high such that there was flowing water in the ditch that conveys the french drain down to the road crossing and then below to the toe of the Roadside South Refuse Disposal Area (RSRDA). This is the most water that The Division has noticed in the french drain ditch seeping from the portal backfill material since it was installed. We looked for evidence of seepage in the outcrop and surrounding strata above and to the sides of the portal area but did not note any evidence of water. We proceeded around the toe of the refuse pile to Outfall 005 site of reclaimed Pond 009 and saw that there was significant flow in the ditch such that it was making it to the culvert that goes under I-70 and off of the permit boundary. I returned to the site on June 12'' to photograph the site. All of the photos referenced herein were taken on June 12, 17, and 24, 2014. On June 17, 2014, I was notified by Tonya Hammond of SCC that the flow had increased significantly over the weekend and that she felt the Division should come out and meet with her and Jim Stover at the site to inspect the seepage from the South Portal. When I arrived at the site on the 170' the flow was substantially greater than I observed on the 11 �h and appeared to be flowing at about 60 gpm in the french drain ditch. We also noted seepage from the base of the concrete abutment north of the backfill and from the south side of the backfill material itself. On the south side of the backfill, the slope was saturated up to a height of 7 feet. The south portal backfill is shown in Photograph No 41. The Division called Mr. Fontanari that afternoon and asked him to shut the water off that is flowing in the ditches to avoid any further saturation of the portal backfill. He confirmed that he would shut the water off the following morning on June 18th. The next day, I returned to the site and visually confirmed that the water had been turned off. Because of the concern that the portal backfill had the potential to fail due to water backing up behind the seals, SCC contracted Huddleston -Berry Engineering & Testing, LLC (HBET) to evaluate the South Portal seepage and prepare a geotechnical report addressing the risk of failure. In HBET's report dated June 19, 2014, HBET concluded that they did not believe that there was an imminent risk of catastrophic failure of the earthen portal backfill. However, due to the potential for failure and other related health and safety concerns, the Division requested that SCC begin daily inspection of the seepage from the South Portal and the Division conducted weekly inspections. SCC installed a flume to get an accurate measurement of flow in the french drain ditch that conveys the seepage down around the RSRDA to Outfall 005. During an inspection on June 22, 2014, Tonya Hammond discovered that Mr. Fontanari had reactivated his water application and was flood irrigating his property above the mine. Due to the seriousness of the situation, the Division notified the Colorado Department of Transportation, Mesa County Sheriff, State Office of Emergency Management, and the Colorado Division of Water Resources (DWR) of Page 32