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Name of Addressee <br />Page 3 <br />April 5, 2016 <br /> <br />You are correct in that, after phase III bond release there is no additional waiting period for a farmer to get his <br />land back. On areas that have been phase III released, farmers do not have to comply with the reclamation <br />plans outlined in the permit for that particular area. The determination for an area to be eligible for phase III <br />bond release is based on the date when the reclamation took place (Rule 3.02.3(2)). These areas are referred to <br />as bond release blocks. The shape and size of bond release blocks are a function of how the operator reclaims <br />the land after mining operations and may not coincide with property boundaries. A single farmer’s property <br />may have several bond release blocks with different years of eligibility for bond release. In the particular case <br />of the haul road, the haul road was maintained in a non-reclaimed state for some time after the rest of the <br />farmer’s fields were reclaimed so the operator could move equipment and earthen materials. The haul road was <br />reclaimed last year and is considered a separate bond release block that crosses many farmer’s properties. <br /> <br />Given all this, we nevertheless understand your concerns as to how the reclaimed road may create an obstacle to <br />allow a landowner to manage their property fully. There are two options to this: 1) change the road’s <br />reclamation so that it is in concert with the older reclamation, and 2) would be to redevelop and permit the <br />reclaimed road as a permanent support feature (Rule 1.04(71)) so that it could be released sooner than its <br />current 10-year liability period. These options will need to be discussed with all the landowners and WFC. <br /> <br />If you have any additional questions or need additional information, please contact me at (303) 866-3567 ext. <br />8142. Also, if you would like to schedule a meeting with me to further discuss these issues, please let me know. <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />Sincerely, <br /> <br />Brock Bowles <br />Environmental Protection Specialist <br />brock.bowles@state.co.us <br /> <br />cc: