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north of and adjacent to the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) railroad grade on a thin layer <br />of Purgatoire River alluvial deposits capping bedrock sedimentary formations. No intermittent, <br />ephemeral, or perennial drainages cross the site. An intermittent arroyo named Colorado Canyon <br />arroyo borders the site on the eastern boundary. This arroyo flows only during snowmelt <br />episodes in the spring or from storm runoff after summer thunderstorms. <br />Climate at the loadout is similar to that of the mine site, but slightly dryer due to lower elevation. <br />All soils and native vegetation have been previously removed from the loadout site. Weeds and <br />volunteer species persist, especially on the fringes of the disturbance. The site has no natural <br />wildlife habitat and the site is fenced to prevent access of domestic animals and big game. <br />Description of the Operation and Reclamation Plans <br />The existing operation at the time of original permitting consisted of several benches used for <br />storage, office building, shop buildings, railroad tracks, two portals, conveyors, coal silos, <br />substations, fans, air shafts, a water tank, a parking lot, four sediment ponds, ditches, culverts, <br />roads, and a refuse disposal area. Surface facilities added as a result of permitting actions <br />included a refuse disposal valley fill and sediment pond north of Highway 12, two new topsoil <br />stockpiles, coal stockpiles, conveyors, a preparation plant and thickener tank, and the Jansen <br />Loadout. <br />Mining at the New Elk Mine began with the use of the West Portal and East Portal to access the <br />Allen Seam. The mining entailed the use of both continuous miners and longwall mining <br />methods. The mining mainly progressed to the south and east. Old workings are shown on Map <br />3 along with the current mine plan, which is also described in Section 2.05.2 of the PAP. In <br />2011, NECC constructed a new set of portals (Bates Portals) located southeast of the coal silos. <br />The mine plan for the Blue Seam progresses to the east and north. Also in 2011, NECC <br />reopened the Allen Seam. The Allen Seam mine plan progresses mainly to the south and east. <br />In July 2012, NECC suspended coal extraction and the mine was classified as being in <br />Temporary Cessation (TC -01). Since that time, the status has been changed to Active in <br />anticipation of the resumption of mining, although currently the mine is on "care and <br />maintenance" status, and no mining operations have taken place in recent years. <br />Several structures have been approved for permanent storage of mine waste at the New Elk <br />Mine. The Refuse Disposal Area (RDA) was permitted in 1984 and is a valley Ell north of <br />Highway 12. Refuse from coal processing (from both the New Elk Mine and the Lorencito <br />Canyon Mine nearby) has been transported by conveyor over Highway 12 and deposited in the <br />RDA. Pond cleaning material and small quantities of rock were added to the original refuse pile, <br />now referred to as the Development Waste Pile (DWP) southwest of the main mine entrance. <br />The DWP reached its maximum size in late 2006 and was regraded, topsoiled, and reseeded. <br />Construction of the Bates portals and development of workings to access the Blue Seam resulted <br />in construction of a subsoil stockpile and the Development Waste Disposal Area (DWDA#2). <br />The DWDA#2 is located southeast of the main entrance. In 2012 with TR -65, the Division <br />approved construction of another area for disposal of development waste, DWDA#3, which <br />New Elk Mine <br />Findings for RN -06, May 11, 2017 <br />IN <br />