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STEVEN B. HARPER, LLC <br />Attorneys at Law <br />P.O. Boz 2099 <br />HOTCHKISS, CO 81419 <br />(970) 872-3173 <br />Steven K. Harper Fax: (970) 872-3186 <br />June 16, 2017 <br />Clayton Wein <br />Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety <br />1313 Sherman St. <br />Denver, CO 80203 <br />RE: Bowie Resources, LLC <br />Permit C-1981-038 <br />Permit Revision -05, Land Use Change <br />Kathryn A. Pennetta <br />RECEIVED <br />JUN 2 3 2017 <br />Division of Reclam y ion, <br />Mining & <br />Please be advised that I represent the North Fork Farmers Ditch Association and <br />the North Fork Lateral Ditch Company ("Ditch Companies"). The Boards of these two <br />companies have asked that I submit the following comments regarding the above- <br />mentioned Permit Revision proposal. <br />The North Fork Farmers Ditch Association and the North Fork Lateral Ditch <br />Company (an extension of the Farmers Ditch) urge denial of the Permit Revision <br />proposal. Approval of the proposal could lead to removal of existing reclamation <br />protections designed to restore the portion of the Companies' ditch modified by the <br />mining industry, leading to financial burdens the Ditch Companies cannot afford. <br />The North Fork Farmers Ditch Association and the North Fork Lateral Ditch <br />Company provide irrigation water for 94 farmers and ranchers irrigating over 1,000 acres <br />of land in the North Fork Valley of Delta County. The companies have Water Court <br />decrees from the North Fork of the Gunnison River dating back to 1890. The point of <br />diversion of the Companies' primary decreed water from the River is approximately one <br />mile east of the Bowie load -out property, the subject property involved in the Permit <br />Revision proposal. <br />For most of its approximate ten -mile length, the Farmers Ditch and North Fork <br />Lateral Ditch are open ditches. In the 1970's, Bowie's predecessor, Colorado <br />Westmoreland, Inc., changed the course of the open ditch on the Applicant's subject <br />property and replaced it with a 60 inch steel culvert and covered the culvert with 20 to 30 <br />feet of material over its 600+ foot length. This steel culvert has now been in the ground <br />for 40 years. It will soon need replacement. The Ditch Companies don't have the capital <br />to repair or replace this aging culvert. <br />1 <br />