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of."T op rye United States Department of the Interior OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING Reclamation and Enforcement pcH s ��.o Western Region Office 1999 Broadway, Suite 3320 Denver, CO 80202-3050 January 3, 2017 James Stark Coal Program Supervisor Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety 1313 Sherman Street, Room 215 Denver, CO 80203 Re: Partial Phase II and III Bond Release Application SL -12, Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Inc., Colowyo Mine, C-1981-019 Dear Mr. Stark, This letter acknowledges the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), Denver Field Branch's (DFB) receipt and review of the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety's (DRMS) December 7, 2017 Proposed Decision and Findings of Compliance pertaining to Tri- State Generation and Transmission Association, Inc.'s (Tri-State) SL -12 partial Phase H and III bond release application. OSMRE agrees with the proposed decision and hereby provides concurrence in accordance with 30 CFR 740.15 (d)(3) and 30 CFR 906.30, Article IX, Section 24 of the State -Federal Cooperative Agreement. DFB participated in the SL -12 bond release field evaluation at the Colowyo Mine on July 26, 2017. The surface and mineral ownership associated with this bond release is a combination of private, state, and federal. Accordingly, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) notified DFB of its concurrence with DRMS's proposed decision by letter dated December 12, 2017. We interpret this to mean that Tri-State is in compliance with all applicable BLM mineral lease stipulations. DRMS's proposed decision notes Tri -State's compliance with the approved Colorado regulatory program at Rules 3.03.1(2)(b) and 3.03.1(2)(c) and recommends authorizing partial Phase II and III bond release on 182.5 acres at the Colowyo Mine. DRMS currently holds a performance bond in the amount of $80,517,829.00 which covers the entire minesite, including the acreage proposed for release. Under SL -12, DRMS proposes to release a total of $663,264.00 from Phase II and M bond liability. DFB concurs with DRMS's proposed decision and recommends Phase H and III bond release for the requested areas at the Colowyo Mine. Thank you and your staff for coordinating this bond release action through DFB. Please direct any questions to Tom Medlin, Environmental Protection Specialist, at tmedlin@osmre.gov or (303) 293- 5083.