Laserfiche WebLink
  <br />Mr. Paul Bruss, P.E.  <br />April 12, 2018  <br />Page 2 of 6  <br />  <br />Permit No. WDID  <br />Total  <br />Exposure  <br />(acres)  <br />Pre-1981 Exposure  <br />(acres)  <br />Post-1981 Exposure  <br />(acres)  <br />52017-F 1705986 44 17.4 26.6  <br />   <br />In accordance with the letter dated April 30,2010 from the Colorado Division of Reclamation,                <br />Mining,and Safety (“DRMS”),all sand and gravel mining operators must comply with the               <br />requirements of the Colorado Reclamation Act and the Mineral Rules and Regulations for the               <br />protection of water resources.The April 30,2010 letter from DRMS requires that you provide                <br />information to DRMS to demonstrate you can replace long term injurious stream depletions              <br />that result from mining related exposure of ground water.A November 20,2013 memo was                <br />previously provided to summarize the impacts of the proposed dewatering operation that will              <br />be utilized to safely backfill each pond;however,Condition of Approval No.3 of the SWSP                 <br />approvals dated March 18,2015 and November 7,2016 required that additional explanation              <br />and/or documentation be provided with any renewal request which explicitly identifies how             <br />the Operator plans to mitigate injurious stream depletions that result from mining-related             <br />exposure of post-1981 ground water in accordance with the April 30, 2010 letter from DRMS.   <br />   <br />According to the renewal request and correspondence from the Applicant,Valco is near              <br />completion of negotiations with a buyer for the portion of the Rocky Ford East Pit property                 <br />west of County Road 22 (“West Property”),which includes Ponds 1 and 2 as shown on the                  <br />attached Figure 1.It is the understanding of Valco that the potential buyer is seeking a new                  <br />DRMS permit to continue mining operations on the West Property,and will be taking over the                 <br />long-term augmentation obligations for the West Property. The proposed buyer of the West              <br />Property will be required to demonstrate compliance with the April 30,2010 letter from               <br />DRMS at the time request is made for an SWSP with this office.Please note that any                  <br />future request for an SWSP may not be approved without this information.  <br />  <br />Valco plans to retain the portion of the Rocky Ford East pit property east of County Road 22                   <br />(“East Property”),which includes Ponds 3 and 4 as shown on the attached Figure 1,and                 <br />intends to backfill the remaining ponds on the East Property.According to correspondence              <br />with the Applicant,Valco has analyzed the property and confirmed that there is adequate fill                <br />material on site to completely backfill the remaining ponds on the East Property.              <br />Additionally,Valco has obtained a lease agreement with the Upper Arkansas Water             <br />Conservancy District to replace depletions through July 31,2022. Given Valco’s intent to              <br />backfill the remaining ponds on the East Property,any future renewal request must              <br />include demonstration that the Applicant has filed a financial warranty that will ensure              <br />backfilling of the pit(s)to cover the exposed ground water to a depth of two feet above                  <br />the static ground water level,as required by the April 30,2010 letter from DRMS.Please                 <br />note that any future renewal may not be approved without this information.  <br />   <br />  <br />  <br />