2019-02-13_REVISION - M2000077 (5)

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' \ILIIC Creek Gravel Pit - Decision Notice and FONSI 05/15100 f•I«c 7 Service and applicant to thorOLlE!hl\' test the vlability of reclamation using primarily indigenous species. Also. it would reduce the duration and intensity of.gravel mining. production and reclamation impacts on adjacent property owners. If'. through implementation of Altcrnati\*-c C. it is determined that development and reclamation of the entire site is technically and environmentally feasible• then such it proposal could he considered by the Forest Service: in the future. _ ISSUES .. i All issues identified by the Forest Service during the scoping process were addressed in the EA, and six of these issues were considered to be of major importance. These issues are summarized below. • Transportation and traffic—The increase of traffic clue to the gravel pit Operation is i partially responsible for the reduction in air quality and increased noise levels. These impacts would occur during the gravel production phase and the first phases of the reclamation process. The EA quantified the impacts in the traffic levels due to those operations. However, the traffic count information on Highway 67 presented in the EA was not correct. The data provided by the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) was labeled as monthly but correspond, in fact, to average i daily numbers. iin addition, operational times for transportation of gravel by truck would be limited to Monday through Friday with no evening or weekend trucking I 1 being proposed. As a result, the impacts in traffic caused by the operation of the 1 Mule Creek Gravel Mine are reduced to insignificant levels. • Visual impacts—The historical mining activity in Mule Creek Gravel Pit has created steep unstable cut slopes in the decomposing Pikes Peak granite that are devoid of vegetation. The associated visual appearance of the site constitutes a visual impact both to the visitors to the Muller State Park and the users of Highway 67. The reclamation plan proposed in the EA aims to improve the aesthetic of the site through the restoration of more appearing topographic features and vegetation. The cut slopes would be reduced by removing material at the top of the existing cut bank, and ail the disturbed area would be reclaimed. i • Noise, dust, and nuisance factors—Noise, dust, and nuisance factors associated with the proposed operation would be directly related to gravel production and transport, and to the first phases of the reclamation process (reshaping of contours, scarification of the topsoil, and distribution of the stockpiled topsoil), which vary over the course of the day as well as seasonally. The most impacted members of the public would be residents living in the two homes near the project area. The reduced mine size alternative would minimize these short-term impacts Because Alternative C involves activity in only the north end of the site, where there is less hard rock, a crusher is less likely to be needed. Thus, the noise and dust impacts associated to Alternative C would be less for the residents of the properties adjacent to the gravel pit than under Alternative B. In particular, the noise impacts would be less for the residents of the property south of the gravel pit. Noise monitoring equipment will be installed in Hydrosphere Resource Consultants,1002 Walnut Suite 200.Boulder.CO 80302 i