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RULE 2 PERMITS <br /> pH.Temperature and specific conductivity results in the vicinity of Taylor Creek are listed in Table <br /> 2.04.7-3. Fifteen wells were sampled in the vicinity of the Colowyo Mine. The average specific <br /> conductivity measured in the wells was 1390 mmhos and the range was almost as large as that for <br /> the surface water samples, 720 to 2700 mmhos. <br /> After three years of data collection, the main conclusion reached by Giles and Brogden was a <br /> confirmation of the general alkalinity of the water and the recognition of the variability of quality <br /> in both surface and groundwater. <br /> Permit Area <br /> LRCWE (1979) reported measurements for temperature and specific conductance of streams, <br /> springs or seeps, and wells in the vicinity of the mine. Many of the sites visited during the <br /> investigation were those inventoried by others during previous investigations in 1974 and 1975. <br /> The well and spring measurements averaged about 1100 mmhos, ranging from 550 mmhos from <br /> a well on Wilson Creek to 1880 at a seep from a coal seam exposed at the pit. The groundwater <br /> quality was again found to be highly variable in terms of specific conductance. The measurements <br /> made in 1979 were within the range of variation seen in measurements taken in 1974 and 1975 at <br /> the same sites. This report has been previously submitted on February 5, 1981 and is included in <br /> Exhibit 7. <br /> The conclusion presented in the 1979 LRCWE report was that there is no evidence of <br /> contamination of the groundwater by the surface mining of Colowyo. Analysis of specific <br /> conductance measurements below sites where contamination would be expected, such as <br /> Goodspring Creek below Streeter Canyon and Taylor Creek below the coal loadout area, do not <br /> reveal decreased water quality. Monitoring of Goodspring Creek and Taylor Creek since 1979 <br /> supports the conclusions of the 1979 LRCWE report. <br /> Tables 2.04.7-4 and 2.04.7-5 present the analyses of water samples collected from Taylor Creek <br /> Well Nos. 1 and 3, respectively. The locations of the two Taylor Creek wells and their <br /> characteristics are discussed more fully in the earlier groundwater description. Water samples from <br /> the two wells were analyzed for the common ions and trace metals because water from the two <br /> wells is used for domestic purposes on the mine site. Comparison of the observed concentrations <br /> and the health limits shows that trace metals from the water in deep sandstones are not a problem. <br /> Groundwater quality in and adjacent to the permit area is generally poor. Water from the wells <br /> contains relatively high amounts of dissolved salts and calcium-carbonate hardness. Previous <br /> analyses of groundwater samples in the area indicate that the groundwater is alkaline, saline, and <br /> sufficiently hard to restrict usage to stock watering. <br /> As an additional reference, Skogerboe (1979) and others published a report, "Environmental <br /> Effects of Western Coal Surface Mining, Part III: The Water Quality of Trout Creek, Colorado," <br /> through the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency. This report has been copied and is attached <br /> to this application in Exhibit 7A. These investigations researched the water quality impacts of <br /> surface mining on surface and groundwater at the Pittsburgh and Midway Coal Mine on Trout <br /> Rule 2 Permits 2.04-17 Revision Date: 12/20/19 <br /> Revision No.: TR-135 <br />