2020-08-09_PERMIT FILE - M2020041

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Peak Ranch Resource August 5, 2020 As demonstrated in Tables E-2a and E2b, topsoil generated by stripping will be more than enough to successfully reclaim all disturbed areas in either the full mining scenario(Phase 1 and Phase 2 mined) or the greatest disturbance area scenario(Phase 1 mined, Phase 2 mining not executed). In the case of full mining through the end of Phase 2, the presence of a 26-acre groundwater lake will reduce the final topsoil requirements for reclamation. In the greatest disturbance area scenario where almost all of the ground in the mining cell area will be stripped,there is enough topsoil to cover the entire area with the exception of the site access road which will remain in place to provide a permanent access to the site from Highway 9. 2.4 Final Use The total affected area on the site is 75.6 acres, the same as the permit area. Only 54.0 acres will be disturbed due to mining activities. When the site is fully reclaimed,the final use of the affected area will be a 26-acre groundwater lake(covered by a Water Court decreed plan of augmentation) surrounded by 48.6 acres of rangeland with a 1.0-acre access road into the site as depicted on Exhibit F, Sheet F-1. The post- mining land use will be compatible with the current existing land uses in the area. 3.0 TOPSOIL AND REVEGETATION PLAN Throughout the reclamation process the soil profile will be reconstructed using overburden as the sub soil followed by replacement of topsoil on the surface to create a new growth medium profile. Overburden and topsoil will be replaced on all disturbed areas except those areas that will become the groundwater lake and the permanent access road that will remain following reclamation. If Phase 2 is mined to create a groundwater lake, the topsoil screening berms that will be built on the north end of the site will remain. If the groundwater lake is not developed,then the topsoil from these berms will be used to reclaim the 26-acre Phase 2 area the same as all other rangeland areas (see Exhibit F, Sheet F-2). The depth of topsoil on the site following reclamation will be consistent with the amount of topsoil currently found on the site. No topsoil will be exported from or imported to the site. The seed mix chosen for revegetation of the site was selected because it will establish a diverse, effective, and long-lasting vegetative cover that is capable of self-regeneration without continued dependence on irrigation, soil amendments or fertilizer, and it will provide equal or better coverage than the existing vegetation. Plantings will be limited to grasses,forbs, and trees that are well-suited to the property considering the soils and climate. An on-site water truck or an installed on-site irrigation system will be used to irrigate the grasses and trees on the berms. The existing decreed irrigation water rights associated with the site may be used, as necessary, to assist with revegetation efforts. Irrigation will be tapered off during year two as the plants become established to acclimate the vegetation to a non-irrigated regime. The revegetation plan considers environmental factors such as seasonal patterns of precipitation;temperature and v;ind; soil texture and fertility; slope stability; and direction of slope faces to provide the greatest probability of success with plant establishment and vegetation development. The applicant contacted the local NRCS office to obtain a recommendation for a seed mixture to be used during reclamation. The field office personnel directed the applicant to the Plant Materials Technical Note No. 59 (revised)'. The seed mix listed in Table E-3, below,will be used to revegetate the disturbed areas to be reclaimed as rangeland; the seed mix will also be used for the screening berms. https://www.nrc.usda.gov/Intranet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nresl44p2_061698.pdf X_(:rc:6.a•wicki an"-lssxiatn,--.I E-3 o TETRA TECH