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Biological Assessment <br /> Federal Coal Lease Modification(COC-62920)and Federal Mine Permit(CO-0106A)Revision and Renewal <br /> 2.2 Coal Production, Transportation, and Combustion <br /> Average annual coal production at the King II Mine has been approximately 629,785 tons per <br /> year over the last 7 years of King 11 operations. Coal produced at the King II Mine is hauled by <br /> truck to regional rail loading facilities, where it is loaded for shipment by rail to cement- <br /> production facilities in the southwestern U.S. and Mexico. Presently, trucks hauling coal from <br /> the King 11 Mine use CR 120 and SH 140 for inbound and outbound trips to the mine. The <br /> distance from the mine to SH 140 is 6.4 miles. As a condition of approval for GCC's LPC LUP, <br /> GCC is required to complete five phases of road improvements (e.g., widening, straightening, <br /> paving) along CR 120 to SH 140; these improvements are scheduled for completion in 2022. <br /> Upon completion of the Phase 5 road improvements, GCC would be authorized for 120 loaded <br /> coal truck trips per day. Each coal truck has a capacity of approximately 24.5 tons; therefore, the <br /> maximum coal that can be produced and hauled from the mine annually is approximately <br /> 1,067,040 tons per year. Under the Proposed Action, this volume could be produced for no more <br /> than 1 to 2 years (if GCC has buyers for that volume)before the reserves of the mine are <br /> exhausted in 2023. <br /> Of the average 629,785 tons of coal produced per year, and under the maximum production <br /> scenario of 1,067,040 tons per year, 421,000 tons per year are delivered to GCC-owned cement <br /> plants in the U.S. and Mexico. The GCC-owned cement plants in the U.S. are in Pueblo, <br /> Colorado (105,000 tons per year) and Tijeras, New Mexico (76,000 tons per year). <br /> Approximately 240,000 tons per year are delivered by railroad to GCC-owned cement plants in <br /> Mexico. An average of 208,785 tons per year is delivered to a variety of buyers in the cement- <br /> manufacturing industry in variable quantities from year to year in Texas and Arizona. At <br /> maximum potential production, an additional approximately 437,255 tons per year could be <br /> produced and delivered to Arizona and Texas cement markets. <br /> 2.3 Road Improvements to County Road 120 <br /> The road improvements to CR 120 include temporary paving in front of several residences, <br /> realignment of specified road sections, widening specified road sections, regrading and paving <br /> specified road sections, and reconstruction of the existing portion of paved road. By the <br /> completion of Phase 5 road improvements, the entire approximately 6.5 miles of CR 120 from <br /> SH 140 to the King 11 facility would be paved and in conformance with LPC road design and <br /> safety standards (LPC LUC Sec 74-91.c.d.). These road improvements are estimated to impact <br /> approximately 4.73 acres of ground along either side of the CR. <br /> 2.4 Water Supply and Use <br /> Water is used at the King II Mine primarily for dust suppression, as required for worker safety <br /> and mine operations. Since there is no water supply at the mine, water for the King II Mine is <br /> used based on water rights owned and leased by GCC. Water is delivered to the King 11 Mine <br /> July 2017 <br /> 8 <br />