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As stated in the caption of the "Drainage course" panoramic photo it is quite likely that the water <br /> table declined tremendously during the 2020 summer as precipitation could not have possibly <br /> maintained its elevation with capillary rise and evaporation as well as drainage downslope toward the <br /> Coal Creek path. Even the abundant snow during Winter and heavy Spring rains only brought the <br /> water table up to about normal. However, now that it is back to nearly normal, if the precipitation <br /> continues the water table may be able to be maintained and help keep the subsoils from being <br /> depleted. <br /> CLIMATE IN THE LAST YEAR: The 2020-2021 lease year was one of great contrasts in terms of <br /> climate, as discussed above. It seemed to be like it was either Mojave Desert dry or Seattle wet. <br /> Records for Denver show the 2020 year was hotter than normal and drier than normal. The mean <br /> annual temperature for Denver was 52.3 °, 1.8'hotter than the normal of 50.5°. The normal number <br /> of days above 90 °is 39.6, but in 2020 a new record was set with 75, nearly twice as many>90'days. <br /> Even those temperature departures are fairly dramatic considering that it was for an entire year. <br /> What added insult to injury was the total precipitation for the year was 8.74 inches compared to a <br /> normal of 14.30 inches. That is only 61% of normal. By the end of the year this area was in extreme <br /> drought and borderline exceptional drought. <br /> The attached chart shows the precipitation pattern for the period of January 2021 to early July 2021. <br /> About March 10 there was a huge jump in the accumulated precipitation(green line) from large snow <br /> storms that were very wet. From that point on the accumulated precipitation paralleled the normal <br /> (brown line) until the very end of May when it leveled off with a very dry June with an increase about <br /> June 20. It was that March precipitation and the normal rate of accumulation after then that ended the <br /> drought in eastern Colorado. <br /> So the moisture conditions by early July were that the ground was again well charged with moisture <br /> (a primary factor in drought definition), but that came about because of unusually prodigious <br /> moisture at the end of Winter. Since then it has been normal. This bodes well for future vegetation <br /> growth provided the faucet is not turned off suddenly as happened in 2020. <br /> RECLAMATION PERMIT STATUS: No changes were made to the permit in the last year. All <br /> previously mined land is now released from bond and the permit. All that land is now available for <br /> other uses. The prairie lands look lush this year, especially after last year when it looked like <br /> everything had died. <br /> Although it was planned to complete the reclamation work last year,that did not occur as the Covid <br /> Pandemic basically shut down such work for the most part so as to protect employees from infection. <br /> This reclamation is planned to begin again as soon as possible. The problem now, however, is finding <br /> people that are willing to work. As everybody is aware, this is currently a common problem <br /> throughout the country. Every business that laid off or lost employees last year have had great <br /> difficulty hiring new, qualified people for positions. This reclamation work requires skilled heavy <br /> equipment operators and those seem to be scarce or have chosen to pursue other employment <br /> directions. Schmidt is ready to do the reclamation work but they are currently short staffed and there <br /> Status report for 2021 due July 15, 2021 Page 2 of 4 <br />