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Aggregate Industries, Morrison Quarry <br />Amendment No. 7 to Permit M-1973-021 <br />Morrison, CO <br /> <br />October 2021 | 16 <br />(40H:80V) configuration approved in AM05. On the West Wall, mining has advanced to the <br />current bench, approximately El. 6,635, using a planned 60-foot highwall and 40-foot bench <br />(40H:60V) configuration with actual mined highwalls ranging from 40 to 60 feet. Bench highwall <br />modifications were operational decisions, not the result of geotechnical issues. On the East <br />Wall, mining has advanced to the current bench, El. 6,600, using conservative 40-foot highwall <br />and 40-foot bench (40H:40V) configurations, due to the presence of unstable rock. Mined <br />highwalls ranged from 20 to 40 feet. <br />Annual geotechnical observations and performance monitoring of exposed highwalls is <br />conducted to support the development of an annual Geotechnical Addendum and assess <br />highwall stability. As stated in Appendix 1, Rule 6.5 Geotechnical Stability Exhibit, Section 7.1.1, <br />annual reporting and field inspections indicate that the South Quarry highwall is generally <br />stable. Although rockfall debris is commonly observed, the rockfalls are generally minor and <br />likely a result of production blast-induced rock fracturing and freeze-thaw in the rock face above <br />the benches. The bench widths are adequate to collect highwall rockfalls. The observed rock <br />conditions are predominately “competent” rock quality (i.e., granitic and biotite gneiss), with <br />localized poor zones resulting from highwall proximity to existing (pre-mining) grade or zones of <br />sillimanitic gneiss. <br />Mining activities and configurations to date are effective in working through unstable rock <br />conditions and resulted in stable configurations. Completed South Quarry reclamation and <br />mining activities can be found in Exhibit C-2. <br />General Phase III Mining Approach <br />Under Phase III, mining will not occur within the groundwater table. Instead, mining will continue <br />in the South and West Quarries to maximum depths before groundwater is encountered. <br />The South and West Quarry maximum highwall and minimum bench design configurations are <br />based on elevations described in the following subsections. <br />Above El. 7,000: 60H:40V Benches <br />This bench configuration is unchanged from AM05 and will be employed on the remaining West <br />Quarry western face to reduce visual impacts. <br />El. 7,000 to El. 6,600: 40H:60V Benches <br />The proposed bench configuration at these elevations are based on geotechnical information <br />gathered during South Quarry annual inspections, observations of completed 40H:60V <br />highwalls at similar elevations (discussed above), and findings from the 2020 Geotechnical <br />Stability Exhibit. <br />Appendix 1, Rule 6.5 Geotechnical Stability Exhibit, was completed with the goal of determining <br />if steeper (e.g., 30H:70V) slopes were feasible. Although this approach is not currently under <br />consideration, selected sections of the report support the revised 40H:60V bench configuration. <br />Specifically, slope stability analysis included in this report (Appendix 1, Tables 7.3 and 7.4)