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PERMIT#: M-2021-068 <br /> INSPECTOR'S INITIALS:MAC <br /> INSPECTION DATE:December 9,2021 <br /> OBSERVATIONS <br /> The inspection was conducted by Michael Cunningham of the Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety <br /> (Division) in response to an anonymous citizen complaint received on December 7, 2021. Ray Rears, the <br /> Central City Community Development and Historic Preservation Director, and Kimberly Kaufman, the Central <br /> City Community Compliance Officer accompanied the Division on the inspection. The citizen complaint alleged <br /> that mine tailings were being removed from the Gunnel Mine, which is located approximately 0.5 miles west <br /> of Central City off of Nevadaville Rd. <br /> On December 8, 2021, the Division received a phone call from Mr. Forster who was inquiring about permitting <br /> a new mining operation in Gilpin County. Upon further discussion with Mr. Forster, it was determined that he <br /> had been engaged in activity related to the citizen complaint for the Gunnell Mine. The Division arranged to <br /> meet Mr. Forster at the Gunnell Mine on December 9, 2021. <br /> The Division and the representatives from Central City met Mr. Joe Forster off of an unnamed road located <br /> (see enclosed map) north of Nevadaville Rd., approximately 0.3 miles west of the intersection of Central City <br /> Parkway and Nevadaville Rd. Mr. Forster represented Jack D. Tabb, LLC, the owner of the Gunnell Mine. Upon <br /> arriving to the meeting location, the Division observed 15 super sacks which were full of waste rock. The super <br /> sacks were staged on the side of the road, where they were to be transported to a mill in Arivaca, Arizona for <br /> processing. According to Mr. Forster, the material in the super sacks originated from the Gunnell Mine and <br /> had been transported to the staging area with a skid steer loader. From this location, the super sacks were <br /> loaded onto a flatbed trailer for transport. The Division did not observe any trailers during the inspection; <br /> however, the Division observed an area of flattened grass next to the super sacks where a trailer was <br /> previously parked. According to Mr. Forster, approximately 10 cubic yards of material had been removed from <br /> the Gunnell Mine and the material was transported to the out of state mill in the two weeks preceding the <br /> inspection. According to the Gilpin County Assessor website, the primary staging area is located on property <br /> owned by Central City. Mr. Forster does not have a lease agreement with Central City and does not possess a <br /> legal right to utilize the property for the purposes of mining. <br /> From the primary staging area, the Division drove to the Gunnell Mine (see enclosed map) which is located <br /> 0.27 miles northwest of the primary staging area. Prior to arriving at the Gunnell Mine, the Division observed <br /> a secondary staging area (see enclosed map). The secondary staging area contained 10 additional super sacks, <br /> the super sacks were full of waste rock and were waiting to be transported to the primary staging area. The <br /> super sacks were staged on the side of the road and it did not appear that any lands were further affected as a <br /> result of storing the super sacks. The secondary staging area is located approximately 0.06 miles southeast of <br /> the Gunnell Mine. Mr. Forster was unsure if the secondary staging area was located on property owned by <br /> Jack D. Tabb, LLC. According to the Gilpin County Assessor website, the secondary staging area is located on <br /> property owned by Central City. <br /> The Gunnell Mine consists of historic structures including a headframe and stone foundation. A large waste <br /> rock pile (WRP) is situated immediately to the north of the head frame. The WRP covers approximately 1.3 <br /> acres (as measured from Google Earth aerial imagery) and sits above Prosser Gulch. The Division observed 2 <br /> skid steer loaders parked adjacent to the WRP, no other equipment was observed. Excavation of waste rock <br /> had occurred along the southeast corner of the WRP. The Division observed empty super sacks at the WRP <br /> along with a stack of pallets. The excavation into the WRP was approximately 10' in height and created a <br /> Page 2 of 10 <br />