Laserfiche WebLink
<br /> <br />Bear Creek Quarry (M-1977-344) Permit Amendment <br />Holcim US Inc, 3500 Highway 120, Florence, CO 81226 <br />Phone (719) 288-1443 www.holcim.us 6 <br />1.0 INTRODUCTION <br />Holcim (US) Inc. (Holcim) submits this application to the Mined Land Reclamation Board (MLRB) to <br />amend M-1997-344 Bear Creek Quarry (BCQ) to include a new limestone resource in Fremont County <br />and Pueblo County, CO. The amendment application will include and revise the approved mine <br />application M-2002-096 Ranch Land Rock Pit #1 (RP1). <br />With this amendment application, Holcim will rename the new quarry area to Red Creek Quarry (RCQ). <br />The proposed additional permit area and affected area is approximately 4079 acres. The project will <br />include an open pit limestone quarry, a preliminary sizing plant in the quarry, an over land convey or <br />system and a blending hall on the north end of the conveyor corridor adjoining BCQ permit area. <br />1.1 Site Background <br />Mac Clevenger of Pueblo, CO had two passions: automobile sales and ranching. Born in 1889 in Utica, <br />Kansas, Mac moved to Pueblo in 1914 where he worked as a cowboy on a ranch near Arlington, CO. In <br />1917 he began selling used automobiles. He operated the Durant and Star dealership in Pueblo from 1920 <br />to 1928 and continued in the automobile industry until his retirement in July of 1959. <br />While building his automobile sales business, Mr. Clevenger purchased and ranched land west of Pueblo. <br />At one time Mac was the owner of the property that is now Pueblo West. The Clevenger Ranch that <br />straddles the Fremont and Pueblo County lines, began with a lan d purchase south of the Portland cement <br />plant from the family that owned the Campbell Soup, Co. The ranch was extended through many <br />purchases until it reached its sprawling 32,000 acres. <br />After the passing of Mac’s wife, Maurine Clevenger, on August 7, 2000, Mac’s heir chose to sell the <br />property. Mr. Billy Peetz, a Colorado Springs investor, purchased the ranch in 2001. Mr. Peetz performed <br />geologic exploration across the ranch, identifying extensive reserves of construction materials including <br />cement production grade limestone, sand and gravel. As Ranch Land LLC, Mr. Peetz permitted two <br />construction material quarries and sold another aggregate reserve in the northwest portion of the ranch to <br />Steve Schnurr of Rocky Mountain Aggregates LLC, now owned and operated by Martin-Marietta. <br />In July 2011, Holcim purchased six adjoining land sections (6 -640 acre areas), a parcel adjoining the <br />current plant area and a road/conveyor corridor Right-of-Way (ROW) from Ranch Land LCC. Two <br />sections, the north parcel adjoining the plant and the corridor are in Fremont County. Four sections are in <br />Pueblo County. Section 24 in Fremont County is permitted as RP1. The Division of Reclamation Mining <br />and Safety (DRMS) granted Holcim Succession of Operators for RP1 on November 23, 2011 that required <br />the posting of a financial warranty in the amount of $43,500. <br />1.2 General Project Description <br />The RCQ will be a new limestone quarry providing material to the cement plant located at 3500 State Hwy <br />120, east of Florence, CO. Activities associated with this amendment application include surface mining, <br />preliminary material sizing, material conveyance from the quarry to the cement plant and reclamation. <br />These activities will be presented in more detail in subsequent sections and exhibits. <br />The timelines presented herein are based on anticipated mining and processing rates, market demand <br />and other variable factors. The timelines may change, resulting in a shorter or longer overall life of mine. <br />Site development including construction of the conveyor corridor and access haul road from RCQ to the <br />plant will begin soon after approval from MLRB. Construction activities are anticipated to take two years. <br />Preliminary mine development will begin after the interior haul road is passable. During mine development <br />and during mining, plant growth material will be salvaged in stockpiles and stabilized for use during final <br />reclamation.