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Summary <br /> Permit C-1981-018 <br /> Western Fuels-Utah, Inc. submitted an application for a new permit on March 12, 1980. The <br /> Division (then called the Mined Land Reclamation Division)issued permit C-81-018 on July 27, <br /> 1981. <br /> Transfer of Ownership <br /> On May 28, 1997 the Division approved a transfer of ownership of the Deserado Mine from <br /> Western Fuels-Utah, Inc. to Blue Mountain Energy, Inc. <br /> History <br /> The Deserado Mine is an active underground mine operation presently located in both Rio <br /> Blanco County and Moffat County, approximately nine miles northeast of Rangely, Colorado <br /> along County Road 65 near Kenney Reservoir. The initial Division permit for the operation was <br /> issued to Western Fuels-Utah, Inc., (former operator) on July 27, 1981. Facilities construction <br /> and underground development were initiated shortly thereafter. <br /> Mining operations during previous permit terms have utilized long wall extraction and room and <br /> pillar techniques to extract coal from the "D" Seam. "D" Seam mining within the permit area <br /> was completed in 1999, with operations shifting to the underlying "B" Seam, beginning with <br /> development mining in 1998/1999, and initiation of longwall extraction in early 2000. Mining <br /> operations and schedules were substantially altered by a mine fire in Longwall Panel 9, in the <br /> northeast portion of the permit area, in January 1996. The entire "D" seam longwall mining <br /> district in the northern portion of the permit area was eventually sealed off, and the longwall <br /> equipment was not recovered. <br /> The Deserado Permit was previously renewed on May 29, 2019. The permit was approved for a <br /> five-year term ending on July 27, 2024. <br /> Description of the Environment <br /> Elevations at the Deserado mine site range between 5,300 and 5,900 feet above sea level. The <br /> permit area and adjacent areas are characterized by gently rolling to moderately steep landforms. <br /> Slopes range from 0 to 6 percent in the valleys and level uplands and up to 50 percent on <br /> drainage side slopes. The area is semi-arid and characterized by light rainfall, low relative <br /> humidity, and moderate winds. Mean annual precipitation is 9 to 10 inches,with peaks in spring <br /> and late summer/early fall. <br /> The mine is located in the White River Basin,which is the eastern portion of the larger Uinta <br /> Basin. The mine lies within the interbedded sandstone and siltstone strata of the Mesaverde <br /> Group in the Williams Fork Formation. The Mesaverde Group consists of the Lower Iles <br /> Formation and the Upper Williams Fork Formation,which are separated by the Trout Creek <br /> iv <br />