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Reason to Believe a Violation Exists and Notice of Board Hearing <br /> Permit No. M-1980-244 <br /> Page 2 of 4 <br /> As a result of the exceedances, the Division required monthly monitoring of GVMW-25 to determine if <br /> conditions would return to 2nd quarter 2021 conditions (baseline). In October 2021, most analytes <br /> appeared to have recovered to baseline conditions until August 2022 when analyte concentrations <br /> again began to spike above TVS and NPL standards. Of particular concern, since August 2022 samples <br /> from GVMW-25 have exceeded TVS and NPL for some analytes2 with overall concentrations increasing. <br /> Due to the concerning trend of increasing exceedances, the Division continued to focus on data <br /> received from GVMW-25. Ongoing monitoring within Grassy Valley has demonstrated the impacts to <br /> groundwater are more widespread than was originally reported to the Division. During review of the <br /> September 2023 Grassy Valley Monitoring Report, it was discovered, for the first time, the Operator <br /> had collected samples from OSABH-17. Samples from OSABH-17 have exceeded TVS and NPLs limits <br /> beginning in 2020. CC&V failed to notify the Division of these exceedances and failed to timely provide <br /> the data collected from OSABH-17. Furthermore, the most recent sampling event, April 2024, indicates <br /> contamination has potentially reached the surface water flow regime within the Grassy Valley. <br /> The Division believes the information and conduct outlined above and CC&V's failure to timely notify <br /> and provide data collected from OSABH-17 is a violation of: <br /> • C.R.S. § 34-32-116(7)(c) and Rule 3.1.5(5) for failure to protect the drainage system from acid <br /> forming or toxic producing materials, <br /> • Rule 3.1.5(10) for failure to dispose of all mined material within the affected area in a manner to <br /> prevent any unauthorized release of pollutants to the surface drainage system, <br /> • Rule 3.1.5(11) for failure to prevent unauthorized release of pollutants to groundwater from any <br /> materials mined, handled or disposed of within the permit area, <br /> • C.R.S. § 34-32-116(7)(g)(I) and Rule 3.1.6(1) for failure to minimize disturbances to the <br /> prevailing hydrologic balance of the affected land and of the surrounding area and to the quality <br /> of water in surface and groundwater systems both during and after the mining operation and <br /> during reclamation, and <br /> • Rule 3.1.7(9) for failure to provide the Office a written report within five (5) working days when <br /> there is evidence of groundwater discharges exceeding applicable groundwater standards or <br /> permit conditions imposed to protect groundwater quality. <br /> Therefore, the Division has reason to believe that a violation exists to the Colorado Land Reclamation <br /> Act for the Hard Rock, Metal and Designated Mining Operations, C.R.S. § 34-32-101 et seq., and the <br /> provisions of your Permit No. M-1980-244 and has scheduled this matter to appear before the Board. <br /> 2 Exceedances of standards included Aluminum,Arsenic, Beryllium,Cadmium,Cobalt,Copper, Fluoride,Manganese, Nickel, <br /> pH,Sulfate,TDS,Zinc,and Uranium. <br />