Laserfiche WebLink
West Elk Mine <br /> <br />2.05-45 Rev. 11/04, 03/06, 04/06 & 05/06- PR10; 08/09- TR118; 08/09-TR119; 09/09- MR357; 01/10- TR120; 10/12- MR-388 <br />(8) Coal Processing Waste and Non-Coal Processing Waste <br /> <br />Production of Waste or Refuse Material <br /> <br />MCC generates waste or refuse during underground construction activities and mining. <br />Underground construction activities include building ventilation overcasts or undercasts, <br />ventilation shafts or tunnels, access slopes, and roadways or haulage ways. Mining produces <br />refuse material from the roof and floor surrounding the coal seam, as well as low quality coal. <br />This low quality coal is at times not marketable and becomes reject coal requiring disposal. <br />Should a suitable market emerge at a later time, any accessible reject coal may be recovered and <br />used (or “recycled”) from the disposal area, processed and shipped as coal product. This <br />recycling maximizes the coal production from the mine while minimizing the amount of material <br />requiring permanent disposal and optimizing the life of the disposal areas. <br /> <br />Although underground construction activities and mining constitute the primary sources of <br />refuse material, some refuse is generated from other mine activities. Other sources of refuse <br />material are contaminated coal spillage, razed mine and site development materials, sediment <br />pond dredgings, soils contaminated with non-hazardous materials (e.g. petroleum products) and <br />limited mine development or coal processing wastes from neighboring operations, if comparable <br />in characteristic to West Elk Mine's refuse. These additional sources make up a very small <br />percentage of the total amount of refuse produced at West Elk Mine. <br /> <br />Refuse Disposal <br /> <br />During the operational life of the mine to date, refuse has been disposed of in several permitted <br />locations. They include the Bear No. 2 Mine portal bench, the Blue Ribbon Mine bench <br />stabilization and backfill, and West Elk Mine's portal bench mine supply storage area fill and the <br />run-of-mine stack tubes coal storage area fills. Coal refuse was once stockpiled in the initial <br />waste rock storage area (maintenance shop bench), but all refuse or waste was removed before <br />construction of the earthen fill to make a pad for the shop. Coal refuse is transported from the <br />mine on the run-of-mine belt and/or is hauled with equipment out of the main portal. This refuse <br />may be temporarily stockpiled in the screening plant reject bin or on the stack-tube bench, and <br />on the portal bench or in the nearby concrete bunkers, respectively. Coal refuse is also generated <br />from the screening plant and from the Coal Preparation Plant (CPP). The amount of coal refuse <br />produced is variable. The refuse materials that accumulate in temporary storage areas are hauled <br />by truck to the permanent refuse disposal area. <br /> <br />Four permanent refuse disposal areas and one development waste pile are permitted at West Elk <br />Mine. Initially, refuse was temporarily stockpiled in an area formerly called the U.S. Steel <br />laydown area. This area was enlarged and converted to a permanent refuse pile called the Lower <br />Refuse Disposal Area or Lower Refuse Pile (LRP). A permanent refuse pile is also permitted for <br />the meadow above the portal bench. This area is referred to as the Upper Refuse Disposal Area <br />(URDA). Although this upper refuse disposal area has been approved for construction, it has not <br />yet been constructed. Construction of the URDA will occur in the future, if needed. All <br />construction information about these two disposal areas is contained in Exhibit 50 (URDA) and <br />Exhibit 51 (LRP).