INSPEC10706

• Permit No: M1977285
• IBM Index Class Name: Inspection
• Doc Date: 12/28/2001
• Doc Name: MINERALS PROGRAM INSPECTION REPORT
• Inspection Date: 12/18/2001
• Media Type: D
• Archive: No

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MINE ID # OR PROSPECTING ID q M-1977-285
INSPECTION DATE 12/18/01 INSPECTOR'S INITIALS RCO
OBSERVATIONS
This inspection was performed by the Division as part of its monitoring of Hard Rock and Metal 112 permitted operations.
The operator was contacted but was not present during the inspection. The site was not active at the time of the
inspection.
This site was last inspected by the Division at the time of permit transfer to this current operator in 1997. There were
numerous items in that 7/10/97 inspection report which, though not noted as problems, were to be responded to or acted
upon by the operator. For most part, the operator has failed to follow up on any of the items. Several of these will be
discussed below with the other observations.
The operator's maps for this site are not current or complete. Several major changes to the permit, including amount of
affected area, locations of surface features which are parts of the affected area, locations of features in relation to the
affected area boundaries, and quantities of types of surface features which the approved plan specifies, are all either
lacking or mismapped. In particular are the buildings, areas of equipment storage, waste rock dump areas, underground
openings and access roads. The tonic of "records" is noted as a problem since the maps of the permit area are inadequate.
Please see the last page for the correction date.
There was no permit ID sign at the entrance gate or at the turn-off from the county road. There were no permit boundary
markers seen either. These items are required by Rule 3.1.12. Please be reminded that there are numerous small areas
of permitted land up the slope and over the ridge, containing road spurs, overhead power facilities and vent shafts, which
must all be marked and identified. The lack of sipns and markers is noted as a problem. Please see the last pane for the
correction date.
The bond has not been reviewed in several years. The Division will begin recalculating the bond amount for reclaiming all
surface features noted during this inspection. Since there were numerous features observed which were not formerly made
known to the Division nor included in the approved plan, and therefore not accounted for in the last bond calculation, there
may be a significant hike in the bond amount.
The more upland areas of the site consist of remote vent shaft sites, electric powerpoles and transforrners, and road spurs.
The roads and shaft areas are eroding. The shaft sites are to be reclaimed at the conclusion of mining, and will be
accessed via these same roads which are becoming impassable. Allowing them to degrade through neglect raises the cost
of reclamation. The sediment is not contained at many of the sites or on the roads. Lack of s~:diment control and
uncontrolled erosion is a problem in this report. Please see the last page for the corrective action.
There has been no reclamation performed at this time. But the operator may assist this office and/pr help influence the
bond amount by providing an up-to-date inventory of the surface features noted above, and performing reclamation or
stabilization activities on portions of the permit area.
The two large diesel storage tanks are still present, though they still do not have adequate spill containment. This was
noted during the previous inspection. The earthen berm around the tanks will allow for percolation cf the diesel into the
ground, which poses a risk of contamination. The total capacity of the two tanks is about 16,000 gallons. The tanks do
not have secured drain valves, and accidental or intentional spillage of fuel would be easy to do. The tanks each contain
fuel, but amount is not known at this time. This is not a problem, but the operator should either secure the tanks or remove
all fuel while the site is idle. Prior to commencing operations during which the tanks would be filled, ,adequate secondary
containment (i.e., an impermeable liner of sufficient capacity) must be installed. If not, this will bea~me a problem.
No reclamation seeding has been performed to-date. There were no noxious weeds observed onsite, though the
predominant plant appears to be halogeton. This plant must be under control by the time the site is to Ise reclaimed. Weed
control might be easier sooner rather than later. If the weeds get more prevalent, a weed control cost will be added to the
bond amount.
There were no additional items observed. Several problems exist at this time, which must be corrected by the dates shown
on the last page. All responses or questions about this inspection report should be directed to if is inspector at the
Division's Durango Field Office. The address is: Division of Minerals and Geology, 701 Camino del Rio, Room 125,
Durango, Colorado 81301; telephone [phone], or fax [phone].