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A trickle of water was piping beneath the concrete base of the flume of <br />outfall 005. The operator scheduled it for immediate repair. <br />The discharge from the treatment ponds at the Fish Creek borehole <br />(outfall 001 of NPDES permit 00042161) appeared to be more than 100 gpm of <br />clear water. To check the impact of this discharge on Trout Creek, I <br />measured field electroconductivity (EC) values at two locations in the <br />creek. The measurements were made from county road bridges during a one- <br />hour period. As shown on the following map, the EC value downstream from <br />the mine was 240 mmhos/cm, significantly below the material damage <br />suspect level of 1,000 mmhos/cm. Fish and Trout Creeks were running <br />high. <br />Processing Waste <br />The east face of the northern part of the pile has good cover of alfalfa. <br />Gullying is not a problem on the east face. The east slope appeared <br />stable and no seepages were evident. Ditch RDA-2 needs cleaning and re- <br />shaping in its upper part. The ditch is capable of functioning as <br />designed, but maintenance is needed to restore it to the design <br />specifications set forth in the permit application (Volume II C, Exhibit <br />26 A, Appendix D). The operator scheduled the work be completed <br />immediately. Ditches RDA-1c, 1d, and le were in good repair and appear tc <br />meet design specifications. <br />Support Facilities <br />No problems were found in the following areas: yard area, explosives <br />magazine, belt-outback, million gallon tank, hazardous materials storage <br />area, and Fish Creek Tipple. <br />Revegetation <br />What appears to be whitetop (Hoary cress) is locally abundant. The <br />operator has summer workers starting the weed spraying program. <br />Subsidence <br />No structures or renewable resource lands were undermined in the last <br />month. Ponding of water along Fish Creek was checked over panel 13 where <br />the longwall passed through in Spring 2002. High runoff this year has <br />resulted in much greater Ponding than observed last summer, but the <br />amount of Ponding does not appear to exceed the predicted amount of <br />Ponding shown in the permit application (Volume II, Exhibit 4e-3, Sheet <br />3). <br />4 <br />