Laserfiche WebLink
Backeround <br />The GEC Mine is a revoked, surface coal mining site located about eight miles southeast of <br />Florence, Colorado in Fremont County. There aze two separate parts of the mine, the East and <br />West Pit azeas and the Orphan Pit, Duck Pond and tipple azeas (also known as the Section 24 <br />areas). The East and West Pits aze located in portions of Sections 19 and 30, Township 20 South, <br />Range 69 W est on the 6`s Principle Meridian, Fremont County, Colorado. The Orphan Pit, Duck <br />Pond and tipple areas aze located in portions of Sections 24 and 25, Township 20 South, Range 70 <br />West on the 6`s Principle Meridian, Fremont County, Colorado. The entire pemutted mine site <br />encompasses 720 acres, 183.9 of which were pemutted to be disturbed. <br />The mine was owned and operated by GEC Minerals, Inc. When the GEC Mine was operational, it <br />mined privately owned coal on privately owned surface. The GEC Mine was originally opened <br />under permit no. 77-48, which was issued on 3 November 1980. The permanent program permit, <br />C-81-037, was issued on 12 December 1982. On 23 February 1984, the Mined Land Reclamation <br />Board (Board) revoked the GEC permit due to a pattern of violations (the GEC Mine had received <br />seven violations in 1983 and 1984). As part of the settlement agreement the Boazd did not forfeit <br />the GEC bond (of $534,000.00), however, GEC Minerals, Inc. was ordered to reclaim all portions <br />of the mine. <br />Shortly after the perrnit revocation, GEC Minerals, Inc. reclaimed the West Pit area and on 9 <br />December 1985 applied for a Phase I Bond Release. The Colorado Division of Minerals and <br />Geology (the Division) approved the Phase I Bond Release on 14 February 1986 and released 60% <br />of the liability attached to the West Pit or $85,800.00 (60% of the $143,000.00 bond held for the <br />West Pit). GEC Minerals, Inc. did not complete any more reclamation at the mine and on 11 June <br />1987 the Board forfeited the reclamation bond. <br />The Division, using private contractors and acting under the authority of the Boazd, awarded a <br />contract to Kessler Reclamation on 20 August 1993 for the Section 24 reclamation. The work was <br />started on 1 October 1993 and fmal seeding and work was completed on 25 April 1994. The <br />Division also contracted work for the East Pit reclamation that was completed in 1994 and 1995. <br />Additional work was performed by Kessler Reclamation on the West Pit drainage that began on 20 <br />February 1995 and was completed on 14 Mazch 1995. <br />These reclamation projects expended all of the available bond monies. No additional work was <br />performed on the site until the spring of 2000, when the Division received severance tax monies to <br />perform maintenance at the site. The first phase of the project was placing lazge riprap in the top of <br />the East Pit drainage and several lazge gullies below the access road to help stabilize these azeas. AI <br />the landowners request the second part of the project was not completed. There aze no remaining <br />bond or surety monies for any additional reclamation or maintenance of the GEC Mine. <br />The Division has continued to conduct monthly inspections of the GEC Mine site pursuant to Rule <br />5.02.2(1). In accordance with Rule 5.02.2(8)(a), the Division performed a complete inspection of <br />the site on 30 September 2002. <br />