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III. COMMENTS -COMPLIANCE Elk Creek C-1981-022 Pg 1 /2 24 May 200 Below are comments on the inspection. The comments include discussion of observations made during the inspection. Comments also describe any enforcement actions taken during the inspection and the facts or evidence supporting the enforcement action. This was a partial inspection of the Elk Creek and Sanborn Creek Mines conducted by Jim Stark of CDMG. The inspection was conducted on 24 May 2006. Jim Kiger of Oxbow accompanied me on the inspection. The mine was actively producing coal at the time of the inspection and the coal stockpile appeared to be back to its "normal" level. The weather was warm and sunny and the ground was dry. Roads: -The mine access road is a paved road. The road is well maintained and in good condition. -The east yard haul road was stable and well maintained at the time of the inspection. There were no rutting or erosional problems noted on the road. - The road to the Elk Creek portals and facilities area was stable and well maintained at the time of the inspection. No erosional problems were noted on the road. - The haul road to the West Valley Fill was stable and well maintained at the time of the inspection. No erosional problems were noted on the road. - The back entrance to the mine from Highway 133 was stable at the time of the inspection. This road is primarily used to access the Sanborn Creek gob vent boreholes and the mine when a train is blocking the main entrance. - The road to the Hubbard Creek fan site was stable and well maintained at the time of the inspection. This road was recently bladed. No erosional problems were noted on the road. Hydrologic Balance: - Pond B contained water approximately four feet below the emergency spillway at the time of the inspection but was not discharging (discharge is through a gated valve below the water level). The embankment was well vegetated and appeared to be stable. No erosional problems were noted. The emergency spillway was stable at the time of the inspection. - Pond D contained water approximately three feet below the discharge pipe and was not discharging at the time of the inspection. The embankment was well vegetated and stable. No erosional problems were noted. The pond has an oil boom and it was in place. The trash rack was in placed on the primary discharge pipe. There is some sediment at the inlet of the pond but it does not appear to be a problem at this time. - The East Yard pond has been cleaned of coal fines and sediment that flowed into the pond from the soupy material from the clean out of pond B. The inlet edge of the pond has also been cleaned. This material was hauled to the West Valley Fill. The pond was dry at the time of the inspection. The pond embankment was well vegetated and stable and no erosional problems were noted. - Pond F at the Hubbard Creek Fan site contained a small pool of water at the time of the inspection. The ditch to pond F was stable at the time of the inspection as was the clean water diversion ditch around the Hubbard Creek fan pad. There was some rain recently and these ditches carried some water and remained in good condition. - The roadside ditches along the Elk Creek access road and the East Yard haul road all appeared to be clean and functioning properly at the time of the inspection. - Ponds C and D (at the refuse piles) were dry at the time of the inspection. The pond embankments are concrete dams. The dams were stable at the time of the inspection.