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• (Page 2) • MINE ID # OR PROSPECTING ID # M-81-277 INSPECTION DATE 10/28/96 INSPECTOR'S INITIALS AJW OBSERVATIONS This inspection was conducted ae a result of a citizen's complaint regarding grading and improvement activities on the Western Branch of the Steamboat Valley Road north of Lyons, Colorado. The complaint alleged that grading and improvement activities of an existing trail had occurred on private property in preparation of a atone hauling route for Loukonen Brother's Beech Hill Quarry. The site was inspected on October 28, 1996 and it is obvious that maintenance act ivitiee have occurred on this road. This appeared to have been strictly grading activities to repair or smooth out the road surface with no additional improvements or upgrades. The road ie not currently a portion of the permitted acreage for Permit No. M-87-277 and under the definition of "Affected Land", ie not required to be a portion of the permitted acreage. Under Rule 1.1(3) of the Construction Materials Rules and Regulations of the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Board, Affected Land means the surface of an area within the state where a mining operation ie or will be conducted which surface ie disturbed ae a result of such operation. Affected lands include but shall not be limited to private ways, roads, except those roads excluded pursuant to Subsection 3.1.10, and railroad lines appurtenant to any such area; land excavations; exploration sites; drill sites or workings; refuse banks or spoil piles where operations are situated. Affected land shall not include off-site roads which existed prior to the date on which notice was given or permit application was made to the office and which were constructed for purposes unrelated to the proposed mining operation and which will not be substantially upgraded to support the mining operation." Observations recorded on October 28, 1996, indicate that the road was not substantially upgraded to support the mining operation and therefore the road ie not required to be included as part of the permitted mining operation. Additional issues in the complaint were: 1) the activity was illegal because there were no permits from any relevant branch of government". We don't believe that the Division of Minerals and Geology has jurisdiction in this matter. 2) "Illegal and unauthorized use.......-illegal because this route is in direct violation of the Loukonen quarry State permit which designates Stone Canyon Road ae the approved road....." The permit application has been reviewed and no reference that restricted or required Beech Hill Quarries to use the Stone Mountain Road as their primary haulage route was observed. However, even if such a reference existed, the DMG has no jurisdiction over off-site haulage routes under the Colorado Land Reclamation Act for the Extraction of Construction Materials. 3) "Failure to report or to include the area of the improved roadway access and the atone hauling route to the authorized quarry area as permitted by the Division of Minerals and Geology" Once again, since pre-existing roadways are not required to be included in affected or permitted areas, this activity ie outside of DMG's jurisdiction. "Direct disregard for the environmental damage.........." We believe that the results of DMG'e inspection preclude this activity from our jurisdiction. Simply because the DMG cannot address the haul road route concerns does not mean that you may have other venues in which to pursue your complaints. The issue of access over, and maintenance of, pre-existing roads could possibly be addressed at the local government level.