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• (Page 2) • <br />MINE ID ~ OR PROSPECTING ID ~ M83-177 <br />INSPECTION DATE 06/01/94 INSPECTOR'S INITIALS RCO <br />OBSERVATIONS <br />This inspection was conducted by the Division as part of its ongoing monitoring. The <br />operator was contacted about this inspection and was present for it. <br />The permit boundaries were not clearly marked, though the extent of the affected area was <br />evident. Operations appear to have been limited to an area well within the size of the <br />defined permit area. The permit area has not been active in several years according to the <br />operator. This is evident by the amount of revegetation on the access spur, the the <br />weathering of all recent surfaces, and gullying of the road across the creek. The site ie <br />accessed by entering private land and using a faint road to reach the creek where some <br />extraction occurred and leading to the crossing of the creek to the main portion of the area. <br />The road up to the bench on the far side of the creek (west side) is so badly rutted that it <br />is impassible. The bottom of the channel is thickly vegetated, though dry at the time of <br />this visit. The plants present seem to provide a good filter for catching any material which <br />may be entering from above. <br />The operation ie mainly confined to a natural terrace above the creek. This is identified <br />in the original permit map as an area for "future mining." Actual excavation or other mining <br />disturbance is very minimal. The affected area is configured to parallel the creek, is <br />approx. 700 feet long and up to 100 feet wide. The highwall is about 10 feet high and 500 <br />feet long. The level process and stockpile area daylights on the side toward the creek. <br />This particular drainage exhibits much natural gullying, and there are many natural <br />"highwalls" along the primary channel itself plus historic ones on the upper terraces. In <br />some places, the older parts of the created highwalls are beginning to resemble there natural <br />features. <br />There are piles of topsoil material segregated on the southeast edge of the bench. They are <br />not vegetated, but are somewhat rocky, low in configuration and stably sloped. <br />There were no structures, stockpiles of product, nor equipment or debris on the permit area. <br />There does not appear to be any offsite impacts from erosion or sedimentation, nor any <br />material moving along the creek channel. The operator is following the plan in the permit <br />files. If the operator wishes to begin reclamation for release of the Bite, please refer to <br />Minerals Rules 6 and 7.7. <br />The only problem noted at the time of this inspection was that there were no markers or other <br />features to adequately delineate the permit boundary. See page 3 for the corrective action <br />and date. <br />I & E Contact Address <br />NAME Virlev Burkhalter <br />OPERATOR Bent County <br />STREET PO Box 350 <br />CITY/STATE/ZIPLas Animas, CO 81054 <br />cc: Jim Stevens/DMG <br />^ CE <br /> ^ BL <br /> ^ FS <br /> ^ HW <br /> ^ HMWMD (CH) <br />^ SE <br />^ WQCD (CH) <br />^ OTHER <br />