INSPEC41500

• Permit No: C1981028
• IBM Index Class Name: Inspection
• Doc Name: INSPECTION REPORT
• Inspection Date: 12/6/1995
• Media Type: D
• Archive: No

III. COMMENTS -COMPLIANCE
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 complete inspection of the Keenesburg Strip Mine
conducted by Tony Waldron of DMG along with Donald MacDonald of
Coors Energy Company. The mine no longer produces coal and the
last two pits are used for ash disposal from the Coors power plant
in Golden, Colorado. The power plant was recently sold to an
independent operator who entered into an agreement to continue to
dispose of the waste ash at the Keenesburg Mine. Under this
arrangement Coors Energy will continue to operate the mine as an
ash disposal facility. To facilitate this arrangement Coors is in
the process of upgrading their equipment to conduct the ash
disposal operations and continue contemporaneous reclamation
activities associated with the ash disposal and decommissioning of
the mining operations. This includes updating the truck fleet used
to transport the ash from Golden to the mine; selling and removing
the dragline and other nonessential mining equipment; and possibly
purchasing new equipment to facilitate reclamation activities.
The inspection began at pond 2 where fall maintenance activities
have occurred. This included removal of sediment that was
deposited during this seasons unusually high runoff and maintenance
of ditches and diversions leading into the pond.
The road just south of the pond has developed a large subsidence
pothole. This area has been flagged and is scheduled to be
repaired. This subsidence occurred in an area that was backfilled
during reclamation of the coal storage area, loadout, and tipple
and may coincide with the location of a reclaim tunnel. A couple
of other small subsidence features have also been identified in
this area and the operator has scheduled them for repair. This
area should be inspected carefully after the spring of 1996 and
could be done in conjunction with topsoil replacement depth
verification.
The inspection continued at B-Pit which continues to serve as the
primary ash disposal pit. There was a very small amount of water
in the northeast corner of the pit. The dragline currently sits
just south of this pit and is scheduled to be dismantled and
shipped out before the end of 1996. Once this has been completed,
the operator will complete backfilling and grading in the area
where the dragline currently sits and transition that area with the
undisturbed area just to the south of the dragline. This
reclamation activity will then proceed north up to a point near
where the active ash disposal is occurring in B-Pit.
A-Pit was inspected and no problems were noted. The cover crop of
sorghum on the east end of the pit is still in place, although the
winds have been severely battering the stand. Reclamation has
begun on the road that runs north and east of the pit by excavating