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_, <br />III. COMMENTS -COMPLIANCE <br />Below are comments on the inspection. The comments include discussion of observations made <br />during the inspection. Comments also describe any enforcement actions taken during the inspection <br />and the facts or evidence supporting the enforcement action. <br />This was a regular complete inspection of the Canadian Strip Mine conducted by Jim Burnell of DMG, <br />beginning at 0700, 22 July 1997. The weather was sunny, clear and warm. The inspector was <br />unaccompanied. The site was unoccupied and quiet. The only sign of recent activity were some fairly <br />recent vehicle tracks leading from the entrance to the area of the old cabin and to the Pond 2 area. <br />The area is dry, as North Park has had very little rainfall in the last 8 weeks after a wet spring. <br />Records: DMG inspection reports have been added to the records as requested. <br />Signs/Markers: Sign at entrance needs to be modified to include the Division of Minerals and <br />Geology, as per rule 40.30.2 (3). <br />Roads: The road through the southeast corner is badly rutted. <br />Hydrologic Balance: The drainage below Pond 2 is stable. The bottom of the drainage is vegetated <br />with grass. This low area remained wet late into the summer season, but is dry now. Standing water <br />remains in the outlet culvert of Pond 2 and directly around the culvert. Pond 2 is clear; water level is <br />28 inches below the outlet. <br />Topsoil: There is a rill coming off the east slope above the Pond 2 drainageway at the far southeast <br />end of the mine site. There doesn't appear to have been any precipitation to test the repaired area <br />above Pond 1. The area is stable currently. <br />Slides and Damage: The settling crack above Pond 2 is still stable. <br />General Mine Plan Compliance: The perimeter fence is secure and in good repair. <br />Fish/Wildlife: A duck with 5 ducklings were spotted in Pond 2 along with 2 avocets and killdeer. Pond <br />2 area seems to be a locus of ground squirrel and gopher activity. Heard ducks and ducklings on <br />Pond 1, but couldn't see them for all the reeds. <br />Revegetation: Thistle, noted as a continuing problem in the last inspection, is still present and thriving <br />in several locations. Particularly in the rocks at the outlet drain of Pond 2, a dozen big Canada thistle <br />plants are beginning to bloom. They should be eradicated right away to prevent the spread of seed. <br />Also a great deal of thistle among the rocks of the Pond 2 emergency spillway. Thistle is coming up <br />through and around the straw matting above Pond 1 and uphill from south end of Pond 1. A patch of <br />big thistles are ready to bloom along and near the fenceline behind the old cabin. <br />The recently revegetated slope along the Pond 2 drainageway is covered with grass. Sagebrush is <br />beginning to grow on the bottom of the drainageway. Blue flax and rocky mountain penstemon are <br />both still blooming along with a great deal of yarrow, particularly on the south slope above Pond 2. <br />The traverse from Pond 2 to Pond 1 shows that the upper slopes are brown while the saddle between <br />the two ponds is still green. Pond 1 is thick with hydrophytes. The water level is down but the plants <br />are so thick it is virtually impossible to see the water. <br />