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er~vrROrriFrrrAL AssESSMfrrr <br />WEST ELK GOAL COMPANY <br />MT. GUNNISON N0. 1 MII~ <br />MINING PLAN MODIFICATION <br />AUGLST, 1985 <br />1. Purpose and Need <br />West Elk Coal Company (WECC) submitted a permit application package <br />(PAP) involving the mining of Federal coal at the Mt. Gmnison No. 1 <br />mine. Pursuant to 30 CFR 746.14, the Secretary of the Interior must <br />approve, approve with conditions, or disapprove the mining plan <br />modification for the mining of the Federal coal as proposed in the PAP. <br />This document assesses the em*ironmental effects of the proposed mining <br />and reclamation operations std alternatives to the proposed action. <br />The PAP was submitted on November 28, 1984 to the Colorado Mined <br />Lard Reclamation Division (1gRD) as a revision to permit application <br />number C-007-80 std to the Office of Surface Mining (O6M) on November 28, <br />1984. <br />The Mt. Gunnison No. 1 mice is located in Gunnison County, Colorado, <br />located 1 mile east of Somerset. The Mt. C~nison No. 1 mine has been <br />operating since 1981 and was permitted under the approved Colorado <br />permanent regulatory Program in July, 1981. The previously approved <br />permit area contains approximately 2,155 acres, of which approximately <br />2,055 acres are Federal lands including approximately 2,055 acres of <br />leased Federal coal. the mini plan for the Mt. 0.mnison No. 1 was <br />originally approved in July, 19 1. Since the original approval of the <br />mining Plan, there have been no mining plan modifications. <br />The proposed permit revision area contains apprcocimately 320 acres, <br />of which 320 acres are Federal lards including 320 acres of Federal coal <br />leases D-044569 and C-0117192. Surface ownership in the permit revision <br />area is non-Federal and Federal. The Federal lands are administered by <br />the U.S. Forest Service. This document assesses the environmental <br />effects that will result frcm the approval, approval with conditions, or <br />disapproval of the mining plan modification associated with the permit <br />revision appliration. <br />WECC has proposed to alter the direction of mining a~ move west <br />instead of south. The u~erground mining operation principally will <br />utilize room and pillar and longwall mining methods. The F coal seam <br />will be mined at a production rate of approximately 2.8 million tons per <br />year. All mining and reclamation operations are scheduled to cease <br />around the year 3020. <br />-1- <br />