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The least prominent set is a joint system and is best expressed by the <br />• cleat system of the coal. Where exposed by mining in the F Seam, the <br />cleat system tends south 84 degrees west (Johnson 1948). <br />The coal has desirable metallurgical properties and is marketed as <br />metallurgical coal. It is a relatively strong coal and exceptionally <br />clean. The plane of the E Seam pitches nearly 7 percent, 2 degrees east. <br />A two-inch split of the seam has been encountered in the east portal sec- <br />tion of the mine nearly two feet from the top of the seam. <br />The floor rack underlying the E Seam is made up of approximately four <br />feet of soft shales often referred to as fire clay. The coal has often <br />been left intact to improve bottom conditions. However, heaving has caused <br />this coal to buckle. At the present time, mining practice is to retrieve <br />all coal on the bottom and top. The top rock in the E Seam is full of <br />• conchoidal slippage planes probably caused by differential compaction in <br />the area. The roof is very weak and extremely difficult to support. <br />Geologic hazards such as faults, wants or slips only exist to the <br />extent of large cracks with no displacement found in the 2E4RT working <br />section. There is little evidence of any residual stress due to the uplift <br />or intrusion in the area. <br />Mineral Resources <br />Within the permit area, there are six projected major coal seams that <br />vary from 4.0 to 14.7 feet thick in the Mesaverde Formation: the lower B, <br />upper B, C, D, Wild, and E Seams. In addition, an erratic thickness of <br />• <br />2.04-17 <br />