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1 <br />' 1.0 INTRODIICTION <br />' New Castle Energy Corporation (NCEC) intends to develop its Coal <br />Ridge #1 mine to recover coal from the Wheeler coal seams in the <br />steeply dipping portion of the Cretaceous age Mesa Verde Formation <br />' to the east of New Castle, Colorado (Figure 1). The proposed <br />method of extraction is hydraulic mining, in which the coal is <br /> loosened from the roof of the mining zone by high pressure water <br /> monitors, and is conveyed to the surface using hydraulic transport <br />' in a relatively low gradient flume. <br />' The coal which is delivered to the surface facility at the portal <br />is expected to include small quantities of materials which would <br />reduce its marketability if allowed to remain in the exported <br />' product, notably hangingwall rock inadvertently mined with the <br />coal, some ash materials included in the coal seam, and some coal <br />that is too fine to be sold. It is proposed that this material <br />will initially be stockpiled at the mine portal facility until an <br />' underground backfill storage facility is prepared. once the <br />backfill facility is ready to receive the mining wastes, then the <br />stockpiled materials, plus any further such materials generated, <br />will be delivered to this facility by slurry transport in a <br />pipeline within the mine. Excess water used to slurry the waste <br />' materials will be removed by an underdrain for recirculation within <br />the mine water system. <br />' This report presents a description of the proposed system, and <br />' demonstrates its compliance with current MSHA health and safety <br />requirements as set out in 30 CFR Part 70 (Mandatory Health <br />Standards - Underground Coal Mines) and 30 CFR 75 (Mandatory Safety <br />' Standards - Underground Coal Mines). <br />1 <br />' Adrian Hroan Consultants -1- 1145/900820 <br /> <br />