HYDRO20339

• Permit No: C1981012
• IBM Index Class Name: Hydrology
• Doc Date: 10/25/2004
• Doc Name: 3rd Quarter 2004 DMRs ‎(CO 0000906)‎
• From: Peak Project Management
• To: DMG
• Permit Index Doc Type: DMR’s
• Media Type: D
• Archive: No

Peak Project Management, LLC
34115 County Road 20.8
Trinidad, CO 81082
[phone]
Via Certified Mail 7000 0600 0026 9607 7758
October 22, 2004
Colorado Department of Health
Water Quality Control Division
WQCD-PE-B2 .."
4300 Cherry Creek Drive South
Denver, Coloradb 80222-1530
Re: Discharge Monitoring Report - 3`d Quarter, 2004
New Elk Mine -Permit No. CO-0000906
Enclosed are the DMR's for the above referenced permit for the third quarter of 2004. Only oulfall 008
discharged during the quarter resulting from rain events in both July and August Samples were collected
from each event and copies are enclosed. The operator, Picketwire Processing, is requesting the application
of alternate limitations for a storm event of greater than the 10-year, 24 hour event for the .luly 26 event.
The New Elk Mining permit documents the l0yr-24hr event as precipitation of greater than 2.90" in a 24-
hourperiod. A rain gage is maintained on site adjacent to pond 8 and the drainage area into the pond. On
the afternoon of July 26, 2004, 2.6" of rain was received; this was followed by 0.4 inches over nigh[ for a
storm event total of 3.0". The pond was already near capacity from rainfall from July I5-25 totaling 1.75".
The pond remained at or near discharge level until the rain event of August 7, 2004. A total of 0.35 inches
of rain was received on that date and the operator is requesting alternate limitations for a storm event of less
than the 10-year 24-hour event. However, the settleable solids limitation was exceeded by this event. "1'liis
was likely due in large part to previous precipitation events and the resulting saturated ground conditions.
In addition the operator is completing the following improvements to the system.
The pond receives run-off from a coal processing plant refuse disposal area. This area has been inactive
since 1996 except for occasional maintenance of diversion ditches and armored down drains. The active
unreclaimed surface area is approximately twenty acres sloping toward the down drains leading to pond 8 at
an average grade of 6.5%. To retard run-of and decrease erosion, the operator is regrading the surface to an
average grade of 1.5-2.0%. This will reduce the flow rate, sediment loading, and thus the setteable solid
content of the inflow to [he pond.
Please contact me if there are any questions or if additional information is reyuired.
ely
w ~
Ronald G. Thompson
for Picketwire Processing LLC