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<br /> <br /> <br />COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, Water Quality Control Division <br />Rationale - Page 3. Permit No. COG-850023 <br />III. RECEIVING STREAM: (Continued) <br />A. Identification, Classification and Standards (Continued) <br />1. Identification: (Continued) <br />Region 12). The distance of the discharges into Grassy Creek to <br />the Yampa River is approximately 8 to 10 miles. <br />2. Classification: Segment 12 is classified for the following <br />uses: Recreation, Class 2; Aquatic Life, Class 1 (Cold); <br />Agriculture. <br />3. Numeric Standards: The standards which have been assigned in <br />accordance with the above classifications can be found in 3.3.0 <br />Classifications and Numeric Standards for the Upper Colorado <br />River Basin and North Platte River (5 CCR 1002-8). It should be <br />noted that this facility does not discharge pollutants which are <br />limited by water quality standards with the exception of pH. <br />B. Receiving Water Data <br />1. Stream Low Flow: Not applicable; effluent limitations are not <br />flow based. <br />IV. FACILITY DESCRIPITION: <br />The Grassy Cap Coal Mine is an inactive and reclaimed surface coal <br />mine. All discharge points at this facility are associated with surface <br />water discharges from the reclaimed areas. No active mining has <br />occurred at this site since 1985, and Rockcastle has removed all mine <br />facilities from the area, including fuel storage facilities. <br />The Rockcastle Company has completed significant reclamation at the <br />Grassy Gap mine site. Specifically, the permittee has completed all <br />backfilling and grading activites at the site. Surface areas have been <br />recontoured, and the most of the areas have been previously <br />revegetated. All disturbed areas have been reseeded. Pits 1, 2, 3, 5, <br />and 6 have been reclaimed; disturbed areas associated with these <br />discharge points (002, 003, 004, and 005) were reseeded between 1979 and <br />1985. Thus, revegetation is well established on these areas, according <br />to the permittee. Reseeding of the disturbed area associated with Pit 4 <br />(discharge point 001) was completed in 1990. <br />According to the permittee in the 1990 permit renewal application, none <br />of the disturbed areas at the site have spoil spring discharges. <br />However, as indicated in the previous (1985) rationale, there exists a <br />spoils water seep near the base of pit 5, which is a reclaimed area <br />associated with discharge point 005. The 1985 samples showed the <br />discharge was of very poor quality (with total iron in the range of 10 <br />[0 15 mg/1). Discharge point 005 has discharged intermittently six <br />