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COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT, Water Quafiry Control Division <br />Amendment No. 3-Rationale. Page 2, Permit No. CO-0000132 <br />F. CMLRB Permit No.: C-81-022 <br />I//. RECEIVING STREAM <br />A. Identification, Classification, Standards and Anhdegradation <br />Identification: This temporary discharge will go to the North Fork of the Gunnison River, segment 3 ojthe <br />Nanl: Fork of the Gunnison River Sub-basin ojthe Gunnison River Basin. <br />2. Classification: Segment 3 is classified jot tl:e following uses: Recreation, Class 2; Aquatic Lije, Class 1 <br />(cold); Agriculture. <br />3. Numeric Standards: The standards which have been assigned in accordance with the above classifications can <br />be found in the Classifications and Numeric Standards jot the Gunnison River Basin, Regulation No. 35 (5 <br />CCR 1002-35), as amended December 14, 1998. The standards subject to this review are shown in the fable <br />on the following page. The hardness value shown in the table and used to calculate !able value standards was <br />supplied by the permittee. This value represents the mean of 22 data points collected in tl:e Nonlt Fork of the <br />Gunnison River below the mine sire over the period from June 1978 through September 1998. <br />4. Antidezradation: This segment is not subject to nn antidegradation review under provisions of section 31.8(2) <br />of The Basic S~mtdards and Merftodoloeies (or Surface Water. Regulation Nv. 31 (S CCR 1002--41) because <br />the discharge is of sFtort-reran mature. <br />IV. PURPOSE OF AMENDMENT <br />/n a letter dated April 27, 1999, the permittee requested temporary authorization of a discharge point. Within the past <br />few months, carbon monoxide levels in the mine led to the belief that there was an underground coal fire. The mine <br />was flooded with river water and then sealed. Boreholes were then drilled into t/te mine at key locations to monitor <br />carbon monoxide levels to assure that the fire was our. During the most recent boring, the drilling equipment carne <br />our wet. This was unexpected because the flooding should not have come up to that level. Subsequent monitoring of <br />the water showed that the level was constantly rising. The pennittee fears that it soon tvi![ flood expensive <br />underground mining equipment. For this reason, they have requested that they be allowed to pump this water out and <br />discharge it to the Nonlt Fork of the Gunnison River. Tltey requested that this point be substituted for the currently <br />authorized mine water discharge point (outjall 011). The authorized point is not being used because of the sealing of <br />the mine. Tltey cannot unseal the mine yet because it has not been determined with certainty Thar the fire is out. <br />V ASSESSMENT OF REQUEST AND DETERMINATION OF POTENTIAL PERMIT CIIANGES <br />The water will be pumped ottt of the mine using a 200 gpm pump. This pumping rare equates [0 288,000 gpd. The <br />pennittee has constructed a surface sedimentation pond with a one acre foot capacity (approximately 326, 000 gallons) <br />outside this borehole to retain this water and accommodate treatment if necessary. This pond can hold roughly one <br />day's pumping. <br />The pennittee sampled the water and submitted the sample to a laboratory for analysis. The Division requested that <br />t/tis analysis include all metals for which the receiving water has standards. The analysis has been received and <br />reviewed by the Division. The reponing limits for analysis results for these metals are too high to directly compare ro <br />[he applicable water quality standards, however a comparison can be made to t/te calculated potential effluent <br />limitations. A summary of the standards, limitations, analytical results and related data is shown in the following <br />table. <br />