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EXHIBIT E <br />RECLAMATION PLAN <br />It is anticipated that the future use of the mined area (1302.3 acres) shall be a state <br />wildlife refuge, with adjacent irrigated cropland, and acounty/local park. (See Exhibit ~ <br />The reclamation is to consist of approximately 410 acres of lake water surface, 220 acres <br />of reclaimed shoreline area, 150 acres of parkland/lake, 515 acres of crop and grassland, <br />and 7.3 acres of relocated drainage ditches. The lakes and ponds will be groundwater <br />based and will be created by excavation below the local water table. The lake shoreline <br />and cropland will consist of subsoil and waste materials overlain by topsoil materials. <br />These materials will be excavated during mining and stockpiled until such time that the <br />mining operation allows for their grading into the shoreline configuration. The relocated <br />irrigation ditches will be cu[ to the north and east along the Atchison Topeka and Santa <br />Fe Railroad and the un-mined phases respectively. The on-site irrigation ditches may be <br />relocated at any time prior to being encroached upon by mining activities. <br />The 540 acre wildlife refuge and lake system reclaimed use was chosen because of the <br />great expense of filling the site after mining and the compatible uses of the riparian area <br />along the Arkansas River. The reclaimed shoreline will be graded at a 3H:1 V side slope <br />from the top of the excavation to ten feet below the typical water surface elevation. <br />Below this point the shoreline will be graded at 2H:1 V slope to the bottom of excavation. <br />The shoreline will be graded in an undulating, non-prismatic configuration to make the <br />lake system more usable for wildlife and more natural and appealing for aesthetic <br />purposes. Approximately 20% of the shoreline of each lake will have an underwater <br />terrace graded at 10 to 20 feet wide and two to four feet underwater to allow wetlands <br />to develop. <br />The lake system will allow varied habitat for wildlife and existing roads will be left to <br />access the lake system. The series of lakes will reduce wave action and erosion, allow <br />stepping the lake system water surfaces to match the water table more closely. This will <br />also protect the integrity of the lake system in case of river head cutting and river bank <br />erosion. The irrigation ditch relocation is necessary for the mining operation and the <br />continuing farming operation, and the proposed ditch cross section will be similar to what <br />is existing. <br />This final land use as a wildlife refuge and lake system is not unusual for this area. <br />' Specifically, there have been other mining operations near the Arkansas River which have <br />been converted to this use. Beyond merely the local land uses it is typical for mining <br />operations to have remaining lake systems within floodplains of most major river systems <br />within the State of Colorado. <br />E-1 <br />