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<br />Project Overview <br />General Project Description <br />Colorado Westmoreland Inc. currently operates an underground coal mine <br />near Paonia in Delta County, Colorado. This mine (Figure 1) is known <br />as the Orchard Valley Mine. The mine has been expanded in area since <br />the late 1970's by way of a series of leases from the Bureau of Land <br />Management. The surface area overlying the underground coal deposits <br />has subsequently expanded beyond the initial lease boundaries. <br />Additionally, core drilling operations have been undertaken on potential <br />]ease areas. In 1984 an additional lease is being requested which would <br />substantially increase the mine operation area and its area of potential <br />impact beyond the original lease boundaries. This new lease will add to <br />and essentially encompass previous coal lease tracts and their various <br />combinations of private and public surface land. <br />Puraose of Present Stud <br />• In May of 1984, Colorado Westmoreland contracted with Centuries Research <br />of Montrose to prepare this report. Steven G. Baker was named Principal <br />Investigator for the project. The purpose of the project was to provide <br />Colorado Westmoreland with a synthesis of previously completed cultural <br />resource studies within and/or adjacent to the maximum lease boundaries. <br />This synthesis will be used by Colorado Westmoreland in planning <br />additional cultural resource inventory and management studies. Such <br />studies will be necessary for Colorado Westmoreland to meet the <br />requirements of the Office of Surface Mining and the Bureau of Land <br />Management relative to cultural resources. These requirements particularly <br />relate to demands of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 <br />and Executive Order 11593. <br />The present report was, therefore, envisioned as an initial planning <br />document which would summarize what is currently known about the nature, <br />significance, and density of cultural resources previously identified <br />in or near the project area. A major focus of the study is to provide <br />a basis for predicting the scope of work which may be necessary to <br />minimally comply with the requirements of the previously mentioned <br />legal mandates and the operational requirements of the involved <br />regulatory agencies. <br />