HYDRO27034 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

JUSTIFICATION OF SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT FOR CO C-88-017 Facts of the Violation To begin the conference, James C. Stevens, reclamation specialist, briefly outlined the facts of the violation at my request. Cessation Order (CO) No. C-88-017 was written for: "Failure to adhere to the conditions of the permit thus violating the permit and causing or being reasonably expected to cause significant environmental harm to land, air, or water resources. Failure to maintain a support facility to prevent damage to fish, wildlife, and related environmental values. Failure to conduct surface coal mining operations to minimize disturbances and adverse impacts of the operations on fish, wildlife, and related environmental values. Specifically, a flocculent or coagulant not described in the permit application nor approved in the permit was used by the operator as part of the treatment of mine water prior to its discharge into the natural surface water drainage system. This flocculent or coagulant or other additive to the mine water in the treatment facility was then directly discharged in company with the mine water in quantities lethal to fish resident in that natural surface water drainage system." The death of fish in the Purgatoire River was anonymously reported to have occurred on or about tdarch 5, 1988. This CO was issued by the Division on April 5, 1988. The CO contained four abatement steps. Briefly summarized the abatement steps include: (1) Institute a water quality monitoring program for the mine water discharge, Ciruela Canyon, and the Purgatorie River, commencing immediately and continuing until a permanent monitoring program has been implemented, which was later modified on May 3, 1988 to consist of two additional biomonitoring studies during the months of May and June, 1988; (2) Submit a complete and adequate technical revision, describing the entire mine water treatment system, by Mdy 1, 1988, later amended by the Division on April 7, 1988 to require submission by June 10, 1988; (3) Secure final approval of that technical revision, prior to any modifications to the system, within 70 days following receipt of the complete technical revision application; and (4) Implement the approved treatment and monitoring program, within 30 days following receipt of final approval.