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• SUBSIDENCE STUDY PROPOSED LONG-TERM LEASE AREA ORCHARD VALLEY COAL .MINE COLORADO LJESTMORELAND INC. 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 GENERAL Colorado Westmoreland Inc. (CLJI) has been mining coal at the Orchard Valley Mine since 1976. Coal has been mined at several leases; lease C-22184 was acquired from Colorado Consolidated Coal Company. Several additional leases (C-25079, C-27432, and D-036955) were acquired during sub- sequent years. CWI proposes an additional, long-term ]ease area for the Orchard Valley Mine. This proposed long-term ].ease area comprises about 15 square miles. It surrounds the existing lease area on the west, north and east. Coal reserves in the area are owned by the Federal Government, and the surface land is divided between private and federal ownership. The • federal ownership falls under the administration of tl~e U. S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The center of the long-term area lies about 4 miles directly north of the *_own of Paonia. The area of the proposed lease is shown on most Plates that accompany this report. CLJI has performed several studies to obtain appropriate information on the coal reserves within the proposed lease area and additional studies that may provide more information necessary for the mine planning and for the feasibility studies. C6ti'I has also decided to study the impacts of the subsidence within the lease area on natural resources and man-made structures and facilities which are located within this area or within the area of potentia_ subsidence. CWI has collected a major portion of the information needed for such a subsidence study. Geo-Hydro Consulting, Inc. (GEO-HYDRO) was subcontracted to perform the subsidence study using the information gathered by CIv'I or by their consultants during the previous years. - 1 -