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Applicant's Response to Second Adequacy Letter Grand River Park Project, DRMS File M-2006-046 January 2, 2007 Page i i Materials Rules clearly contemplate that sand and gravel operations, along with other mineral extraction activities, will tend to encounter and utilize groundwater resources. Following the Division's own Rules and standard expectations in the recovery of sand and gravel, it is counterintuitive that a recurring theme under the various subheadings of this Comment is the possibility that the Grand River Park Project may be deemed inadequate without offering extraordinary study and mitigation of groundwater effects that are typical of sand and gravel mines and lawful as proposed. Under the present version of Comment 21, the Division has issued a lengthy list of requirements related to potential groundwater impacts. Each requirement is discussed, in turn, below. X21, continued] Specifically, please provide the following: a. A revised Mine Plan Map of a Water Features Exhibit that shows the location and ownership of any registered wells within 600 linear feet of the proposed excavation areas. If any such wells exist, the applicant should also supply available well completion and well type information, i. e.: irrigation vs. domestic well, well permit number, total well depth, depth to water table, well production, etc. Water features, including the location and ownership of state-registered wells within 600 linear feet of the proposed affected area, have been included on Exhibit C-1 (Pre-Mining Plan Map), since that Exhibit was submitted with the original application. The applicant submitted tabular information concerning registered wells, including well completion and well type information, to the Division as part of the Martin & Wood groundwater study. Well records in prior submittals have been checked for accuracy as part of the applicant's review of Comment 21a and new information, including a new map, is attached with the attached second adequacy response letter from Martin & Wood. b. The applicant has stated on page 17 of the application that average groundwater elevation is 5 feet below ground surface across the site. Please provide a discussion of the depth to groundwater below existing wetland resources as well as woody riparian vegetation (cottonwoods, willows) and the seasonal variation in groundwater levels beneath those resources. Further, please provide a discussion of the hydraulic gradient and direction of groundwater flow for the alluvial aquifer to be mined through.