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by County Road 120, Hay Gulch, and existing or past underground mining <br />activities, major housing development or other uses have been at a <br />minimum in the area. <br />Likewise because of the limited amount of space, the historic population <br />of the area tends to reflect a centralization of the population in towns <br />such as Hesperus or Durango where more room is available for housing and <br />development. <br />Recreational opportunities in the permit area, particularly for the <br />hunting of deer, are somewhat limited. The possibility for recreation <br />on the permit area, as long as mining activities are ongoing, is highly <br />unlikely due to the problems involved with safety and potential <br />vandalism. At the conclusion of mining and reclamation activities, the <br />recreational opportunities of the area such as hunting, will probably <br />remain somewhat limited due to the area's proximity to County Road 120 <br />and other existing mines. <br />No major commercial or residential development other than some minor <br />amounts associated with the mining is expected to develop in the permit <br />or adjacent areas mainly because of the compact nature of Hay Gulch. <br />Previous Underground Mining <br />As mentioned earlier, underground activities were carried on in the <br />permit area of Sunbelt since 1905. Historical information regarding <br />this previous underground mining is found in Part 2.04.4, Cultural and <br />Historic Resource Information. From a historical viewpoint, the <br />pre-mining land use, prior to any underground coal mining, was probably <br />as rangeland. <br />The location and extent of surface acreage disturbed by previous <br />underground operations in the area to be utilized by the Peacock Coal <br />Mine is shown on the Vegetation Map (Map 3) and Soils Map (Map 4). The <br />approximate past underground mining limits are shown on the Mine Plan <br />Map (Map S). <br />2.04-4 <br />