PERMFILE72863

• Permit No: M2000077
• IBM Index Class Name: Permit File
• Doc Name: ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT MULE CREEK GRAVEL PIT
• Media Type: D
• Archive: No

' 1 PURPOSE AND NEED FOR THE PROPOSED ACTION
' 1.1 History and Background
' The Pikes Peak Ranger District of the Pike National Forest has received a proposal from PK
Enterprises, Inc. to resume gravel mining at a previously developed quarry located about four miles
south of Divide on the east side of Colorado State Highway 67 in Teller County. The quarry site is
located partly on National Forest System land and partly on private land and is immediately adjacent
to the entrance to Mueller State Park from Highway 67 (see Figure 1.1). It was not known that
National Forest System land was involved until a property line survey was completed in the early
' 1990's.
It is believed that the quarry was originally developed and mined around 1900 to provide base
' material for the Midland Terminal Railway. It was later used as a source of aggregate for
construction of Highway 67 in the late 1930's, and during operation of the railroad, material may
have been periodically mined and transported to other locations by railroad cazs. Major operations at
' the site were discontinued in 1949 when the railroad was abandoned.
The existing quarry covers an azea between 10 and 15 acres, which has been excavated into the
' hillside along the west-facing slope of the valley. The historical mining activity at the site has
created steep unstable cut slopes in the decomposing Pikes Peak granite that aze devoid of
vegetation. Under the mining plan proposed by PK Enterprises, gravel would be removed from the
' site so as to reduce the grade of the existing cut slopes and change the land topography to achieve a
more natural appearance. The proposed reclamation plan would also include revegetation of
disturbed areas to reduce erosion and restore biological productivity.
1.2 NEPA Requirements
' This proposal involves a Federal action that could affect the quality of the environment on public
lands administered by the USDA Forest Service, and thus requires compliance with the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) [PL90-190; 42 U.S.C. § 4331 et. seq.]. The NEPA requires that
' complete environmental information be made available to Federal, state and local agencies;
organizations; and individuals that may be interested in or affected by the Proposed Action.
' Opportunities to review this information and submit comments must be provided before decisions
aze made or actions are taken on public lands.
Under the regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) for implementation of the
' NEPA, an Environmental Assessment (EA) should be prepared to determine whether a proposed
action may cause significant environmental impacts (40 CFR 1500}. The EA provides the Forest
' Service with documentation of an environmental analysis for determining if a proposed action
should be approved under a Finding of No Significant Impact or if an Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) is needed to address potentially significant impacts.
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' Hydrosphere Resource Consulunrs, Inc. 1002 Wnlnut Strce4 Suite 200 Boulder, CO 80302