Laserfiche WebLink
//~Kennecott COLOWYO MINE <br />~ STATE L.k?JU 6OAftG 5731 Stale Highway 13 <br />Meeker, Colorado 2~~¢1.~+ an sr <br />~ nergy ~ECE~y~p Phone. (970) 824-16'~~C~. _,~/ <br />ps ~~1~ i ~ ~~a. , ~ ~€P-~ ~ WWI <br />August 12, 2005 <br />Ms. Karen Zurek DiVisi0n ~f Miner !,; ao6 Geology <br />Bureau of Land Management <br />Colorado State Office <br />2850 Youngfield St. <br />Lakewood, Colorado 80215 <br />RE: Request for a Lease Modification for Federal Coal Lease D-034365 for Colowyo Coal Company <br />Dear Ms. Zurek: <br />Colowyo Coal Company (Colowyo) requests a modification to Federal Coal Lease D-034365 under the terms and conditions of 43 <br />CFR, Chapter II, Subpart 3432 -Lease Modification. This request supersedes the modification requests filed with your office on <br />August 18, 2004 and December 10, 2004. Granting the lease modification will allow up to 434,361 additional tons to be recovered <br />by Colowyo's existing operation (2,347 tons by truck shovel and 432,014 tons by highwall miner). This request represents a small <br />area of unleased coal that lies between Lease D-034365 and Lease C-29225, also held by Colowyo. Prior to the early 1970's the <br />requested area was included in Lease D-034365, however, because of BLM roles at that time, the BLM required that a portion of the <br />lease be relinquished. <br />The proposed lease modification adds 60.0 Acres in the existing Federal Coal Lease D-034365. Colowyo owns the surface and <br />BLM administers the coal reserves in the proposed lease modification area. The primary value of leasing these additional acres is to <br />ensure maximum recovery of available tonnage with the existing operations in that area. It is virtually impossible that another <br />company would be able to economically mine the same coal. Due to our close proximity, topography and access aheady <br />established, Colowyo has the proper equipment and personnel to recover the tonnage in an efficient and effective manner through <br />track/shovel and highwall mining operations. <br />The D and E coal seams are targeted for coal extraction in an adjacent ridge to the Colowyo West Pit area. (See Drawing No. 1) <br />The proposed lease modification also falls within the existing mine pemut boundary and disturbance lines approved by the State of <br />Colorado under Permit No. C-81-OI9. All required resource and mining information aze already described in Permit No. C-81-019, <br />including section 4.23 Auger and Highwall Mining, and section 2.04.4 Cultural and Historical Resources Information. Across <br />section of [he coal seams and the respective volumes aze shown on Drawing No. 1, along with a tabulation of Colowyo's projected <br />tonnages and planned methods of mining. In addition we have attached a new legal description for lease D-034365 to include the <br />modified area. <br />The Colowyo LMU includes 180,010,000 tons within the current lease D-034365. The addition of this 60 acre area containing a <br />projected 434,361 tons increases the leased tons by an incidenta10.24%. Furthermore, all of the tons projected to be mined in this <br />lease modification would be bypassed and would be sterilized without this modification. <br />If you have any questions regarding this information please call me at your earliest convenience. <br />Si//'"nry~~ry//cerely, <br />Bob~oun~ <br />Manager, Technical Services <br />Cc: File <br />Robert Emst -BLM <br />Tonia Folks <br />Dick Turpin <br />Jim Stark - DMG <br />,' ,,' <br />Antelope Mine Colowyo Mine Cordero Rojo Mine Jacobs Ranch Mine Spring Creek Mine <br />A member of the kin Tinm Graup <br />