2004-01-29_REVISION - M1987113 (2)

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CHURCH RANCH - ~~~~', I~D RDCKY PLATS PIT - M-19B 7-1 7 3 V TECHNICAL REVISIDN PADS 7 JAN 2 9 2004 JANUARY 29~ 2004 n Technical Revision Unless specifically discussed below the methods and informa- tion provided in the 1987 mining and reclamation plans will remain unchanged, it is important that one remember that in the existing permit the intent is to remove gravel from the upper level and then mine clay from below the gravel if it exists. Refer to page 7, paragraph 3, of the original permit book. This will be discussed late in this Technical Revision. We are also providing revised maps for Exhibits B, C, C-1 and F and a new legal description for Exhibit A, so they match the Area Reduction request presented under separate cover. Please natal to Map Exhibit G1 - Mining Plan Map /or this section. a. Mnvnvc PL4N Stage RemOVal - The first part of this revision involves removing the 3 stage previously proposed in the approved plan. This changed with the bonding method, in that it goes from a staged operation to one operated as a single stage, with a limited disturbance area. This gives the operator more flexibility during the mine development and allows them to react to the conditions of the deposit as mine progresses. in place of using stages to denote mining direction we have added arrows to the Mining Plan Map - Exhibit C-1 to show the direction we think mining will go as the site develops. Reclaimed slopes 8 Depth of mining - under the current plan the final sloping was to be 2:1, and while this is allowed in the regulations, it creates slopes that are hard to establish vegeta- tion on. According to our discussion, we now feel it is appropri- ate to change the slope rate to 3:1. The Reclamation Plan Map(revised 1/04) shows how we believe the slopes around the mine exterior will look when mining and reclamation ends. The map shows 3:1 slopes. During the original planning of this mine, we estimated that the depth of the gravel was 30 feet. Since then we have obtained drill logs from DOE for the numerous test wells they placed in this area for monitoring groundwater that show the gravel depth varies for 70 to 90 feet deep. The limiting factor on how deep we can mine is