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COLOWYO COAL COMPANY L.P. 5731 State Highway 13 Meeker, Colorado 87641 (970)624-1572 (970) 824-1598 FAx James A. Kilter Senior Environmental Engineer iiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiii /~ neni:v~,~,~t .Energy ,__ COi~O COO~COttlPOfly f,.~. ~ .~q, RECEIVED January 27, 1998 Mr. Byron Walker Environmental Protection Specialist Colorado Division of Minerals and Geology 1313 Sherman Street, Room 215 Denver Colorado 80203 JAN 2 9 1998 Division of Minerals 8 Geology Re: Colowyo Coal Company (Permit No. C-81-019) Technical Revision No. 44 Response to January 22, 1998, Division Adequacy Correspondence Dear Mr. Walker: Colowyo has the following comments concerning the Division's January 22, 1998 correspondence regarding our TR-44 (Section 16 Fill Monitoring and Blasting Records Modification) application. For many years Colorado coal operators have received frequent guidance regarding the requirements for the processing of permit revisions, technical revisions (TR's), minor revisions, permit renewals, etc. The Division's January 22, 1998 letter regarding TR-44 indicates that the proposed public notice accompanying the TR application should contain a description of the entire permit boundary rather than the less complicated description of the specific area affected by the application. Colowyo believes this recommendation is inconsistent with past Division guidance and is contrary to both the Rules and the Statute. The Division has never indicated that the public notices for TR's should include, nor has the interpretation of the CDMG Rules been that a complete description of the permit boundary was required. As such, we ask that the Division reconsider its request for inclusion of a complete description of the complete permit boundary in TR's CDMG Rule 2.07.3(2) is somewhat ambiguous with respect to the issue of what is required for TR's versus the requirements for new permit applications, permit renewals and permit revisions. The Division's past interpretation of CDMG Rule 2.07.3(2) (and subsequent guidance to Colowyo) has been to consider this section of the Rules as containing two distinct subsections. The first sentence of the section addresses, in general terms, requirements regarding the submission of new permits, permit revisions, technical revisions and permit renewals. With regard to "technical revisions' the interpretation has been that the Rule merely requires that the Public notice should contain the 1) ownership; 2) precise location and 3) boundaries of the land to be affected by the proposed surface mining operation. Colowyo's proposed public notices for all TR's, as well as TR-44, have reflected these requirements. It is not until the second sentence of Rule 2.07.3(2) that the Rules specify in more detail what is required with respect to the public notice. However, the second sentence of the Rule is quite specific and addresses onl new permits, permit revisions and permit renewals. Very clearly, this section of the Rule specifically excludes any reference to "technical revisions."