2002-07-09_REVISION - M2001107 - Laserfiche WebLink

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STATE OF COLORADO DIVISION OF MINERALS AND GEOLOGY Department of Natural Resources 1313 Sherman St., Room 215 Denver, Colorado 80203 Phone: (303) 866-3567 FAX: (303) 832-8106 July 9, 2002 Mr. Ken Rollin Rollin Consulting 840 Eagle Drive Eaton, CO 80615 RE: Evaluation of Claystone Bedrock for use as Clay Liner Fill, Northern Colorado Constructors, Inc., NCCI Pit No. I, Technical Revision TR-OZ, File No. M-2001-107 Dear Mr. Rollin: DIVISION OF MINERALS GEOLOGY RECLAMATION MINING•SAFETY Bill Owens Governor Greg E. Watcher Executive Director Ronald W. Cattany Acting Division Director The Division of Minerals and Geology (DMG) has completed a review of the gravel pit liner evaluation for the NCCI Pit No. 1 prepared by Terracon and concurs with the primary conclusion of the report that the claystone bedrock underlying the proposed pit comprises a suitable material that if properly prepazed and placed will serve as an adequate pit liner. As a result, DMG may, as of this date approve technical revision TR-Ol to the permit application and thus incorporate [he geotechnical study into the permit. However, the DMG has further determined, as explained below, that this permit application, is not at this time eligible for the 20 percent reclamation bonding option described in the "Guide to Specification Preparation for Slurry Walls and Clay Liners as a Component of a Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Permit," (Lined Pit Guide) a DMG publication dated September 2000. In order to obtain issuance of a permit for NCCI Pit No. 1, the submittal of the full $824,800.00 reclamation bond is required. As a result, you may wish to ask for an extension to the current Iuly 11, 2002 decision date for the TR-Ol [o allow you to incorporate additional information as discussed below and preserve the Operator's ability to request a 20 percent bond in the future. If DMG does not receive an extension request from you, we will proceed with the TR-Ol approval, and the Operator could incorporate the additional information by a future TR, which would require additional application fees. The basic premise For reclamation bonding as it is administered by the DMG and the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Board is that sufficient monies be available From the forfeiture of the bond for the state of Colorado to contract for and complete reclamation in the event that that an Operator were to default at any time during the conduct of the mining and reclamation operations. The 20 percent bonding, regulated construction option described in [he Lined Pit Guide may only be applied to pit liner or sections of pit liner that have already been completed, with approved construction quality assurance measures employed, but that have not yet undergone post construction testing as discussed on page 13 of the Lined Pit Guide. If a 20 percent bond were applied to pits such as the NCCI Pit No. 1 prior to mining of the pit and installation of the liner, the state of Colorado, in the worst case, could assume reclamation liability under bond forfeiture for a fully mined out pit with no liner installed, and would have funds to line only 20 percent of the pit. Once the Operator of the NCCI Pit No. 1 has mined all or a portion of the permit area, and has installed all or a portion of the required liner to the approved specifications as verified by construction quality assurance observations and test results, the Operator may then become eligible for the 20 percent bonding option for the clay liner that has been completed. Once post construction testing has been completed and passed, the clay liner component of the bond can be reduced to zero. If the Operator intends to file for the 20 percent bonding option in the future, the design plans, specifications, and construction quality assurance plan currently described in the permit