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• • • <br />C. Hackground <br />The west Elk underground coal mine is located in Gunnison and <br />Delta Counties, Colorado. The mine has been in operation <br />since 1982 and was originally named the Mt Gunnison No. 1 <br />Mine. About 108 acres have been affected by surface <br />disturbance to date. The total permitted area of the west Elk <br />Mine contains about 5540 acres- The mining operations utilize <br />longwall and room-and-pillar mining methods and are mined at <br />an average production rate of about 6 million tons per year. <br />Mining is currently planned to continue for 30 years. <br />The West Elk Mine mining plan for Federal leases C-1362, <br />C-0117192, and D-044569 was initially approved on July <br />15, 1981. Since that approval there have been four (4) <br />~~,4~ mining plan modifications for those Federal leases which <br />~a r were approved on August 15, 1985, September 27, 1985, <br />November 21, 1987, December 22, 1989. In addition, a new <br />~~~' mining plan was approved on December 21, 1994 for Federal <br />-1~ lease COC-54558. A total of 4548 acres of Federal coal <br />`~' exist in the curencly approved mining plan areas. A <br />~~a total of 16.5 million tons of Federal coal exist in the <br />Ci rY'' currently approved mining plan areas. A total of 2472 <br />acres of Federal surface land exist in the currently <br />~6Y approved mining plan areas. <br />f'"~ Mining in the F seam has ceased because it is considered <br />uneconomical at this time. Mining is now acc~rring only in <br />the B seam. <br />D. statement of Environmental Significance of the Proposed Action <br />The undersigned person has determined that the proposed action <br />would not have a significant impact on the quality of the <br />human environment under section 102(2)(C) oi' the National <br />Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), 42 U_S.C. <br />§§ 4332(2)(C), and therefore, an environmental impact <br />statement is not required. <br />This finding of no significant impact is based on the <br />following environmental documen[s prepared by BLM and OSM for <br />the leasing of Federal leases COC-56447 and C-1362: <br />- BLM, 1979. West Central Colorado Coal Environmental <br />Statement. <br />- OSM, June 1981. Mt. Gunnison Mine Mining Plan <br />Modification Environmental Assessment. <br />- OSM, August 1985. Mt. Gunnison Mine Mining Plan <br />Modification Environmental Assessment. <br />- OSM, September 1985. Mt. Gunnison Mine Mining Plan <br />Modification Environmental Assessment. <br />D "d 0505626 0L6 ~~J3rp ~N3/N I ~~JOV LJOti~ Wd90 ° Z 666 l -ZO-Z t <br />