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May 24, 1991 iNAY '? ;i ':~~1 <br />iviined Land <br />Mr. James Stevens '~°~'lemation DIVI SIOn <br />1313 Sherman St., Room 215 <br />Denver, CO 80203 <br />Dear Mr. Stevens: <br />I would like to thank all of the individuals that have <br />assisted me in my attempt to bring the Blue Flame Mine to standard <br />on behalf of Blue Flame Coal Co. This process with the Mined Land <br />Reclamation Division has taken a a lot of understanding on both <br />parts. I have learned something about the mining process from Dan <br />'and Harry and many other individuals at the Reclamation Division. <br />I feel they have done their jobs within the guidelines set by the <br />Division, <br />However, I believe we all should have seen a better outcome <br />from all of the energy set forth. The money that has been spent <br />and paid in penalties for Blue Flame has been substantial, and it <br />seems as though the Division cares little about individuals who <br />manage on this side of the operations. Moreover, if we were as <br />large as National King Coal, we might have had a better chance to <br />interact with the Bureaucrats at your level. I have come to <br />believe that the regulations are not set as a standard for all to <br />follow, but made to keep the small companies out of competition. <br />An example of this would be the pond certification. This has <br />been an ongoing problem on site. However, the money spent by Hlue <br />Flame has been incredible. This pond has cost over $35,000 and <br />because it could not be completed by May 1st, we have just <br />forfeited another $20,000. This goes to show you how the Division <br />has acted arbitrarily. The Agreement stated that May 1st would be <br />the deadline unless weather conditions did not permit construction <br />to be implemented. Mr. Allen Small has stated that this could not <br />be done before this date for these reasons. In fact, additional <br />time was granted by Mr. Rainey because of the snow cover. <br />Furthermore, the financial obligation to do this work could not be <br />met by Blue Flame, and when L & L approached the Division to <br />release some of the penalty money so that construction could be <br />done, they declined. The outcome is for Blue Flame and L & L to <br />have a net loss of $20,000. <br />The most ironic side of this picture is that less than a half <br />mile away, a pond that could net withstand the flow of a ten year, <br />twenty-four hour storm stands with gopher holes and the company <br />goes on without a raze. This might be a coincidence; however, when <br />& L asked for something from the Division, such as a transfer of <br />ownership this could not be done by the Division under its own <br />agreed time limit of March 1, 1991. <br />This brings us to the reason L ~ L declined the transfer of <br />the permit. If we are bound to the lima limits and the regulations <br />