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Justification of Settlement Agreement for <br />Notice of Violation C-91-029 <br />Conference Summar <br />NOV C-91-029 was issued on December 31, 1991 by Cathy Begej of the Division, <br />based on an inspection she conducted December 17-19, 1991 at the Southfield <br />Mine. The NOV was issued for "failure to design and maintain the drainage <br />system at discrete locations throughout the disturbed area." <br />Ms. Begej, representing the Division, described the observations she made <br />during the inspection, and indicated that various drainage control structures <br />at the mine facilities area and the rail loadout area had either not been <br />constructed or had not been maintained pursuant to the approved permit. <br />Specifically, at the facility area, two sediment pond collection ditches had <br />not been installed, and a third collection ditch was blocked in several <br />locations. At the loadout area, several ditches had not been constructed and <br />a containment berm was worn down. In total, over 20 separate instances of <br />violation were identified in the NOV. Ms. Begej indicated that, due to <br />disturbed area grading and adjacent topography, potential for off site impacts <br />was minimal and it appeared that no disturbed runoff would bypass the sediment <br />ponds, although there did appear to be some potential for ponding due to the <br />relatively flat topography. <br />Mr. Al Weaver, representing Energy Fuels Coal, Inc. (EFCI) did not dispute the <br />facts as presented by Ms. Begej. Mr. Weaver indicated that EFCI had been <br />aware for some time that drainage modifications were warranted at the loadout, <br />and had discussed alternatives with the Division. Mr. Weaver indicated that <br />maintenance and repair work was initiated prior to receipt of the NOV on <br />January 6 and that several employees worked through a portion of the mine's <br />holiday shut-down. Much of the work was completed by January 3, and all field <br />work was completed by the January 6 abatement deadline. <br />Fact of Violation <br />The essential facts of the violation as set forth in the NOV and described by <br />Cathy Begej during the assessment conference were not disputed by the <br />operator. I find that a violation did occur. <br />Civil Penalty Assessment <br />The proposed civil penalty was: <br />History $0.00 <br />Seriousness $500.00 <br />Fault $750.00 <br />Good Faith $0.00 <br />TOTAL $1250.00 <br />