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iii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiii 999 TO: Dan Hernandez 7 July 1997 FROM: Jim Burnell SUBJ: Penalty Assessment for NOV C-97-007 Dan, would you please consider serving in the function of assessment officer for the referenced NOV, cited 1 I June 1997, against the Pittsburg & Midway Coal Company, Edna Mine, Permit #C-80-001. Please consider the following issues as part of [he assessment process. In considering the penalty, please note that the violation is written in 4 parts: (1) erosion from an access road (at a location referred to as the "super curve") which gullied and deposited sediment into an undisturbed area; (2) short-circuiting of a sediment pond, also resulting in gullying of an undisturbed area and discharge of disturbed area run-off into a stream untreated; (3) erosion from a reclaimed area resulting in gullying and sediment depostion in an undisturbed area; (4) over-filling with sediment of one in a chain of sed ponds and short-circuiting of a second pond in the same chain. In the following discussion, these numbers will be maintained for your convenience. Severity: (1) This is a rather serious erosion event. A number of gullies have cut into an embankment of undisturbed vegetation, creating gullies as deep as 4 feet. Sediment eroded from the road and embankment has been deposited in the bottom of the gulch into undisturbed aspens and shrubs, creating a depositional "fan" reaching 50 feet from the toe of the embankment, spreading at least 25 feet perpendicular to transport direction, and reaching a depth of up to 8 inches. Already noxious weeds (thistle) are invading the newly deposited sediment. (2) The severity of this short-circuit is impossible to quantify because the effects include the discharge of water directly from a reclaimed azea into Trout Creek. From what can be seen, the gullying is not as severe as that described in part (1). Gullying up to approximately 30" deep occurred in an undisturbed area. Sediment was dropped into the active flood plain of Trout Creek during high water, so evidence of amount and severity was washed on downstream. Only the qualitative effect of dumping disturbed area drainage into Trout Creek can be cited. (3) The severity of this erosion is similar to that at #(1). Several lazge gullies eroded from the north end of the reclaimed Moffat area passed through an undisturbed area, propagating the gullies over a distance of 200 feet, with gullies up to 3 feet deep. Sediment was dumped into the undisturbed area -sagebrush and associated vegetation - over an area 120 feet wide