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The well is located in a fenced-in pasture of about 11 acres in size. Some of the fencing <br />was noted to be knocked down. Many of the fence posts were rotted at the base. The <br />cattle guard that was installed by the mine to prevent cattle access was pushed to the <br />north side of the road. From the condition of the pasture, it did not appear that the <br />pasture had been recently used for grazing. <br />There is no historical information available about the original capacity (water producing <br />rate) of the well. The Tatums stated that they have never used the well. It is not known <br />when the well was used last. During the February 1, 1995 meeting, Mr. Tatum stated <br />that he would be satisfied if the well produced 150 gallons per day, and that production <br />rate would serve his needs. <br />Geo-Hydrologic Description <br />The Raton Formation outcrops in the area of the mine and contains the coal that is <br />mined by the Golden Eagle Mine. The formation contains other coals, as well as <br />interbedded sandstone, shale and siltstone. It is typical in the cyclothemic sequences <br />found in coal-bearing regions that the sandstones are for the most part, lenticular and <br />discontinuous channel sands. These often form locally perched aquifers in the <br />overburden above the coal that is mined. It is typical in coal-containing formations of <br />interbedded shales and sandstones that the coal seams often have the highest <br />permeabilities. Evidence of this can be found along the road cuts along the Purgatoire <br />River as outcrops of weeping coal seams. <br />During the February 1, 1995 joint OSM/DMG inspection of the windmill well, a seep <br />was noted midway between the vent shaft and the windmill well. This seep is a large <br />area of wet wally outcrop mostly barren of vegetation, with a white precipitate covering <br />the exposure. From observations of the wally material, it appears that the seep issues <br />from a thin rider coal seam. The seep appears to be natural. This seep is characteristic <br />of the high permeabilities of the coal relative to the other strata. The seep is about 150 <br />feet away from the windmill well and about 120 feet higher in elevation than the water <br />level in the well. The seep is representative of a perched aquifer in the Raton <br />Formation. The seep indicates that the underlying strata is relatively impermeable. <br />The Purgatoire River, as viewed from the bridge on the Tatums' property, was observed <br />to be cutting through bedrock. This indicates that the alluvium is shallow in this area. <br />The Tatum residence is located 100 feet south of the Purgatoire River and, as observed <br />in the basement of the house, is built on bedrock. <br />There are two springs located south and southeast of the residence. They appear to be <br />issuing from a thin alluvial or colluvial layer, perhaps at the bedrock contact. A small <br />terrace forms a break in the slope of about 5 feet immediately above the two springs. <br />There is a thin layer of colluvial material forming the soil around the area of the <br />windmill well. Four hundred feet south of this well is the unreclaimed remaias of a <br />gravel pit. Here the deposit was deeper and contained more alluvial gravels. <br />2 <br />