2006-07-18_REVISION - M1977342

• Permit No: M1977342
• IBM Index Class Name: Revision
• Doc Date: 7/18/2006
• Doc Name: Response to objectors letter
• From: Climax Molybdenum
• To: DMG
• Type & Sequence: AM5
• Media Type: D
• Archive: No

Climax Mol ybdenum
A Phelps Dodge Company
July 6, 2006
Mr. Allen Sorenson
Division of Minerals and Geology --
1313 Sherman Street, Room 215
Denver CO 80203
RECE80~ E~
/JUL 18 2006
Y pivision of Minerals and Geola6Y
COLORADO OPERATIONS
Henderson Operations
P.O. Box 68
Empire, CO 80438
Phone [phone]
Fax [phone]
Re: Henderson Operations, Amendment AM-O5, Permit No. M-1977.342
Dear Mr. Sorenson:
On behalf of Climax Molybdenum Company ("Climax'), this is in response to the June 26, 2006 letter from
John P. Dolan regarding Henderson's Amendment AM-06 ("Amendment"). Mr. Dolan contends that: 1)
publication of the Amendment should have been made in newspapers of record in Grand County, 2) the
information provided to the Grand County planning and zoning department regarding the Amendment
"differs materially" from the notice of the Amendment published in the Clear Creek Courant, and 3) the
time for consideration of the Amendment be extended in order to "establish with the Grand County
commissioners a time and place for public input from the citizens of Grand County." Mr. Dolan's
assertions are addressed in order below.
1) Publication of notice in Grand County newspapers is not required.
Climax's publication of notice of Amendment AM-OS only in Clear Creek County is supported by the
Department of Minerals and Geology's regulations and forms and by direction from Division staff. Rule
1.6.2(d) requires publication of notice "in a newspaper of general circulation in the locality of the proposed
mining operation." Section nine of the "Reclamation Permit Application Form" for "Regular (112(d))
Designated Mining Operation(s)" defines the "location" of a mining operation as "the center of the area
where the majority of mining will occur lies." As was stated in the AM-06 application, this is ClearCreek
County, not Grand Cqunty. -In The Division's adequacy review letter dated May 3, 2006, Climax was
asked to use information from the original permit documents showing the Henderson Mine in the Location
Information (Item 9) of the application.
This position is corroborated by a comparison of C.R.S. §34-32-112(10)(b), which only requires
publication "in a newspaper of general circulation in the locality of the proposed mining operation,"
with C.R.S. §34-32-112(10)(a), which requires filing a copy of the application at "the office of the county
clerk and recorder of the county in which the affected land is located." If the legislature had intended
to require publication in all counties in which there would be affected lands, it would have used the same
language from subsection -112(10)(a) in subsection -112(10)(b).
This interpretation of the applicable statutes, regulations and DMG forms is consistent with actions by
DMG staff during the Amendment AM=06 adequacy review process. During the adequacy review
process, Climax's permitting consultant asked the DMG staff representative whether publication of notice
of the amendment should occur in both Grand and Clear Creek counties. He was told that publication
should occur only in Clear Creek County. This was consistent with DMG staff's required revisions of the
AM-OS application documents during the adequacy review process. These revisions, referenced in the
May 3, 2006 letter from the Division to Climax, emphasized that from a reclamation permitting perspective