2006-06-14_REVISION - M1978314 (4)

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fundamental concern to the Board: King Mountain's ability to operate and reclaim the affected area responsibly. The Proposed Gravel Pit Expansion Will Have Significant And Adverse Impacts r King Mountain's Permit Conversion Application should be denied because of the significant and adverse impact the proposed expansion will' have on wildlife, conservation and property values, transportation and safety issues, water rights issues, and other aesthetic and recreational concerns, The statute under which you regulate mining activities states: It is the further intent of the general assembly to conserve natural resources, aid in the protection of wildlife and aquatic resources, estab/ish agricultural, recrea>ional, residential, and industrial sites,_and protect and_ promote the health, safety, and genera[ welfare of the people of this state. Here, the former operation (before its transfer to King Mountain) was a small, thirty-year old, family-owned and operated gravel pit that produced less than 1,000. tons of gravel annually. The old ' Hewes annual reports to DMG, typically didn't state what amount of material had been extracted but only stated "very little material taken out" each year. The special use permit governing that small- scale operation was set to expire because the permitted area was almost exhausted. King Mountain intends to transform the gravel pit into a major regional mining operation of up to 258 acres. Accordingly, the requested expansion and its obvious and inevitable effects are and will be significant and detrimental. a. Wildlife Concerns The gravel pit is adjacent to the most important breeding area for the soon to be endangered Sage Grouse in an area of special concern, North Eagle County/South Routt County. Indeed, the proposed expansion is of a very intense land use in close proximity to a significant concentration of grouse. In fact, the world's leading Sage Grouse biologist, Clair Braun, inspected the area in 2005 and unequivocally determined that the proposed gravel pit expansion would be severely detrimental to the Sage Grouse. It is immediately adjacent to most critical breeding areas in region and breeding success is the key factor in Grouse survival. As such, the proposed expansion has potentially significant impacts to grouse populations and their habitats. Although the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service has not yet listed the Sage G"rouse as either an endangered or a threatened species, the DOW has listed it as a "species of special concern," (i.e., ]ow or declining population), and the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management have identified the bird as a "sensitive species." It has been petitioned, and will be again next-year, for Endangered Species protection. Furthermore, the State of Colorado has developed a comprehensive statewide wildlife conservation plan (the "Wildlife Conservation Plan") to protect the species, which plan includes regional and local conservation strategies, such as mitigation strategies to reduce the impact of mining on the bird and its habitgt: In fact, in September 2005, the State of Colorado submitted the Wildlife Conservation Plan to the ~1SFW3. In the original permit conversion process, the Colorado Division of Wildlife (the "DOW") stated "adequate mitigation will only be accomplished through the implementation of one or more •