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Mining Plan south. This pattern is also advantageous for access as it reduces the steepness of the road into • the Hole. In conclusion, although the stability of the Hole is certainly of concern, the sequence of mining removes rziuch of the stability problem that could occur above the Hole and this will make the Hole mulch more stable. Creating the Hole before mining Area MV would not be possible because nearly 200 feet of limestone must be removed from portions of Area MV before the western edge of the Hole can even be exposed. Therefore, it does not appear that instability of the mountainside will be created by excavating the Hole, although small scale instability of individual benches within the Hole may occur. Operational Sequencing: Because of the arrangement of the various portions of the operation to be mined, a clear sequence is dictated that is not only advantageous to the mining process but will also result in early reclamation of the most visible portions of the mine. As discussed above, >refore the Hole (Area H) can proceed very far to the south, most of the mining in Area MV must be completed. Thus most of Area MV will be mined before Area H is developed. But because there is less material upslope from the Hole th the northern portions of Area MV, it is possible that some excavation in the northern end of Area H will occur before • all of Area MV is finished. The amount of rock above the western edge of Area H is quite great in most places, so any mining in Area H will necessarily be limited to only those areas where mining in Area M'V has been completed. A logical extension of Area MV is area MS. The amount of rock present in Area MS, when compared to Areas MV and H, is quite small. Much of the mining in this area will primarily be done to create the fairly gentle, unbenched topography proposed for that area. There are many zither high cliffs in this area left after the completion of mining for the Air Force Academy and these need to be removed. Thus, Area MS will be mined along with the later stages of mining Area MV and the early stages of mining Area H. Clearly Area MS must be finished before mining in Area H is very far along. As the Hole excavation moves to the south access to Area MS will become more limited. Furthermore, because drainage 1TOro Area MS will be into the southern portions of Area H it is certainly advantageous to have Area MS completed before mining in the Hole reaches the southern half of Area H. This will help limit sediment loads into the Hole which would be an additional aggravation to mining in the Hole. In brief, then, most of the mining for the next many years will occur in Area MV with very limited mining in Area H. As Area MV nears completion, major work would begin in • Area MS, although minor work in Area MS may occur during the mining of Area MV. Once Page 24 Pikeview Quarry Amendment Exhibit D