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III IIIIIIIIIIIII III <br />RECEIvCU 999 <br />Mountain Coal Company d~~ 2 ~ ~~ ' ` <br />West Elk Mine <br />Post Otfce Box 591 " <br />Somerset, Colorado 81434 <br />Telephone 970 929-5015 I~jVI6i8A Bt MlHOfdl& ~ ~1ddIHgY <br />Fax 970 929-5595 <br />° D <br />7- ~s-~, <br />July 15, 1997 <br />Mr. Michael P. Boulay <br />DIVISION OF MINERALS AND GEOLOGY <br />Office of Mined Land Reclamation <br />1313 Sherman Street, Room 215 <br />Denver, CO 80203 <br />Re: West Elk Mine, Permit No. C-80-007, Minor Revision No. 222, Helicopter <br />Supported Exploration Drill hole <br />Dear Mike: <br />Mountain Coal Company (MCC) requests Minor Revision No. 222 to prepare a coal <br />exploration site and complete a drill hole utilizing helicopter support. Exploration site 97- <br />15-1 is one of two drill holes (the other drill hole is 97-19-1) that will be completed this <br />summer with helicopter support, as these sites would be very difficult and costly to access <br />with typical road-traveling equipment. As this will be MCC's first experience with <br />helicopter supported drilling, these drill holes will be considered a test of this drilling <br />technique. (Drill hole 97-19-1 is covered under a separate Notice of Intent to Explore <br />currently being reviewed by the Division.) <br />The site of drill hole 97-15-1 is located on land and coal owned by Mountain Coal <br />Company within the existing permit boundary in the S1/2 Section 15, T13S, R90W, 6th <br />P.M. (see map attached) at 7,520 feet in elevation. The total projected depth of the drill <br />hole is 1,465 feet. A site specific clearance survey for Threatened and Endangered species <br />was completed in May 1997, and is attached. <br />The access to exploration site 97-15-1 will be via helicopter and foot paths. The <br />helicopter will utilize the airports in Paonia, Delta, and/or Montrose for mobilizing <br />equipment and personnel. MCC's helipad or other existing open areas on the mine site <br />may also be utilized if needed for mobilizing personnel and supplies. <br />The exploration site, approximately 30' X 30' in size, will be hand-cleared of brush and <br />small trees, and approximately one-foot of topsoil will be salvaged by hand. Topsoil will <br />be stockpiled along the upslope edge of the pad and marked with a "Topsoil" sign. A <br />sediment control trench one-foot wide and six-inches deep will be dug along the down- <br />