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IIIIIIIIIIIIIIII III 3-1o-DO <br />~ 999 <br />Battle Mountain Gold Briefing <br />Dave Akers -Water Quality Control Division <br />The Company <br />Battle Mountain Gold Company developed an open pit/cyanide heap-leach mine (the San Luis <br />Mine) which is located approximately four miles northeast of the town of San Luis in Costilla <br />County. <br />The company obtained a mining permit from the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Board in <br />March of 1989 and reining began in January of 1990. Mining facilities consisted of two open <br />pits (the "West" and "East" Pits), a tailings disposal facility, and associated wa::te rock storage <br />and support facilities. Mining operations ceased in mid-October of 1996 with the exhaustion of <br />nilne-able ore reserves in [he Wes[ Pit. Surface backfill of the West Pit was completed in <br />August of 1997 and re-vegetation of the reclaimed West Pit area was completed in October of <br />1997. <br />Post-Reclamation Issues at the Mine Sile <br />In late October of 1998 a seep was discovered flowing from the bank of the Rito Seco <br />downstream of the reclaimed West Pit. The Rito Seco is a small stream that runs from the <br />Sangre De Cristo mountains through the mine site and south to San Luis. The seep was <br />collected and the results of the analysis of the sample show that the seep contained <br />concentrations of several metals and other pollutants, including arsenic, fluoride:, iron, <br />manganese, sulfate, and zinc. Three other seeps were subsequently discovered flowing from the <br />stream bank into the Rito Seco during inspections by the Costilla County Conservancy District <br />and the Environmental Protection Agency. <br />The Company verbally notified the Division of Minerals and Geology (DMG) and the Water <br />Quality Control Division (WQCD) of [he presence of [he seeps on October 28, 1998, and <br />notified the WQCD in writing on November 2, 1998. The WQCD was notified due to the <br />potential impact the seeps would have on the Rito Seco as the WQCD has jurisdiction over <br />water that is discharged to streams and lakes. <br />The "leak" that the Alliance For Responsive Mining refers to in their recent Lett.r is most likely <br />these seeps. <br />Battle Mountain Gold's Response to the Seeps <br />Once the seeps were discovered the company, in cooperation with DMG, began an investigation <br />of the cause of the seeps and a development of a remedy that would ultimately reverse [he flow <br />of water from the West Pit and eliminate the seeps. <br />The company shared the results of their investigation and their proposed remed~~ with the <br />WQCD shortly after it had been submitted to DMG in June of 1999. <br />The principal aspect of the project that the company offered to solve the problem is a "pump and <br />treat" system to lower [he water level in [he Wes[ Pit and discharge higher quality treated water <br />