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Salt Creek Mining Company proposes stripping anywhere from 12 to 36 <br />inches of topsoil from disturbed areas, depending on the soil type <br />encountered. The steep slopes and thin nature of the Torriorthent soils <br />will prohibit stripping in some cases. No topsoil will be stripped from <br />areas previously disturbed. <br />Table 4.4-8s of Volume VI of the permit application indicates that a <br />total of 105.7 acre feet of topsoil will be salvaged from areas proposed <br />for disturbance along East Salt Creek under the proposed central <br />facilities area permit revision. Topsoil replacement operations will <br />result in an average soil replacement depth of 18 inches over regraded, <br />non-agricultural areas. Agricultural lands identified for disturbance <br />(2.9 acres) will be retopsoiled to a depth of 24 inches. <br />It is projected that approximately six acre-feet of topsoil will be <br />stripped from all areas to be disturbed within Munger Canyon. This <br />volume will be sufficient to replace topsoil over 12 to 18 acres of <br />disturbance to a depth of 4 to 6 inches. This replacement depth will be <br />sufficient to achieve successful revegetation on the regraded areas. <br />This determination is based on an evaluation of the salvaged material as <br />well as the surficial material over which the topsoil will be respread. <br />A portion of the remaining disturbed <br />road which existed prior to the mine <br />be left, it will be reduced in width <br />area will be retained as a ranch 1_ <br />In the areas where the road will S <br />and outslopes will be reclaimed. <br />A portion of the mine bench will not be topsoiled. These areas consist <br />of fill which was used for grading the road and original ground. Prior <br />to issuance of the initial permanent regulatory program permit, the <br />applicant supplied analyses from grab samples of this material. Although <br />these analyses indicated that the material is suitable for reclamation, <br />it was insufficient for the determination of reclamation feasibility. A <br />stipulation was subsequently attached to the initial permit which <br />required the applicant to provide further analyses of the fill taken to a <br />depth of four feet. The samples taken in response to the stipulation <br />were composite samples taken to a depth of four feet. The analyses <br />indicated slightly elevated SAR levels and an elevated salt level. None <br />of these levels would create a problem during reclamation if proper <br />cultural treatments are used. However, it was not evident whether one <br />distinct layer was elevating these levels or whether the chemical <br />characteristics were uniform throughout the four foot sampling depth. <br />In general, the surface layer is the zone where any degradation of soil <br />characteristics occurs on a mining operation through such things as <br />deposition of coal, watering for dust suppression, and deposition of <br />salts leached from nearby coal stockpiles. If the surface layer has been <br />degraded by surface activities, this layer can easily be isolated during <br />regrading. <br />The applicant proposes to test the soil and add the appropriate <br />fertilizers one year after seeding and planting. The applicant's <br />justification for this is that fertilization prior to seeding will <br />encourage undesirable weedy species to invade the reclaimed site. The <br />Division agrees with this contention in part. However, because <br />-31- <br />