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is currently used as winter/spring range for domestic sheep. <br />Wildlife species found within the permit area include mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus), <br />pronghorn antelope (Antilocapra americana), and sage grouse (Centrocercus <br />urophasianus). Numerous raptor species have been identified in the area. Species <br />include the ferruginous hawk (Buteo regalis), turkey vulture (Cathortes aura), marsh <br />hawk (Cireus cyaneus), American kestrel (Falco sparverius), sharp-shinned hawk <br />(Accipter shiatus), burrowing owl (Spestyto cunieulaira), red-tailed hawk (euteo <br />jamaicaensus), and golden eagle (Aquila chrysauetos). Bald eagles (Hliaeetus <br />leucocephalus) and peregrine falcons (Falco seregrinus) are known to migrate through <br />the area. Large white-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys leucurus) towns exist in the area of <br />the refuse disposal sites. <br />Description of the Operation and Reclamation Plans <br />The Deserado Mine is an underground operation utilizing both continuous miners and <br />longwall mining equipment to extract the "D" (upper) and "B" (lower) coal seams. <br />Mining operations conducted during previous permit terms have extracted the D seam. <br />D seam mining was completed, and B seam mining commenced in 1999, and will <br />continue during the current permit term. <br />Raw coal is transported out of the mine by conveyor to the D/B-Portal Area wash plant <br />where the coal is crushed and cleaned. The coal is then transported 3.1 miles to the <br />rail loadout facility via an over-land conveyor system. The coal is conveyed to the slot <br />storage building, which can store up to 25,000 tons of coal. From this building coal is <br />conveyed 1800 feet to the loadout area. Clean coal is then transported by electric rail <br />to the Bonanza Power Plant in Vernal, Utah. <br />The rail loop and facilities within the rail loop were removed from the permit and the <br />reclamation plan with the approval of Permit Revision 04. The loadout tower will remain <br />in the permit and reclamation plan as will all of the structures that convey the coal to <br />that point. Blue Mountain Energy will keep all operations related to the mining <br />operations and the loading and transport of coal separate. The decision to remove the <br />rail loop and associated facilities was based on IBLA decision 94-366. <br />Coal processing waste generated at the wash plant facility is trucked approximately 3.6 <br />miles to the refuse disposal area located east of the rail loadout in the northeast portion <br />of the permit area. The refuse disposal area includes eleven subareas of refuse <br />deposition. The first subarea (RP-1) was reclaimed in late 1990, implementing a <br />revegetation study that involved variations from the required four feet of cover. <br />Combined Refuse Area RP-2/3/4, and the adjacent Refuse Area RP-5A are currently <br />active, and the remaining subareas have yet to be developed. Non-coal solid wastes <br />are hauled to an off-permit landfill by a contract trash service or are disposed of at the <br />Halandras landfill in the northwest portion of the permit area. The first six pits of that <br />dump have been reclaimed and pits 7 and 8 are active. <br />