GENERAL32227 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

CHAPTERTWO agency Preferred fiiternatlue regazding potential impacts. It addresses mitigations for mule deer, sage ~~ouse, migratory • birds, and raptors. 2.1 PROJECT MODIFICATIONS In response to public and agency comments on the Draft EIS and other permit reviews, American Soda commits to the following modifications to the Yankee Gulch Project. Piceance Site • The proposed cooling tower at the Piceance Site, identified in Section 2.2..1.2 of the Draft EIS, has been eliminated and replaced by an air~ooled unit with no discharge to the evaporation pond or the atmosphere. • A 1-acre stormwater retention pond has been added to the Piceance Site ~idjacent to the Piceance evaporation pond, as shown in Figure 2-2 (modified). The total disturbance azea for the stormwater retention pond would be approximately 1.6 acres. The pond was designed to contain the 100-yeaz, 24-hour precipitation event, plus an additional 50 percent of the precipitation event, plus the volume of the largest on-site storage container. Stormwater runoff from the initial processing facility would be routed to the retention pond. Solids would be allowed to settle in the retention pond and decant water would be discharged upon visual inspection into intermittent channels tributary to Piceance Creek. The pond would also be equipped with pumps capable of purging the pond and storing thf: water in on-site tanks, if necessary. The layouts of the initial processing facility and evaporation pond in Figure 2-2 (modified) have been updated since the Draft EIS. The proposed sizes of the facilit;+ and pond have not changed, but the layouts shown in the modified figure aze more represen~~ative of these features to scale. The Yellow Creek Jeep Trail (Rio Blanco County Road 83) would not lx; realigned as shown on Figure 2-2 in the Draft EIS, but would be upgraded in its present location. Based on discussions among American Soda, Rio Blanco County Road and Brdgc: Departrnent, and the BLM, the Yellow Creek Jeep Trail would remain a county road as it is currently aligned. Refer to Figure 2-2 (modified). Rio Blanco County requires, as a condition of approval for its Major Development Permit, that American Soda assume responsibility for all construction and maintenance costs for the road during construction and commercial operation of the mine for portions of the road to be used by the project. The mad would be widened and graveled in the vicinity of the initial processing facility. The road is currently aone-lane, 12-foot-wide dirt road, and it would be widened to two 12-foot-wide lanes. The Rio Etlanco Road and Bridge Department and the BLM would oversee the design and construction of the road improvement. The initial widening would occur approximately 0.5 mile on either side of the proposed initial processing facility. In future years, as mining activities progress northwazd in the mine panels, the road would be widened and graveled to access each subsequent mine panel. The total length of road to be upgraded is approximately 1.9 miler. The total proposed long-term disturbance due to the road upgrade is approximately 3.7 acres compared to an estimated 5.2 acres for the 6,200 feet (1.2 miles) of trail realignment described in the Draft 2-2