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-9- <br />and portal and mine bench renovation and stabilization will precede actual <br />mining operations. <br />Bear proposes to produce 250,000 to 300,000 tons of coal per year by room and <br />pillar methods. Mining during the first five-year permit term will be limited <br />to the "C" seam. The applicant anticipates mining of the B, E, and F seams <br />during future five-year permit terms. <br />Mining will commence from the outcrop of the "C" coal seam with some new <br />development entries being driven to complement the exisitng entries found in <br />the Edwards mine. She main entries wi1Z proceed up-dip in a southerly direction <br />with panel development areas extending both easterly and westerly from the <br />mains. <br />Coal will be transported from the underground operations via a conveyor belt, fed <br />into a crusher, and the crushed coal conveyed to a stacking tube and coal <br />stockpile on site. Coal will be trucked to a loadout facility to be determined <br />at a future date (see Section XVIII of the findings in this document). <br />Upon cessation of mining, final reclamation at the Bear No. 3 will entail <br />facilities removal, portal sealing and backfilling, and regrading of the mine <br />bench and face up area to a stable configuration. The regraded area will be <br />ripped, topsoiled and revegetated. <br />The operation and reclamation plan, as presented in the application, entails <br />requests for variances which the Division proposes to approve for approximate <br />original contour (steep slope mining), mining within 300 feet of a residence, and <br />disturbances within 100 feet of a perennial stream. Appropriate mitigation, <br />alternative plans, or waivers have been incorporated into the application. <br />