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~~ ~ G III IIIIIIIII IIII III - ._S ~ STATE ~ COL~)[ZADO DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAYS •~'rt ~ ~ District II /~J c`t 905 Erie • P.O. Box 536 " Pueblo, ColOreoO 91002 `;~8 (303) 5446266 'o. cmd~ October 19, 1987 District Engineer ATTN: CESWA-CO-R U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Albuquerque District P.0. Box 1580 Albuquerque, New Mexico 87103-1580 RE: REVIEW COMMENTS, 404 PERMIT APPLICATION, N0. CO-OYT-0501-1, Valco, Inc., Lertlar, C0 Dear Sir: On October 15, 1987, representatives from Valco, Inc., the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the Colorado Department of Highways (COON) attendecl a meeting at the Department's Pueblo office. Designs of a proposed relocatEd channel, dike and spillway were discussed at this meeting. The past and current status oP the existing gravel operation in the Arkansas River in Lamar welts discussed, as well as the future operations covered by the proposed permit application. As you know, in the past we have objected to the mining operation<.; because we felt they endarx3ered bridges carrying State Highways 50 and 287 rn~er the Arkansas River. As a result of this last meeting, wce have four issues of concern that we wish to present. 1. We are concerned about the existing mining operations t)ecause of the potential risk to the state highway bridges immediFCtely upstream. We are especially concerned about continuation oP mining operations in the river channel, and the potential los:: of life in the event of sudden bridge failure. We believe there )~s a severe risk, the degree of which cannot be measured without further study and design. The proposed design probably will not adequately protect the bridges at river flows of greater than 10,000 cfs. 2. We believe the proposed lowering of the dike would be i~etter than the existing situation. The lower dike elevation will reduce the backwater and will allow for a lower head after over-Upping, which should reduce the rate of headcutting.