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HYDROLOGIC BALANCE - SURFACE WATER <br />A. Description of Existing Environment <br />The Mine Plan Area (MPA) lies within the Lower White River drainage system, and <br />is drained by: Scullion Gulch, an ephemeral stream, Red Wash, an intermittent <br />stream, and their tributaries. The area is semi-arid and characterized by <br />light rainfall, low relative humidity and moderate winds. The amount of annual <br />and seasonal precipitation is relatively evenly distributed and amounts of the <br />Uinta Basin. This results in a mean annual precipitation of 9 to 10 inches. <br />Spring precipitation predominates in the area by a small margin, averaging 3.2 <br />inches during March, April and May. Snowfall accumulations are generally <br />small, which is supported by data collected during 1972-1979, showing an <br />average water equivalent precipitation amount of 1.32 inches during December, <br />January, and February. See the Air Resources section of this TEA for further <br />climatological data. <br />Surface Water <br />Scullion Gulch, one of the two primary streams draining the MPA, flows south- <br />east through the central portion of the permit area. The main channel of Red <br />Wash flows only through the southeast corner of the permit area, but its tribu- <br />taries drain the northern and eastern portion of the area. Drainage patterns <br />are incised and dendritic, with Scullion Gulch draining 11.8 square miles and <br />Red Wash draining 122.5 square miles (page II .C-14). Runoff events in both <br />these streams are primarily in response to snowmelt and rainfall. Red Wash, <br />however, receives flow from springs located at higher elevations approximately <br />\ix miles north of the permit area. There are no springs in the permit area <br />itself, although wet weather seeps exist at various sites along the Red Wash <br />channel. Flow monitoring in Scullion Gulch over an inventory period of approx- <br />imately two years revealed that only three run-off events occurred during that <br />time. During the same period, six run-off events in Red Wash were recorded. <br />The White River, which will receive discharge fran the MPA, is a perennial <br />stream. <br />1 <br />