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Five revisions were approved since the last findings document. <br />Technical Revision 42, approved February 3, 2003, increased the estimate of annual coal <br />production to 6 million tons. <br />Minor Revision 66, approved March 20, 2003, added a water filtration building for <br />treatment of potable water for both the mine operation and the town of Somerset. <br />Minor Revision 67, approved on May 14, 2003, provided an updated estimate of stored <br />topsoil satisfying stipulation number 25. <br />Minor Revision 68, approved on July 9, 2003, added to the permit up-dated as-built <br />diagrams of the all the ponds in the permit area, satisfying stipulation number 34. <br />Minor Revision 69, approved on June 22, 2003, allowed Oxbow Mining LLC to borrow <br />material to backfill the Sanborn Creek fan shaft and portals. The borrow area is located <br />along the Sanborn Creek road corridor East of the mine facilities. <br />As the mine has been in operation since 1902, much of the disturbed azea associated with the <br />mine was affected prior to the effective date of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act <br />of 1977 and the Colorado Surface Coal Mining Reclamation Act. Baseline environmental factors <br />were not measured, and no topsoil was salvaged prior to previous disturbance. Disturbances <br />which have been conducted since the effective date of the Act have been permitted and <br />conducted incompliance with the Act and Regulations. These activities include the Hubbard <br />Creek Ventilation Fan No: 2 facility, the methane degas wells, and the Sanbom Creek Tract. All <br />other areas of disturbance at the mine occurred prior to the effective date of the Act. <br />All surfaces will be returned to the approximate original contour (AOC) with two exceptions. <br />The Bear Creek and Hubbard Creek ventilation facilities will be backfilled only to the extent <br />practical, given the fact that these small facilities azeas aze pre-existing and cut into steep slopes. <br />Furthermore, requests are on file from the federal agencies who manage the surface in those <br />azeas to maintain them in their present condition - as gravel pads pazking lots for users of the <br />access. These requests aze from the US Forest Service for the Upper Hubbazd Creek azea and <br />from the US Bureau of Land Management for the Lower Hubbazd Creek site. <br />A variance from AOC has been granted in accordance with the backfilling and grading <br />provisions of the Regulations (see Section VII of this document). Permanent waste piles will be <br />blended into the surrounding topography. The main mine access road will be left in place <br />following mining in order to provide access to the Somerset Cemetery and Elk Creek. The <br />powerline access road and powerline corridor will be reclaimed. <br />Following grading, all pre-law disturbed areas in the Elk Creek yard will have surface material <br />sampled to determine if it will be suitable for direct revegetation. The Sanborn Creek Tract <br />disturbance will be sampled in a similar fashion. If it is found that the surface material is not <br />13 <br />