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<br />-2- <br />I. REVIEW OF MINE STATUS AT MID-TERM <br /> <br />The Red Canyon Mine was issued a four (4) year permanent regulatory <br />program permit on July 13, 1984. The mine is an underground operation <br />located approximately 3 miles west of the town of Cedaredge in Delta <br />County, Colorado. The permit application was submitted by Grand Mesa <br />Coal Company on February 17, 1981. The approved permit allows <br />continued mining of coal from the "E" seam of the Red Canyon No. 1 Mine <br />and expansion of operations to include mining of the "D" coal seam 130 <br />feet lower in the Mesa Verde formation via access portals in the <br />planned Red Canyon No. 2 Mine. The upper seam is privately owned coal, <br />whereas the lower seam includes portions of a federal lease. The <br />current mining operations have been in temporary cessation since April <br />19, 1983. <br />At present, the disturbed area of the mine contains 41 acres of the 624 <br />acres in the permitted area. Existing mine facilities include a single <br />bench with two access portals, the mine office, bathhouse, shop, <br />equipment yard area, air shaft and ventilation fan. Other surface <br />features include an access road, roadside ditches and culverts, <br />diversion and collection ditches and a single sediment pond. An <br />underground development waste disposal pile and other disturbed areas <br />of the mine have been seeded for soil stabilization. The only final <br />reclamation has been at the 14 acre loadout facility in Delta where <br />5.25 acres were seeded in the spring of 1984. Maintenance of surface <br />facilities is continuing and a reduced water quality monitoring program <br />is in effect. <br />During the first half of the permit period, a review of inspection <br />reports and enforcement actions indicated the sediment pond and refuse <br />pile to be the features requiring the most attention on the part of the <br />operator. An extension of the pond excavation was completed on <br />February 22, 1985. Quarterly sediment pond self-inspection reports <br />have been regularly submitted along with NPDES reports. Temporary <br />seeding on parts of the refuse pile have been completed. Minor amounts <br />of refuse from the Blue Ribbon Coal Company's Blue Ribbon Mine were <br />allowed to be placed on the Red Canyon refuse pile as approved by the <br />Division on July 24, 1984. Quarterly inspection and certification of <br />the stability of the refuse pile was not accomplished fora period <br />prior to May, 1986. Subsequent inspection was performed and will be <br />continued on an annual basis (as approved by the Division) during the <br />period of temporary cessation. <br />Following the mine entering temporary cessation, a reduction in water <br />quality monitoring was approved. The frequency of monitoring the deep <br />bedrock wells, alluvial wells, refuse pile wells and surface water <br />stations on ditches, springs and creeks were reduced to bi-annual or <br />tri-annual periods. Some surface water stations and selected <br />constituents were omitted from the monitoring program. The intent was <br />