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<br />is mined out to the south approximately one mile from its <br />northern boundary. Access to the coal outcrop beyond the mined <br />out area to the south is located along a very steep hillside, <br />which would be a poor location for a new portal. Another <br />lessee may be able to-construct new portals along this steep <br />hillside to access the reserves, but constructing the infra- <br />structure necessary to support a coal mining operation would be <br />difficult and prohibitively expensive. In order to mine, <br />process and sell coal from the Lease, another lessee would need <br />to construct access roads, portals, conveyors, a washplant and <br />a loadout facility, which in total could cost 15 to 20 million <br />dollars. It is improbable a new lessee could be found who, <br />faced with an uncertain coal market, would commit to an expen- <br />diture of this magnitude. <br />A new lessee may attempt to haul clean coal or raw coal in <br />trucks from a new portal area to a new coal processing area, or <br />loadout in order to reduce capital requirements; however, this <br />option has substantial and possibly insurmountable problems. <br />Trucks hauling from a new portal area would travel through the <br />Rapid Creek residential area, which would be unpopular with the <br />residents. The Rapid Creek residents recently generated <br />adequate support to defeat an application for a Mesa County <br />conditional use permit which would have allowed a quarry <br />operator to haul rip rap through the residential area. A coal <br />operator applying for a conditional use permit to haul coal <br />through the residential area would likely face an equal, if not <br />- 5 - <br />