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<br />MINING AND RECLAMATION PLAN Revised February 1981 <br />MT. GUNNISON NO. 1 MINE <br />major watersheds in the project area, and to provide coverage throughout the lease <br />area. Along with the water quality analysis in Table 2.S.1.R, a comparison of the <br />water quality analysis of the springs to water quality standards recommended by the <br />State of Colorado has been performed, and the information is presented in Table <br />2.8.1.5. Indications are that spring water quality is good. Most of the springs <br />located above the F seam show total dissolved solids (TDS) concentrations near or <br />less than 500 milligrams per liter indicating that the water is probably local and <br />that there is not a large continuous groundwater reservoir supplying these springs. <br />To determine the contribution that spring flows make to stream flows in the <br />Gunnison lease block, the spring flows measured in November 1977 were compared <br />with average November flows for Sylvester Gulch, Lower Dry Fork, Lick Creek, <br />South Prong, and Horse Creek watersheds. In making this comparison, it was <br />assumed that seeps did not contribute to stream flow, that none of the spring water <br />was lost by infiltration or evapotranspiration, and that the springs flowed at the <br />same rate all month. The November 1977 sampling period was chosen because <br />spring contributions would be most important at this time to water use in the basin <br />and because a good data base was available for this period and represents the <br />lowest flow of the year. <br />The results of this study are shown in Table 2.8.1.W and indicate that springs <br />contribute to 11 percent of the flow in Lower Dry Fork, 4 percent of the flow in <br />Lick Creek, 12.6 percent of the flow in South Prong, and 0.09 percent of the flow in <br />Horse Creek. Sylvester Gulch data indicates springs contribute 102 percent of the <br />flow, but this is a fictitious number, since the Bear Mine (which currently operates <br />on Atlantic Richfield leases as a contract miner) removes water from Sylvester <br />Gulch upstream of the gaging station. <br />The assumptions made above for calculating the spring contribution to stream flow <br />probably result in high estimates. However, ignoring Sylvester Gulch data, it is <br />possible that springs could contribute up to 6.2 percent of stream flow for the <br />entire lease block in the dry part of the year. <br />2-253b <br />