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During the June 20, 1996 inspection, the Division did not find that vegetation on <br />reclaimed ditches was adequate to control erosion and similaz to the reclaimed azea. The <br />Division decided to continue to evaluate the vegetation on these areas through the <br />summer months. Subsequent observations indicate that vegetation similaz to the <br />surrounding area is becoming established on the reclaimed ditches, and that vegetative <br />cover is adequate to control erosion. <br />Mitigation of Irr~acts to the Hydrologic Balance of the Permit and Adjacent Areas <br />Sun Coal Company, in the permit application package, prediMed that the Meadows No. <br />1 Mine would have a negligible impact on the hydrologic balance of the permit and <br />adjacent areas. The prediction discussed potential impacts to surface water and ground <br />water. <br />All of the disturbed area drains, either directly or via its tributaries, to the Yampa River. <br />Sun Coal Company has monitored surface water discharges from ponds over the liability <br />period, the results of which indicate dischazge from the mine does not exceed established <br />effluent limits. Monitoring of water in the Yampa River through February 1986 indicated <br />there was no apparent effect from the mine on surface water quality or quantity. <br />The three sedimentation ponds, located on the portion of the pit area owned by John and <br />Allie Eilts, will remain as permanent impoundments to be maintained by the Eiltses. The <br />ponds discharge each Spring, in response to snowmelt. The past history of compliant <br />discharges from the pond indicate that pollution of surface water is not occumng, and <br />is not expected to occur in the future. <br />Mining at the Meadows No. 1 Mine did not disrupt any local aquifers. No ground water <br />of regional significance has been detected at the mine. The nearest regional aquifer is <br />the overlying Trout Creek Sandstone. The area which has been mined lies <br />stratigraphically below the Trout Creek Sandstone aquifer, and the Trout Creek <br />Sandstone does not occur within the mining area. No water was encountered in the coal <br />seam mined (Pinnacle) or in any of the overburden strata which were disturbed during <br />mining. There are no adjudicated wells in the Pinnacle coal seam aquifer in the vicinity <br />of the mine. The Pinnacle coal seam was mined at the outcrop, in the rechazge zone. <br />The operation did not affect any of the nearest major regional bedrock aquifer, therefore <br />the probability that the mine caused degradation of water quality in the aquifer is nil. <br />The Division, in its 1988 "Proposed Decision and Findings of Compliance" document for <br />the first permit renewal, predicted that a spoils aquifer could potentially develop in the <br />azea of the baclcfilled pit. To date, the absence of spoils springs indicate that a spoils <br />aquifer did not develop. The document also noted that prior to mining, the Pinnacle coal <br />seam received no groundwater recharge due to an impervious shale above the seam. <br />Breaking, removal, and mixing of the shale during mining and reclamation processes <br />resulted in the shale layer no longer restricting rechazge of the coal seam. However, <br />standard percolation tests demonstrated that infiltration and percolation rates through <br />the backfill are so low that recharge is not expected. Accordingly, the potential for <br />Meadoaa No. 1 Mine 6 Phase nl Bond Release <br />