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accompanying reduction in salinity of water in the alluvium. Consequently, • the sodium hazard rating for the alluvial water would remain low, and its use- for agricultural purposes would not be significantly altered. The present quality of water being discharged from the No. 5 Mine may or may not be representative of water developed by the flooded mine in future years. Greater residence time in the mine could result in water more saline and with greater concentration of many constituents, including sodium. In an attempt to determine how representative the No. 5 Mine water may be, the Division requested that Empire Energy provide an analysis of water produced from the Wise Hi11 No. 4 well. This well is located in the permit area and supplies water for dust suppression on the mine roads. The Wise Hill No. 4 well, however, is completed in the flooded workings of the Wise Hill No. 4 Mine, an operation abandoned in the 1970's. While the coal seam in which the Wise Hill No. 4 Mine operated is not the same as the "E" and "F" seams in which the Eagle No. 5 and 6 Mines will operate, it is in the same geologic formation and same geographic area. Most importantly, the water represents approximately the same residence time in a mine as forecast for waters which will flood the Eagle No. 5 and No. 6 Mines. The water from the Wise Hi11 No. 4 We11, however, proved to be less saline than that currently produced by the No. 5 Mine, with both lower sodium and SAR values. The operator's prediction of the quality effects of future subcrop discharge of flooded mine water on the Williams Fork alluvial water is therefore accepted by the Division as being based on the best available estimate of future mine water quality. Impacts of the discharge of water from the flooded No. 5 and No. 6 Mines on • the quality of the Williams Fork River water itself would also depend on the volume of water discharged as well as the quality. Based on the volume estimated by the applicant for this future discharge, its impact on the quality of the Williams Fork River should be less than the impact of the present permitted mine water discharge, assuming anything less than a phenomenal and unlikely increase in the salinity etc. of the water in the flooded mines. The current Duality of water issuing from the natural springs in and near the permit area is generally too poor to encourage beneficial use. No adverse impact on this Duality has been evidenced by the mining operations to date. No impacts of the future operations are anticipated. Surface Water The following potential impacts to the surface water system were identified at the Eagle Mine Complex: 1) Depletion of the quantity of water available to the stream and alluvium, • -37-