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I. REVIEW OF MINE STATUS <br /> The Deserado Mine is an underground operation utilizing both <br /> continuous miners and longwall mining equipment to extract the "D" <br /> (upper) and "B" (lower) coal seams. Mining operations during the <br /> remainder of the present permit term will extract the "D" Seam from <br /> Room and Pillar areas and longwall panels in the southern portion <br /> of the permit area. Longwall extraction from the "B" Seam is <br /> projected to begin early in the next permit term. Mining <br /> operations and schedules were substantially altered by a mine fire <br /> in Longwall Panel 9, in the northeast portion of the permit area, <br /> in January, 1996. The entire "D" seam longwall mining district in <br /> the northern portion of the permit area was eventually sealed off, <br /> and the longwall equipment was not recovered. <br /> The "D" seam mining sequence developed after the fire shifted <br /> operations to mining of room and pillar areas RP-1 and RP-2 in <br /> 1997, to be followed by resumption of longwall extraction in panels <br /> LW-10 through LW-12. <br /> Coal processing waste generated at the "D" Portal wash plant is <br /> trucked 3 . 6 miles to the refuse disposal area located east of the <br /> rail loadout in the northeast portion of the permit area. The <br /> refuse disposal area includes eleven separate disposal subareas. <br /> Refuse subarea 1 (RP-1) was reclaimed in late 1990, and included a <br /> number of cover depth study plots to evaluate the potential for <br /> replacing less than four feet of non toxic cover material. A final <br /> report for the cover depth study was completed in 1996 , but no <br /> revision to reduce the four foot cover depth has been submitted to <br /> date. <br /> Refuse subareas RP-2/3 , RP-4, and RP-5A are currently active, and <br /> remaining subareas have yet to be developed. <br />