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Climatological Information and Air Resources - Rules 2.04.8. 2.05.4(2)(h) <br />Climatological and air resource information is contained in Sections 2.04.8 and <br />2.05.6 of the Bear No. 1 and 2 permit application, and in Sections 2.03.10, 2.04.8 <br />and 2.05.6 and 4.16 of the Bear No. 3 permit revision application. <br />Local temperature is inversely related to elevation. Mean annual temperatures <br />along the mountain peaks are much colder than the mean annual temperatures of <br />adjacent valleys. The mean annual temperature of Paonia, Colorado is <br />approximately 50°F. Temperature extremes recorded at Paonia are -28°F <br />(January 1913) and 100°F (June 1927; July and August 1934). <br />Precipitation is directly related to elevation. The valley in which Paonia <br />and Somerset are situated is semi-arid with average annual precipitation of <br />15 inches. Mean annual precipitation increases with elevation, approaching 40 <br />inches per year on the summit of Mt. Gunnison. Annual snowfall on mountain <br />peaks south of Somerset, Colorado, is greater than 300 inches. Average annual <br />snowfall at Paonia, Colorado, is approximately 58 inches. The May to <br />September precipitation is five inches for the lowlands, and 13 inches for the <br />nearby mountain peaks. The remaining majority of precipitation occurs during <br />the months of October to April. <br />Average annual precipitation at Somerset, Colorado, is twenty-five inches <br />(Figure 2). Information from the West Elk Mine permit application indicates <br />that approximately two-thirds of the annual precipitation occurs between <br />October and April of each year. The remainder of the precipitation occurs <br />between the months of May and September. The Wilcox Ranch Station, located <br />near Bowie, Colorado, is the closest weather station to the Bear Mine. Data <br />collected at this station indicate that a similar precipitation pattern has <br />been present for seventy years (Figure 3>. <br />The Wilcox Ranch Station is at a lower elevation than Somerset; therefore, the <br />location exhibits less precipitation. Wind direction at the mine site is <br />generally west-northwest and east-southeast. The wind direction is controlled <br />by the east-west orientation of the North Fork of the Gunnison River canyon. <br />Diurnal heating and cooling of the land surface produces typical <br />mountain-valley wind patterns. Winds from the west occur during most of the <br />day while weaker winds from the east occur at night. <br />Bear Coal Company's air pollution control plan provides for control of <br />fugitive dust by graveling and periodically watering the haul and portal <br />access roads. Bear Coal Co. has installed a water spray system and has <br />enclosed its coal handling facility to reduce fugitive dust. Occasional <br />burning of wood and paper products at the Bear mine is conducted under <br />applicable federal, state and local air emission regulations. <br />Geology - Rules 2.04.5 and 2.04.6(2) <br />Information describing the geology of the permit area is presented in Sections <br />2.04.5 and 2.04.6 of the Bear No. 1 and 2 permit application, and Sections <br />2.04.5 and 2.04.6 of the Bear No. 3 permit revision application. Additional <br />geological information is presented on the Regional Geology Map (Map 5), <br />Geology Hydrology Map <Map 6), the Geologic Cross Section (Map 7), and Drlli <br />Hole Logs (Exhibit 8) of the Bear No. 3 permit revision application. <br />-5- <br />