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• U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR <br />OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORC <br />FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT <br />FOR <br />Orchard Valley Mine <br />Federal Leases C-25079, C-27432, D-036955, C-37210 <br />Mining Plan Decision Document <br />A. Introduction <br />Cyprus Orchard Valley Coal Corporation submitted a permit <br />application package (PAP) for a permit for the Orchard <br />Valley Mine to the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Division <br />(NERD) under the Colorado State program (30 CFR Part 906). <br />The PAP proposes a 50 percent reduction in underground <br />mining operations in about 6670 acres of Federal leases <br />C-25079, C-27432, D-036955, C-37210. Under the Mineral <br />Leasing Act of 1920, the Assistant Secretary, Land and <br />Minerals Management, must approve, approve with conditions, <br />or disapprove the mining plan modification for Federal <br />leases C-25079, C-27432, D-036955, C-37210. Pursuant to <br />30 CFR Part 746, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation <br />and Enforcement (OSM) must recommend approval, approval with <br />conditions, or disapproval of this mining plan modification. <br />• The Orchard Valley underground coal mine is located in Delta <br />County, Colorado, approximately 4 miles North of Paonia. <br />The mine has been in operation since 1975. The currently <br />permitted area contains about 8089 acres of private and <br />Federal minerals. About 144 acres have been affected by <br />surface disturbance to date, excluding subsidence-related <br />disturbance. Underground coal extraction is nearly complete <br />in all areas except Federal lease C-37210. Current <br />production is about 1 million tons per year. <br />The currently-approved mining plan calla for room and pillar <br />mining and pillar recovery of the D-seam from all areas of <br />the Federal leases (about 6670 acres) using a minimum mining <br />height of 5 feet and a maximum mining height of 12 feet. In <br />areas where the D-seam split, extraction was to occur from <br />the upper split, and in areas where the D-seam exceeded 12 <br />feet in thickness, only the upper 12 feet of the seam was <br />approved for extraction. Experience in trying to carry out <br />the upper seam only extraction met with little success. <br />Rather than continue with the previous approach to the <br />persistent mining problems, COVCC comprehensively reexamined <br />the mining plan and reserve base on the property to identify <br />those areas which can be mined safely, economically, and <br />within marketable contract specifications. The resulting <br />mining plan proposes a 50~ reduction in the recoverable <br />reserves, from 37 million tone to about 18 million tons with <br />. a reduction in the area affected by the underground mining. <br />The life of the mine would be reduced accordingly (mining <br />operations would end in 2008). <br />