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Existing Land Use <br />Currently, the property has several ongoing land uses including mineral extraction, grazing, water storage, and <br />residential. Adjacent land uses include oil and gas production, agriculture, commercial, mineral extraction, <br />grazing, and residential. <br />2.3. Description of Work. <br />The project consists of four total aggregate mining pits that will extract alluvial sand and gravels from the primary <br />alluvial terraces above the Big Thompson River. Of the four pits, 2 pits (Cells 3 and 4) will impact jurisdictional <br />and non jurisdictional wetlands. The raw alluvial material will be processed through crushing and washing at the <br />site, sorted by size, and stockpiled. The raw material will be available to customers in bulk, or as concrete. A <br />ready mix concrete plant will be built on the project site and operated for the life of the project. <br />Mining of the alluvial aggregate will entail development of four discrete mining cells, generally progressing from <br />west to east across the project site. The mining sequence is initiated with removal and stockpiling of topsoil <br />materials. Where topsoil materials originate from wetland locations with desirable plant propagules, they will be <br />stockpiled separately and used in wetland mitigation. Overburden materials (those materials above or between <br />aggregate layers) are removed and stockpiled or used for backfilling in previously excavated mining cells to <br />achieve the desired post-mining topography. As aggregate layers are encountered, the raw product is removed <br />from the cell for processing and stockpiling at the wash plant. The mining process continues within a cell until <br />the economic limit of aggregate is reached, or as pit dimensions dictate. Water encountered in the mining <br />sequence is pumped from the cell into a detention pond where it can be used in the wash plant, and ultimately <br />returned to the Big Thompson River. Wetlands to be disturbed within the project aze located within mining cells <br />3 and 4, the last areas to be mined. The total anticipated life of mining at the site is twenty-one yeazs, from 2003 <br />to 2024, with anticipated wetland disturbance occurring from 2009 to 2024. Attachment 1 shows location maps <br />of the site and figures of the mining plan. Attachment 2 shows a summary table with anticipated mine phases; <br />wetland impacts, wetland mitigation, and associated dates. <br />2.4. Jurisdiction. <br />Jurisdictional wetlands within the project site are tributary to the Big Thompson River, a Waters of the United <br />States. Non jurisdictional wetlands also exist at the site. The table below, taken from the jurisdictional <br />determination approved on August 13, 2001, shows acreages of various wetlands at the site. Attachment 1 <br />includes a mining plan map showing the locatons of the wetlands. <br />Wetland Feature Jurisdictional Status Total Area of all <br />existin wetlands <br />A. Bi Thom son River JD trib to 5. Platte River not measured <br />B. TailwaterWetlands Non-JD artificiall irri ated 13.92 acres <br />C. Oxbow or Channel wetlands JD surface connected 6.94 acres <br />C' Isolated Oxbow wetlands Non-JD isolated 0.25 acres <br />D. Sideslo a See Wetlands JD surtace connected 5.51 acres <br />E. Toeslo e W etlands JD surtace connecte 3.45 acres <br />Total 30.12 acres <br />Because of the nature of this activity being reviewed under an individual permit, and because of National <br />Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations, the Corps has the authority and the responsibility to require <br />Project: Green ffi Croissant Aggregate Mining Applicant: Loveland Ready Mix, Inc. Pg ]0 of 53 <br />Corps File No: 200180205 Waterway: Big 7hampson Wetlands, Weld County, CO <br />