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Description of the Operation and Reclamation Plans
<br />The Foidel Creek Mine was originally permitted as an underground operation employing room and pillar
<br />mining on privately owned coal within a 924 acre permit azea. TCC referred to the original permit as a
<br />pilot project designed to evaluate the technical and economic feasibility of underground mining operations
<br />on the Wadge coal seam, which was previously surface mined in the portal azea and on dip slopes to the
<br />south and southwest by TCC's sister company, Colorado Yampa Coal Company (CYCC). Existing surface
<br />disturbance along Foidel Creek at the main mine facility azea consists of portals, surface support facilities,
<br />an office, low-quality coal stockpiles, a processing waste pile, conveyors, a tipple and batch weigh loadout
<br />facility, a ROM coal stockpile, two rock dust tanks, a explosives magazine, a rail spur, and sediment
<br />control ditches and ponds. A large area of the main facility area was within a disturbed azea called the
<br />Area 2 pit within the CYCC permit No. C-81-071. Since the completion of mining associated with the No.
<br />C-81-071 permit, all pertinent facilities have been transferred to the Foidel Creek mine permit.
<br />The Life of Mine (LOM) permit revision (PR-Ol) application was approved in 1986 to expand the project
<br />into a 35-yeaz mining operation utilizing both room and pillaz and longwall techniques, with a peak
<br />production of approximately 3.5 million tons per year. Upon approval of PR-Ol, the permit boundary
<br />encompassed 13,114 acres and included both federal and privately owned coal. New and expanded
<br />surface facilities were required due to Permit Revision No. 1. These facilities included; an
<br />office bathhouse complex, new conveyor facilities, a transfer building, and 150,000 ton open coal stockpile
<br />and loadout facilities. Additionally, the Fish Creek Borehole dewatering site and associated treatment
<br />ponds were installed on Fish Creek, in TSN, R87W, Section 25. This borehole discharges treated water to
<br />Fish Creek at outfall 001 of CDPS Permit CO-0042161.
<br />Permit Revision No. 2, (PR-02), Southwest Mining District, was approved with stipulations on February
<br />17, 1993. PR-02 approved mining and subsidence in Panels 7, 8, and 9 of the SW mining district. Mining
<br />was completed in this azea in 1996.
<br />Permit Revision No. 3 (PR-03), approved May 9,1996, allowed mining in the Eastern Mining District of
<br />Gateroads 11 Right through 5 Right, construction of the Southwest Development Mains, and extraction of
<br />Longwall panels 9 Right through 7 Right. Approval of PR-03 expanded the LOM permit azea to 22,694
<br />acres. Extraction of 10,000,000 Tons/year was approved under Technical Revision No. 28, in 1997.
<br />Permit Revision No. 4 (PR-04), Eastern Mining District (southern azea), was approved Apri120, 1998.
<br />The revision approved continuation and expansion of mining in the southern portion of the EMD in
<br />portions of sections 21, 22, 23, 24, 27, 28, and 29 TSN R86W.
<br />Permit Revision No. 5 (PR-OS) was approved June 28, 2000 and provided for extension of mining into the
<br />Northern Mining District in portions of the following Sections in TSN R86W: 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15,
<br />16, 17, 20, 21, and 22 .
<br />The application for Permit Revision No. 6 (PR-06) proposes to extend mining in the Northern Mining
<br />District, adding longwall panels 17 R through 21 R, and adjacent main entries. PR-06 also proposes
<br />mining of the following gateroads: 19 R, 20 R, 21 R, 22 R, and the west end of 23 R. The proposed
<br />extension of workings is located within the existing permit area in the following sections of TSN, R86W.
<br />Section 3: NW'/a SW'/a SE'/a, SW'/e SE'/a, S'h SW%a
<br />Section 4: S %z SE'/<
<br />Section 7: S'1-.-. NE'/<, E'/zSE'/<
<br />Section 8: ALL
<br />Section 9: ALL
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