2007-07-30_GENERAL DOCUMENTS - C1981041

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Facilities Area The permittee identified approximately 500 acres of land within the reconnaissance study area that meet the geomolphic criteria for alluvial valley floors. This land is to%ated adjacent to the Colorado River, The permittee noted, on Exhibit 33 ofthe application, that a por~ion ofthis land is subirrigated and a portion was historically flood irrigated. II„ The permittee has demonstrated that a large portion ofthe alluvial valli;y floor meets the requirement fora "grandfathering" exemption. The Colorado Surface Coal Mining Reclamation Act of 1979 allows an exemption from interrupting, precluding, or discontinuing farming and from effects on the quantity and quality of water supplying the alluvial valley floor, if, in~~the year preceding August 3, 1977, the surface coal mining operations either produced coal in commercial quantities and were located within o'r adjacent to an alluvial valley floor, or had obtaine~J permit approval to conduct surface coal mining operations within an alluvial valley floor. ,I i ' The geographic extent of the exemption is limited to the actual extent df mine workings as of August 3, 1977, and adjacent lands for which there existed (at that time) substantial demonstrable financial or regulatory commitment to mine in the future, as required by Rule 2.06. I(Sxa)(i)(B) in the Regulations of the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Board for Coal Mining. The pertnittee provided copies ofpermits for the Roadside and Cameo lvlines, which were obtained in December 1976 and January 1977. Therefore, those lands permitted are; eligible for the "grandfather" exemption. These lands include those portions of the permit area within Sections 27, 28, 33 and 34, Tl OS, R98W. This area includes the entire affected alluvial valley floor, with the exception ofthat portion in Section 26. However, that portion of Section 26 within the permit area as noted in Exhibit 33 was disturbed as part of construction ofthe unit train loadout prior to'August 3, 1977, and therefore is eligible for the "grandfathering" exemption. Alluvial Valley Floor- Findings (Facilities Area) i Those portions of the permit area within Sections 26, 27, 28, 33 and 34 are exempt from the requirements that,prevent an operation from interrupting, discontinuin(;, or precluding farming, and from affecting th'e quantity and quality of water supplying the allu~+ial valley floor (4.24.3(4)). However, this area is not exempt from the requvements for restoring the essential hydrologic functions of the alluvial valley floor, which will be discussed below, in Item 3. ', All ofthe non-exempt alluvial valley floor is located outside the permit area within Section 26 and 27. 1. No portion of the non-exempt al luvial valley floor is presently disturbed by the mining operation. A small portion of this area is indicated as being historically fl~iod irrigated on Exhibit 33. There are no plans to disturb any additional land on the alluvial valley floor. Therefore, the proposed coal mining operation will not interrupt, discontinue, or preclude farming on the alluvial valley floor (4.24.3(1)). 2. As previously discussed, a portion of the non-exempt alluvial valley floor was historically flood irrigated. In addition, a portion is subirrigated. The remaining area, is potentially flood irrigable. Surface waters which could be and were used to irrigate the non-e~:empted alluvial valley floor would be diverted from the Highline Canal. Water in the Highlim Canal is diverted from the Colorado River approximately one mile upstream ofthe disturbani~e. The Highline Canal will not be affected by subsidence or by mine discharges. Therefore, the quantity and quality of i Permit Revision No. 3 July 30, 2007 Permit No. C-1981-041 Page 54