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in the mine area. Therefore, almost no water contained in the aquifer is used. The mine is located <br />in a recharge area for the Trinidad Sandstone. <br />Samples of water from local wells were found to contain extremely high levels of sodium, sulfate, <br />and bicarbonate. Plumes of water of degraded quality originate in the old mine workings and spread <br />downdip in awest-southwest direction. <br />Within the permit area are two ephemeral drainages. The Maitland and Gordon Arroyos flow only <br />in direct response to rainfall or snowmelt. Both arroyos drain from the west to the east. <br />The region is characterized by a semiarid climate regime. The prevailing wind is from the west. <br />Average annual precipitation is 15.3 inches. The average annual growing season is approximately <br />200 days. <br />Soils at the mine site are of the orders Aridisol and Entisol, which characteristically demonstrate <br />little to no profile development. These soils are characteristic of semiarid environments. Soil depth <br />and degree of development vary with topographic position and microclimate effects. Generally, the <br />deeper and better developed soils occupy valley bottoms while shallow soils of lesser horizon <br />development are located on sideslopes and ridge tops. <br />Vegetation is distributed in response to the soil, slope, and aspect characteristics of the site. A <br />pinon-juniper community is found on foothills and upland areas above 6,300 feet, primarily in the <br />south and west portions of the proposed permit area. This community is composed primarily of <br />shrubs and trees with a sparse understory. Pinon pine and Utah juniper are the dominant species <br />in this community. Cover is low (6 percent), as is productivity (250 Ib/ac). <br />A grassland community is found on the flat and gently rolling portions of the permit area at eleva- <br />tions below 6,300 feet. This community is composed of a mixture of cool and warm season <br />grasses, dominated by Blue Grama and Three Awn. Cover and production (26 percent and 918 <br />Ib/ac) are moderate to low. <br />There are also several small disturbed communities. These species have invaded areas where <br />surface disturbance (mainly from mining) resulted in the native community being weakened or <br />destroyed. <br />Description of the Operations and Reclamation Plan <br />With the approval of TR-09, operations became oriented toward reclamation only. Forty-nine (49) <br />acres of Colorado Coal Mine No. 1 were reclaimed in late 1989: the test burn pit and ancillary <br />structures. Kaiser Steel Resources applied for Phase I Bond Release on the property on July 20, <br />1990, and the Division proposed an affirmative decision on the release on November 19, 1990. <br />Kaiser Steel Resources submitted Technical Revision No. 1 2 on September 27, 1991 to remove the <br />sediment ponds at the site. Hydraulic modelling successfully demonstrated that vegetation cover <br />had stabilized erosion from the site to conditions better than or equal to pre-mining conditions. <br />Kaiser reclaimed the ponds and associated drainage structures covering 14 acres in February and <br />March of 1991. <br />5 <br />