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While essentially unavoidable, the drawdown of the coal aquifer is minor with regard to the quantity of water available in the area. No wells in the area of the mine have been identified as drawing water from the Maxwell coal seam. Most domestic wells in the area produce from alluvial aquifers. The survey of water wells in the permit and adjacent area did identify some shallow windmill wells producing from bedrock aquifers above the Golden Eagle mine workings south of the Purgatoire. These wells appear to result from localized, perched water tables or from minor coal seam aquifers in the area. The quality of the water is reported to be similar to that of seepage from coal and suggests the latter source. Golden Eagle workings lie approximately 200 feet under Windmill No. 6. No seepage is reported for the workings at this point; the well remains functional. The relatively impermeable sediments separating the water source and the mine would appear to prevent any impact by the mine on shallow overlying bedrock aquifers. Undermining of the Purgatoire River might be expected to deplete flow in the stream/alluvial aquifer system. Using an estimated value of effective vertical permeability of 0.00021 ft/d, the downward flow of water from the body of alluvium was estimated to be 441 ft.3/d or only 2.3 gpm. This calculation was made for vertical leakage of surface water through the overburden to the • mine workings. The overburden strata acts as an aquitard, restricting the downward movement of water. This small water loss from the stream/alluvial aquifer system would have an insignificant impact on Purgatoire River flows (about 4000 gpm at low flow) or alluvial ground water levels. After the cessation of mining operations, the Golden Eagle mine water would no longer be discharged and the workings would flood. The recovery of the piezometric surface of the coal aquifer would occur in two stages. The first stage would be a relatively slow increase that would occur as the mine workings are filled by ground water inflows. Once the underground workings have been filled, the piezometric surface would rapidly rise toward its eventual steady state position. A permanent depression in the piezometric surface would exist in the vicinity of the flooded mine workings. The magnitude of the depression.=utould not be large, but it may extend to a distance of 2 to 3 miles from the edge of the mine workings. Because the underground workings lie 400 to 500 feet below the portal areas, the piezometric surface of the mine water would not be expected to rise to a level where it would intersect the ground surface, thus causing discharges through the mine portals or shafts. There would be approximately twice as much ground water floe through the flooded mine workings than existed through the undisturbed coal prior to mining. The ground water flow would, 10