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S H E E P MOUNTAIN ALLIANCE a citizens' group for the defense & preserva[ion of sourlnvestern Colorado's high country 303-728-3739 Box 389 Telluride Colorado 81435 • III IIIlllllllllllll sss August 12, 1993 John N. Reese, District Engineer U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Sacramento District 1325 J. Street Sacramento, CA 95814-2922 • Re: Public Notice No. 199275153 --------------------------- Dear Mr. Reese: /.. RU~20 /ggg D,,,~s o> oi` ~'/ ~i ^ ~U ['yY ~'- ,` The Sheep Mountain Alliance ("SMA") wishes to express our concerns regarding the application of Telluride Gravel, Inc., for a Section 404 Permit. SMA is an organization founded in 1988. We are devoted to the natural elements of our environment, as well as to the well-being of the Telluride community. We believe this community is presently at a crossroads regarding the harvesting of gravel from the San Miguel River and the South Fork. The tenure of the Illium batch, as cae know it, may be nearing an end. The demand for gravel is on the rise due to increased development ir: the region. L-Je believe the expanded mining area being requested in the Army application Drill be necessary for the operation to continue in its current location. Barring this permit, the company will probably need to look into alternative sites. We think this ultimately may be a good and necessary option. Although the Army Corps permitting authority is but one piece of a complex puzzle, it is an important piece. The application raises the question of expansion upstream on the San Miguel, which may require a County permit as well as the 404 permit from the Army Corps. Our environmental concerns are serious ones, focussing on the physical degradation of the river and surrounding lands. The doo-:ncutting of the river channel, both above and below the confluence of the two rivers, is dramatic, six to ten feet in some places. in the last five years, the downcutting has accelerated markedly. A sustainable rate of gravel harvesting should balance the rate of extraction from the channel with an influx of new bed material. We believe this is not the case with Telluride Gravel. Given the extensive damage that has already occurred, this process will be irreversible unless dramatic reclamation measures are taken.