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IV. Geology - Rules 2,04.5 and 2.04.6 <br />A description of the geology is contained in the permit application on <br />Pages 2.04-6 and 2.04-7. A detailed discussion of the "geologic anomaly" <br />encountered in early 1988 is contained in this section. <br />The operation is in compliance with the requirements of this section. <br />V. Hydrologic Balance: Surf <br />7. 2.05 <br />Information on the quantity and quality of surface water in the mine area <br />can be found in the application beginning on page 7_.04-32; in Exhibits 6, <br />9, and 10; and on Map 7. <br />The major drainages which could be impacted by this mining operation are <br />the Purgatoire River, the Ciruela Canyon drainage, the Santistevan Canyon <br />drainage, and the Apache Canyon drainage. <br />The Purgatoire River is a perennial stream; Santistevan Canyon also <br />contains a perennial stream. Apache Canyon and Ciruela Canyon, however, <br />contain either intermittent or ephemeral streams. The monitoring <br />requirements, past and present, for these surface drainages is covered on <br />Page 2.05-35, Table 22, and in Exhibit 10 of the application. <br />Water quality in the Purgatoire River and Ciruela Canyon will be affected <br />by mine discharge water. The Purgatoire River will receive this <br />discharge both from pond 5 and by means of Ciruela Canyon. Pond 5 is a <br />new facility approved to treat the bulk of Golden Eagle mine water before <br />discharge to the Purgatoire River. The Ciruela Canyon drainage is an <br />ephemeral or intermittent tributary of the Purgatoire River that flows <br />primarily in response to snowmelt or rainfall. It receives mine water <br />discharge from Pond 2B, the last of a series of adjacent settling ponds. <br />Both discharges from Ponds 5 and 2B will be monitored regularly in <br />accordance with the applicant's revised NPDES permit. <br />The sediment control system has been reviewed by the Division. Designs <br />for the sediment control system are found on pages 2.05-9 through 2.05-16 <br />and in Exhibit 6 of the renewal application. <br />Surface runoff from the disturbed area is contained by sediment ponds 3 <br />and 4. locations of these ponds appear on Map 11, Sediment and Surface <br />Water Control Plan. These ponds are capable of containing the runoff <br />generated by a 10-year, 24-hour storm event and are designed to contain <br />0.1 acre-feet of sediment per acre of disturbed area. The ponds are both <br />equipped with principal spillways and emergency spillways capable of <br />passing the peak flow from a 25-year, 24-hour storm event. The principal <br />spillways are gated, but the gate will be opened a calculated amount to <br />allow for automatic dewatering with a detention time of 24-hours. A <br />series of ditches route disturbed drainage water to the ponds and <br />undisturbed drainage around the disturbed area. These ditches are <br />capable of handling the peak flow from a 10-year, 24-hour storm event. <br />-8- <br />