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I. PROCEDURES AND SUMMARY OF THE REVIEW PROCESS <br />Kaiser Ventures Inc., applied for a complete Phase II bond release under the Colorado Surface <br />Coal Mining Reclamation Act following reclamation of the Chimney Rock Mine. The mine is <br />located in Archuleta County, approximately 17 miles SW of Pagosa Springs, Colorado. The mine <br />azea is located in portions of Sections 29 and 30, Township 34 North, Range 4 West. <br />Itr 1991, Kaiser Ventures filed an application with the Division for a Phase I bond release. The <br />application was approved and the bond was reduced from $800,000 to $320,000, a full 60% Phase <br />I bond release. <br />An application for Phase II bond release was received by the Division on October 7, 1996. The <br />application was deemed complete on October 10, 1996, after the Division received proof of <br />publication of the applicant's public notice. Kaiser Ventures published notice of the bond release <br />application in The Pagosa Springs Sun once weekly for four consecutive weeks, beginning <br />August 22, 1996. Kaiser Ventures also notified land owners within and adjacent to the mine <br />permit area, and other interested parties of the application for bond release, as required by Rule <br />3.03.2(1). <br />No comments, written objections, or requests for an informal conference regarding the bond <br />release application were received by the Division. <br />The Division scheduled and conducted a bond release inspection on October 29, 1996. The site <br />inspection was conducted in accordance with Rule 3.03.2(2). No land owners were present <br />during the inspection, however, all land owners were notified by the Division by letter as to the <br />date and time of the inspection. Present for the inspection were representatives from Kaiser <br />Ventures, Greystone Consulting, and the Division. A representative from the Office of Surface <br />Mining had scheduled to be present during the inspection but was unable to attend due to weather <br />conditions. <br />II. CRITERIA AND SCHEDULE FOR BOND RELEASE <br />PHASE )1 <br />Rule 3.03.1(2)(b) states, "Up to eighty-five percent of the applicable bond amount shall be <br />released upon the establishment of vegetation which supports the approved postmining land use <br />and which meets the approved success standard for cover... based on statistically valid data <br />collected during a single year of the liability period". In regard to Phase II bond release, Rule <br />3.03.1(3)(b) also states, " No more than sixty (60) percent of the bond shall be released so long <br />as the lands to which the release would be applicable are contributing suspended solids to <br />streamflow or runoff outside the permit azea in excess of premining levels as determined by <br />