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STATE COLORADO DIVISION OF MINERALS AN D GEOLOGY Department of Natural Resources 1313 Sherman St., Room 215 C Q LD RAD Q Denver, Colorado 80203 DIVISION O F Phone: (303) 8663567 MIN &RA L S FAX: (303) 832$106 G J; Q L ~ G Y 0.ECLANATION•MINING SAFETY•SCIFNCf efll Owen$ DATE: February 26, 2004 cnvernor Russell George TO: Mined Land Reclamation Board Executive Director Ronald W. Cattany FROM: Russ Means and Kate Pickford ~ ; ~/~C Division Director , ~~P~ Natl,r,l Resou,~e Trustee RE: Information submitted to the Division related to the Potential for Groundwater Impacts resulting from the Haldorson Sand and Gravel Mine, Haldorson and Sons, Inc. File No. M-2003-037 The Division of Minerals and Geology (DMG) has reviewed the Request for Review of Limited Mining Proposal at the Haldorson Sand and Gravel Mine M-2003-037 by Greg Lewicki and Associates, and the Supplemental [nfotmation to the report dated February 23, 2004, and it is the opinion of the Division that the Lewicki reports contain information that merits reconsideration of the October 30, 2003 decision by the Board not to allow mining at the site until one year of groundwater monitoring data can be obtained from the site. The original application was submitted by Banks and Gesso, LLC, and contained limited information concerning the groundwater and the nature of the affected aquifer at the site as related to the Lewicki report. The Banks and Gesso application relied on groundwater data supplied by Don May in two separate letters. The first letter, dated September 5, 2003 conveyed the following information: • Groundwater at the site flows from southwest to northeast; • Groundwater in the vicinity of the proposed Haldorson operation is recharged primarily by precipitation and irrigation; • Groundwater levels in the gravel deposits are directly affected by irrigation activity in the area; • In the event that groundwater was exposed by the operation, the effects to groundwater levels would be minimal in that the open pit would behave as a well and water would flow through the pit and still flow to its ultimate destination; • It is likely that the groundwater surface does exist above the shale bedrock at least during irritation season; • In spring of 2003, 6 test holes were dug at the site situated in a north-south pattern. The northern hole reached 60 feet whereas the south hole reached 32 feet and no groundwater was encountered; • The system in and around the project area is uniform and well defined. The Don May letter referred to the West Water Report, but Banks and Gesso did not submit the West Water Report as part of the application. The report was subsequently submitted with a letter from an objector - Kay Wiesner- on July 16, 2003, but was not considered in the groundwater review of the application. Additional information contained in this report related to the groundwater regime at the site is as follows: Office of Office of Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Active and Inactive Mines Genln¢iral Survev