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<br />• <br /> <br />ii. the Uivision does not feel that there is any evidence to support <br />t eTi ap~nt s reasoning in iscussing t e eve o ment of the low <br />pH water present to t e pon urt ermore, t e Division ee s t at <br />t ere is significant potent for su surface water to a causing <br />the low H. The a licant should revise this and other a ro riate <br />sections o t o ermit a ication to inc u e a ~scussion o <br />actua evidence to support t e statements ma e. <br />RESPONSE: <br />The water that was discharged from the old abandoned underground coal <br />mine into the s~irface pond located in the final pit of the previous <br />surface mining activities was low in pH. Because the old abandoned <br />underground coal mine workings dipped upward away from the entries, <br />there existed the situation of gravity discharge from the abandoned <br />workings. However, the relative shallow dip of the abandoned workings <br />allowed any subsurface water that percolated into the abandoned workings <br />to mix with the remaining coal and cause an oxidation reaction with the <br />pyritic sulfur in the coal to form sulfuric acid, thereby lowering the <br />pH of the water. The pH of the water found in the old pond was field <br />checked several times and found to be 3.0 or below. <br />As mentioned above, Peerless Resources, Inc. reclaimed the old pond in <br />late 1984 but left a pipe extending out of the abandoned workings for <br />discharge into the sediment pond. The location of this pipe and the <br />discharge point is shown on the revised Mine Facilities Map (Map 12). <br />The March, 1985 quality measurement of the discharge from this pipe <br />indicates that the pH of this water is now approximately 5.0. Although <br />still somewhat on the low side, this pH reading is considerably higher <br />than the field measurements noted in the old abandoned pond in mid-1984. <br />Peerless Resources, Inc. believes that as the abandoned workings are <br />"flushed" over a period of several years, the pH of the water should <br />continue to rise to a more neutral level. Also, as water fills that old <br />workings, the oxidation process with the coal should be minimized or, <br />hopefully, eliminated. <br />y,us-3A <br />~9AR 0 4 1986 <br />