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State Reg. <br />• <br />2.05.3(1) COAL REMOVAL OPERATIONS <br />Following removal of the overburden, a bulldozer or grader cleans the surface of <br />the coal to remove rock and other extraneous material. Blast holes are then <br />drilled through the coal. The holes drilled in the coal seam are loaded with <br />ammonium nitrate and detonated to develop minor fracture planes that allow easier <br />digging and extraction of the coal by coal loading equipment. <br />Coal loading in the Wadge pit is accomplished with backhoe type loaders (Hitachi <br />UH8O1 and DEMAG HIII), assisted when necessary by a wheel loader. The backhoe <br />begins loading at the upper or shallow end (cropline) of the pit and progresses <br />down the pit as does the dragline. In the Wolf Creek pit, coal loading follows <br />the direction of the dragline. The coal loading direction will vary with ramp <br />location, coal demand, dragline sequencing, etc. <br />Coal haulage, because of the steep dip, is one-way down the pit. Empty haulage <br />trucks travel up the mountain on roads that approximate seven percent grade to a <br />point above the loader, then travel down through the pit to a loading point where <br />• they are loaded with approximately 50 tons of coal. Trucks then travel down the <br />pit to the nearest exit road. Haulage trucks travel over Peabody constructed <br />-haul roads to County Road #27, then to the Colorado-Ute generating station near <br />Hayden, Colorado. All coal haulage at Seneca is done by a private contractor. <br />Coal loading is scheduled daily during two (2) 7-1/9 hour shifts. Production or <br />maintenance problems could require coal to be occasionally loaded on extra or <br />later shifts. The traffic pattern in the mine area is governed by standard <br />Colorado traffic rules. Equipment is operated at speeds consistent with road <br />conditions such as grade, clearance, visibility, traffic load, and type of <br />equipment used. A water truck sprays the haulage roads to control dust so the <br />operator's field of vision is not impaired. <br />• 12-81 Revised 05/16/88 <br />