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nevtralizaYron of 1,000 tons of host rock (10007). Positive ABP's indicate that the host <br />material, when saturated with fluid of a near-neutral pH, will produce an alkaline solution. <br />Negative ABP's indicate that the resulting solution will be acidic. Table 17-33, Acid Base <br />Potential of Overburden Cores, Seneca II-W South Area, presents an ABP summary for <br />overburden core samples collected within the South expansion area. None of the cores show <br />overall acid potentials, due to the high percentage of CaCO3 in each core. Mean weighted acid <br />potentials for the Wadge overburden cores vary from 1.0 to 19.5TCaCO3/10007; mean weighted <br />neutralization potentials vary from 51.0 to 80.9 TCaCOa/10007. The Sage Creek/Wolf Creek <br />overburden values presented in Table 17-33 are based on samples collected from one locale <br />down dip of the proposed mining area. The average acid potentials for the Sage CreeklWolf <br />Creek overburden vary from 9.8 to 22.4 TCaCO3/10007, while the average neutralization <br />potentials vary from 48.4 to 112.5 TCaCO311000T. These data suggest that the overburden <br />sediments in the South mining area, when acting as infiltrating media, will generate neutral to <br />alkaline solutions and have the capacity to buffer acidic, infiltrating solutions. Additional <br />information is included in Tab 6. <br />The paste pH value of a material is another indicator of the potential of the material to generate <br />acidic fluid. Paste pH values for core samples from both the Seneca II-W and Seneca II-W South <br />areas were also analyzed. Table 17-34, Summary of Seneca II-W and Seneca 11-W South <br />Overburden Core Paste pH Values, presents summaries of acidic, core paste pH values li.e., <br />average core pH values of less than seven standard units) for the Seneca II-W and Seneca II-W <br />South areas. Seven of the Seneca II-W cores include samples from the Lennox coal, and all of <br />the acidic portions of the cores were associated with the Lennox Unit and the immediately <br />overlying and underlying shales. Approximately 14.2 percent of the total core length collected <br />from the Seneca II-W area contains pH values less than neutral, and a majority of the core <br />samples with acidic pH values fall within the range of 6.0 to 7,0 standard units (versus less than <br />6,0 standard units). Paste pH values from the Seneca II-W South area range from 6.4 to 8.3 <br />standard units. Only 10,6 percent of the total core length collected from the Seneca II-W South <br />area contains acidic paste pH values, and most of these paste pH values are only slightly acidic, <br />or near neutral. Because the percentage of all core from the South expansion area with acidic <br />material is minimal, and the ABP accounting indicates that the associated overburden material <br />exhibits a high neutralization potential, the resultant spoil water in the Seneca II-W South area <br />land Seneca II-W areal is not expected to have a pH value of less than 7.0 standard units, and <br />thus is not expected to act as a leaching solution. <br />100 Revised 1/02 <br />