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<br />RATIONALE <br />Vegetation cannot become established and grow with the continued build-up <br />of the disposal pile, therefore reclamation cannot commence until the pile is <br />completed and mineral waste is no longer being added. The full extent of the <br />disposal slopes will. not be achieved until operations are essentially complete. <br /><: At this time no completion date has been announced. !~lithin a year of completion <br />of the disposal pile, reclamation will take place in order to restore the veget- <br />ative cover to a productive condition similiar and visually compatible with <br />comparable natural talus slopes in the vicinity. <br />RECLAMATION PLAN DESIGN <br />Figure 6 shows an artist's conception of the appearance of the waste disposal <br />pile after its completion. As shown on Figure 6, the pile will have a level at <br />the altitude of the upper mine portal and a second level area at the altitude <br />of the lower portal. In his rendition the artist has shown the upper part of <br />the pile, above the lower portal vegetated. The artist has shown the lower part <br />of the pile, below the lower portal, as it would appear before reclamation. <br />The major reclamation problem associated with mine-run raw shale (rock <br />material produced from mining operation) is the texture of the material. Raw <br />shale has very poor water holding capacity; less than two percent by weight of <br />the raw shale is made up of less than 3/8 inch material. Consequently, a fine <br />textured "soil like material" will have to be placed on the surfaces planned <br />for reclamation. "Soil like material" at least six inches thick will provide <br />a proper seed bed for native and introduced plants to become established and <br />grow. The "soil like material" will be obtained from road right-of-ways and the <br />toe of the present pile which will be extended out over this cleared (of soil) <br />area. <br />Ex. E-2 <br />