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The next pertinent statutory provision is a warranty of performance. "No permit may be issued under this article until the board receives performance... warranties as described in subsection (2)..." § 34-32-117 (1). "A `performance warranty' shall consist of a written promise to the board, by the operator, to comply with all requirements of this article. Performance warranties shall be in such form as the boazd may describe." § 34-32-117 (2). No meaningfully concrete performance warranty may be created with respect to disturbances of the hydrologic balance, and water quality and quantity, in the absence of baseline data. The principal enforcement provisions of the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Act make a distinction between past and present violations. That is, "whenever the board or office has reason to believe that there has occurred a violation of an order, permit, notice of intent, or regulation issued under the authority of this article, written notice shall be given to the operator or prospector of the alleged violation." § 34-32-124 (1). In contrast, "if the board determines that there exists any violation of any provisions of this article or any notice, permit, or regulation issued or promulgated under authority of this article, the board may issue a cease and desist order." § 34-32-124 (2)(a). In the absence of baseline data which allows for the establishment of meaningful standards, enforcement becomes problematic. A permit which includes no standazds cannot be the basis for determining past or present violations. Moreover, allowing the operator to defer the establishment of specific standards compromises the enforcement position of the agency, by allowing the operator to incur substantial capital expenditures before the objective standards are set. The agency will be much more vulnerable to pressure from a variety of sources if the standards are effectively created after the project is already underway; there is also a greater risk that the standards as eventually established would reflect an environmental compromise that enables the project to proceed. The Hard Rcek/Metal Mining Rules and Regulations of the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Board include provisions consistent with the requirement that a data baseline must be established to fully satisfy the requirements for permit applications under Colorado law. E.g., Rule 3.1.7 "Ground Water-Specific Requirements," subsection (2)(c)(ii), subsection (7)(d)(viii). See also, Rule 6.4.7(2)(c), "Exhibit G-Water Information," which echoes the statutory requirements for duties of operators. SUMMARY OF OBJECTION The Applicant's reclamation permit application, as written, violates the statutory requirement of gathering baseline data before the issuance of a reclamation permit. In addition, the objective of the groundwater and surface water monitoring plan is to establish recognizable trends in water quality such that any deviation from the established characteristics are recognizable. Recognizable trends (baseline data) cannot occur concurrently with the development of the Applicant's project as is outlined in the reclamation permit application. Both the drilling and development of wells and the well completion methodologies may cause