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West Elk Mine <br />stabilization and backfill, and West Elk Mine's portal bench mine supply storage area fill and the <br />run-of--mine stack tubes coal storage azea fills. Coal refuse was once stockpiled in the initial <br />waste rock storage area (maintenance shop bench), but all refuse or waste was removed before <br />construction of the earthen fill to make a pad for the shop. Coal refuse is transported from the <br />mine on the run-of--mine belt and/or is hauled with equipment out of the main portal. This refuse <br />may be temporarily stockpiled in the screening plant reject bin or on the stack-tube bench, and <br />on the portal bench or in the nearby concrete bunkers, respectively. The amount of coal refuse <br />produced is variable. The refuse material that accumulates in the temporary storage azeas, is <br />hauled by truck to the permanent refuse disposal area. <br />Three permanent refuse disposal azeas and one development waste pile are permitted at West Elk <br />Mine. Initially, refuse was temporarily stockpiled in an azea formerly called the U.S. Steel <br />laydown area. This area has been enlazged and converted to a permanent refuse pile called the <br />Lower Refuse Disposal Area or Lower Refuse Pile (LRP). A permanent refuse pile is also <br />permitted for the meadow above the portal bench. This azea is referred to as the Upper Refuse <br />Disposal Area (URDA). Although this upper refuse disposal area has been approved for <br />construction, it is not yet needed. Thus, construction of the Upper Refuse Disposal Area will <br />occur in the future, if needed. All construction information about these two disposal azeas is <br />contained in Exhibit 50 (URDA) and Exhibit 51 (LRP). As MCC believed that the Lower <br />Refuse Pile would reach its maximum storage capacity in ]997 {and before completing <br />construction of the ventilation shafts in Sylvester Gulch), a third refuse disposal area was <br />designed. The Refuse Pile Expansion (RPE) area was designed and prepazed to the east of the <br />Lower Refuse Pile and east of Sylvester Gulch. As described in Exhibit 51, refuse disposal at <br />the LRP has been temporarily inactivated before reaching the maximum designed storage <br />capacity, because all refuse disposal is being handled in the RPE azea (as of October 1998). The <br />design information and baseline data for the RPE area are contained in Exhibit 70. The Lone <br />Pine Gulch Development Waste Pile was designed to contain approximately 17,000 cubic yards <br />of material generated from the development of the Lone Pine Gulch fan intake and return entries. <br />Designs for this pile are contained in Exhibit 42A. The pile is currently in final reclamation. It <br />was covered with subsoil and topsoil and seeded in the fall of 1995. <br />Although most of the refuse material generated at West Elk Mine will end up in the waste <br />disposal areas, some non-coal waste may be disposed of in one of two other ways. First, some <br />non-combustible materials may be placed in abandoned F Seam workings. Second, suitable <br />materials may be crushed and used for graveling roadways in the mine. Overall, relatively little <br />material will be disposed of using these alternate methods. <br />All disposal areas and the development waste pile were designed and are maintained according <br />to CDMG regulations. They are not located neaz underground mine air shafts, tipples, or other <br />surface installations. The Lower Refuse Disposal Area has a sign posted with the assigned <br />MSIIA identification number and other necessary information. In addition, the sign is at least <br />six feet above the ground or waste surface and is located next to the area entrance. A similar <br />sign has been posted at the Lone Pine Gulch development waste pile and at the RPE. <br /> <br />2.05-43 Revised November 2004 PRIG; Rev. March 2006; Rev. Apri11006 PRIG; Rev. May 2006 PRIO <br />