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• Background -Brief History of the Area <br />CCM#1 is located in an area which had been previously mined by underground methods. <br />From historical records, it appears that approximately thirteen underground mines were in <br />operation in what was the entire permit area. Early records show that underground mining <br />began in the area around the turn of the century. Underground mining continued in this <br />area until the early 1970's. <br />The major underground operations found in the area were the Morning Glory, Black Beauty <br />and Maitland mines. Coal from these mines was shipped to numerous locations around the <br />Rocky Mountain. The major use of this coal was industrial. <br />Railroad service was first initiated in the Walsenburg area by the Denver & Rio Grande <br />Railroad in 1876. In the early 1900's, the railroad constructed a spur into what is now the <br />CCM#1 permit area. This spur serviced many underground coal mining operations in the <br />area. As these operations closed and were abandoned, the railroad spur was also <br />abandoned and later removed. Presently, remnants of the spur, a few old buildings, and <br />abandoned waste piles are all that remains of these earlier operations. <br />Reclamation <br />• Kaiser Steel Resources has been deeply concerned about the protection and preservation <br />of the land resources from which the coal mining occurred together with all the attendant <br />socio-economic considerations. Because of the company's substantial investment and <br />commitment to its land assets, Kaiser has a vested interest in the results of reclamation. The <br />company is not only concerned with preserving land values, but is also committed to finding <br />better ways to improve aesthetic values and rangeland. <br />Previous underground mining within the mine plan area had left the landscape littered with <br />unsightly waste dumps and dilapidated structures. In conjunction with mining activities, <br />Kaiser voluntarily dedicated manpower and equipment to reclaim these abandoned <br />operations within the affected area. This reclamation, although expensive, returned the <br />waste dumps and mining operations to an aesthetically pleasing and productive part of the <br />surrounding landscape. From the outset, Kaiser and the previous operator, Colorado Coal <br />Mining Company, regarded the reclamation program as one of the highest priorities of the <br />mining operation. Additional information regarding mining and reclamation of the area is <br />presented in sections 2.04 and 2.05 of this permit document. <br />• <br />1.01-5 <br />