Laserfiche WebLink
Permit C-81-071 1996 Annual Hydrology Report <br />during 1996 spring runoff) the spoil spring discharges from Mine 2 have no significant impact on <br />• Fish Creek. <br />EFFLUENT MONITORING <br />A number of sedimentation control structures at Mine 1 and 2 are monitored. Of these only <br />Stations 39 (Pond A), 84 (Pond D) and at Mine 1 had significant flows during the 1996 irrigation <br />season. Stations 57 (Pond H), 41, 87 (Pond F), (Pond K), and 91 (Pond M) showed minor or <br />no flows only during the spring runoff. None of the stations at Mine 2 had significant flows in <br />1996. Most of the Eckman Park and Mine 1 ponds are in the Foidel Creek drainage, only Pond <br />H (Site 57) is in the Middle Creek drainage. Pond M on Mine 2 is in the Fish Creek drainage. <br />Pond D (Site 84) receives runoff from the waste rock disposal area as well as well as runoff <br />from the surface mine. In addition, mine water from the Foidel Creek underground mine is also <br />pumped to Pond D. Pond K (Site 41) drains to Foidel.Creek and had only a single brief <br />discharge during 1996. <br />Flows <br />The flow rate data for the effluent stations are summarized on Table 44. The historic discharge <br />data for the ponds with significant 1996 water discharges at Mine 1 are presented in Figures 64 <br />through 75. Discharges from these ponds are affected by seasonal variation in surface runoff <br />and spoil spring flows. All of the plots show the typical seasonal variation with high flows during <br />spring runoff. Historically, discharges from the ponds ceased in the summer and did not begin <br />again until the next spring. Three ponds, A (Site 39), D (Site 84) and F (Site 87), began <br />• discharging year round in late 1984. This is due to the spoil springs located in the drainages of <br />Ponds A, D, and F and the past underground mine discharge to Pond D. Due to utilization of <br />Site 114 for water supplies by Twentymile Coal Company, Sites 114 and 87 experienced <br />extended periods of no discharge during 1996. <br />During the 1996 irrigation period, Pond A exhibited a mean flow of approximately 2.7 cfs, Pond <br />D 0.4 cfs and Pond F 0.01 cfs. Pond F did not discharge significant amounts in the 1996 <br />irrigation season, and has shown a decreased flow since 1991, due to periodic pumping of the <br />pond and Spring 114 for mine use. The discharge from Pond D was sustained throughout the <br />year as shown on Figure 73. Flows from these ponds have changed Foidel Creek from an <br />ephemeral to a perennial stream. Peak discharges from the ponds do not seem to have <br />changed significantly because the spoil spring water would probably have discharged as <br />snowmelt runoff anyway. <br />Water Quality <br />Summaries of the water quality data for the Mine 1 and Eckman Park ponds are presented on <br />Tables 45 through 48. The water quality summary for Mine 2's Pond M is provided as Table 49. <br />The field conductivity data shows some typical seasonal variation: the water quality improves <br />during spring runoff. Ponds A, D, F, and H appear to be impacted by spoil spring inflows. The <br />discharge rates from H are not significant during irrigation season and therefore do not cause <br />any significant impacts. <br />For the ponds affected by spoil springs, increased calcium, magnesium, sulfate, dissolved <br />• solids, and SAR are typically observed. No significant changes in parameters were observed <br />for the ponds during the 1996. Conductivity and TDS levels observed on Trout Creek have <br />recently been observed at levels lower than predicted by the CYCC PHC. The levels <br />I:\DOCUMEN7~AHR\ECKMAN\EP96TEXT.DOC 03/26/97 Page 10 <br />