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West Elk Mine 2002 Annual Hydrology Report <br />4.5 Mine Water Inflows <br />No major mine inflows occurred in WY2002. Some small inflows were encountered during mine <br />development with the continuous miners. The small flows occurred as roof drips, rib seeps, and <br />small flows (< 15 gpm) from some fault zones. Total mine inflows during WY2002, were <br />estimated at 95 gpm (154 ac-ft/year) (MCC, 2003). <br />4.5.1 NW Panels Sealed Sump <br />During WY2002, MCC water from the NW Panels Sealed Sump was drained through a borehole to <br />the NE Panels Sealed Sump. There was no discharge from the NW Panels Sealed Sump to the <br />Lone Pine Pipeline (MCC, 2003). <br />4.5.2 NE Panels Sealed Sump <br />During WY2002, water collected in the NE Panels Sealed Sump was pumped out of the sump <br />using the mine water pumping facility (MWPF) up the vertical well and discharged to Sylvester <br />Gulch. A clarifying pond and energy dissipater system is located at this discharge point. <br />4.5.3 Mine Water Sampling <br />During WY2002 as in WY2001, sampling of mine water inflows was hampered by the locations of <br />the inflows. Fault inflows occur in low places on the mine floor, which allows mixing of belt <br />wash-down water, process water, road maintenance (road watering mixed with magnesium <br />chloride), and rock dusting operations. However, two representative mine water samples were <br />collected and analyzed from a fault zone located in Panel 22 Tailgate Crosscut 2 (22TGXC2). The <br />other sample was collected from the abandoned Bear Mine at the Edwards Portal. A summary of <br />the mine water quality is in Appendix H. <br />4.6 Mine Water Balance <br />A mine water balance was developed as a tool for water management to quantify the water entering <br />and leaving the mine. The WY2002 mine water balance is summarized below and illustrated on <br />Figure 3. <br />Inflows (water entering the mine) include: <br />• Raw water intake (North Fork diversion, 436 ac-ft) <br />• Mine Inflows (faults, coal outcrops, and drips, 206 ac-ft) <br />• Total Inflow = 642 ac-ft <br />Outflows (water exiting the mine) include: <br />23 <br />Project # 00301 HydroGeo, Inc. <br />