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,. <br />Mountain Coal Company <br />West Elk Mme <br />Posl Ollice Box 597 <br />Somerset. Colorado 8 t a3a <br />Telephone 303 929-SOt 5 <br />July 27, 1992 <br />Ms. Christine Johnston <br />Colorado Division of Minerals & Geology <br />Office of Mined Land Reclamation <br />1313 Sherman St., Room 215 <br />Denver, CO 80203 <br />Re: Noxious Weed Control Plan <br />Dear Christine: <br />iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiu <br />~~ <br />~~ <br />.~ '~_ <br />4J'L. ! ~'o ~~. ~.~ <br />~JUL 3 91992 <br />DiVI~lOi~ ~:~ <br />MINERAL ' 3Ev..;: <br />Mountain Coal Company (MCC) has participated with the Colorado <br />Department of Agriculture in a biological thistle control program. Several <br />hundred flies of the Trichosirocalus horridus species were released on the mine <br />site. This species appazently attacks Russian thistle. The grubs feed on the <br />seed in the seed head, rendering it sterile. This thistle was identified in the <br />upper meadow, near the Sylvester Gulch fan, and north of the middle access <br />road, north of the new shop site. <br />A biological release is planned for a few Bull thistles located near the Sylvester <br />Gulch tan as soon as this species hatches. A few of the species which attack <br />Canada thistle by forming a gall on the stem were released, but the number <br />was not enough to document as a release. The State does not have any more <br />of this species for release this year. MCC is scheduled for biological treatment <br />of all thistle species next year. <br />In addition to the biological treatments, MCC will conduct mechanical <br />treatment (cutting) of Canada thistle on the mine site. Early spraying could <br />not be scheduled due to frequent rains and seed heads have quickly matured <br />due to recent dry weather, so a late spraying would be ineffective. <br />The noxious weed control plan in MCC's permit document (Volume 1, page <br />2.05 - 47) refers to "treatment", not specifically spraying, so I do not believe <br />a revision is required for these biological and mechanical treatments. <br />AIAG05.^~:J <br />