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1}ttttre Water Inflow <br />As the mine extends farther to the east and then north as shown in Figure 2.1. I of the permit <br />application, it is possible that water will be encountered . Figure 4.2- 3, of the permit apphcation, <br />shows that the saturated strata may be encountered approximate]y 1,200 feet ahead of the existing <br />mine faces. This location is near the eastern edge of Figure 3, Mine Map. If water is once again <br />encountered, its existence will be documented and detailed in future reports. <br />As shown on Figure 4.2-3 the saturated strata appear outcrop in the valley formed by the <br />north split of Munger Canyon. Since the strata in the area dip at four percent to the northeast <br />water may be inflltrating the seam along the valley bottom. Any water infiltrating the strata at this <br />location will flow downdip until the aquifer is totally saturated unless there is an area where water <br />may escape. The elevation of the saturated zone would approximate the elevation of the outcrop <br />(5,600 ft) if no water flows out of the strata at a lower elevation. There are no known springs or <br />seeps that would allow escape of the water from the zone of saturation so it can be expected that <br />the coal seam will be saturated neaz the outcrop elevation. <br />MUNGER CANYON MINE <br />To date there has been no water encountered by this mine; therefore, there has been no effect <br />on the hydrologic regime of the area. A current mine workings map is included as Figure 4. <br />Table 1 documents that no water was used at the mine this year. <br />PRECIPITATION <br />• Based upon Bureau of Land Management records from a rain gage in Ashford Canyon, the <br />1996 water year experienced below average amounts of precipitation, 12.95 inches. The rain <br />gage is not located at the mine but about 3.5 miles north at an elevation of 5895 feet compared <br />with 5610 at the portals. The daily rainfall record is detailed on Table 2 and graphed on Figure 2. <br />The year was the second driest year in the 20 years that precipitation has been monitored at the <br />rain gage. The months of July thru December were especially dry and recieved only 3.5 inches of <br />rain as compared with a normal of 9.2 inches for these months. Note that the months of October <br />and November 1995 experienced record low precipitation and that only three months received <br />above normal precipitation. <br />EFFECT OF THE MINES ON THE EAST SALT CREEK REGIIVIE <br />Surface Water <br />Due to the limited disturbance of the mines there is little chance that any significant effect on <br />the quantity or quality of the surface waters near either mine sites has occurred. As the Division <br />notes in its approval package for the Munger Canyon Mme, the total area that will be disturbed by <br />both mine sites amounts to 0.12 percent of the area of the East Salt Creek drainage basin above <br />the mines. <br />Surface water samples during the 1996 water year were collected each quarter from East Salt <br />Creek (SW-1 and SW-8) as required by the monitoring program. The sample sites on McClane <br />• Creek were dry the entire year. Munger Creek was flowing during fast quarter of 1996. The <br />flow was from the North split of Munger Creek and does not include flow from the area of the <br />mine site. Results of the quarterly sampling for each of the monitoring sites are shown in Table 4. <br />AFII2 - 96 Page - 3 1 - I6 - 97 <br />