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the southern and eastern portions of the permit azea aze dominated by the Williams Fork Mountains and the <br />river beds of the Yampa and Williams Fork Rivers. <br />The Eagle Mine sites are located in an azea, which has been historically mined by surface and underground <br />Honing. The eazliest records of mining indicate that underground mining began in this area in the late 1920's <br />and early 1930's, while surface strip mining began azound .1975. The major mines which have operated in the <br />past are: 1) Wise Hill (1,2,3,4), Williams Fork Strip (1,2,3), and Trapper Strip. The Trapper Strip Mine <br />began operations in 1976 and has continued to date. <br />Underground mining began at the Eagle No. 5 Mine in 1972, under a subsidiary of the Zigler Coa] Co. The <br />Cyprus Empire Corporation (CEC), a subsidiary of the Cypms Coal Company, subsequently acquired the <br />mines from Zigler in 1982, and began operating under an approved Colorado Mine Land Reclamation Boazd <br />permit in August, 1983. hi 1999, CEC was acquired by (RAG EC). Hydrologic monitoring has been <br />conducted at the mine site since 1980, primarily by CEC or RAG EC personnel. Water quality samples aze <br />currently analyzed by CT&E Laboratories of Denver, Colorado, an USEPA certified laboratory. Prior to <br />October 1999, sample analysis was conducted by ACZ Laboratories, Inc., of Steamboat Springs, Colorado, <br />also an USEPA certified laboratory. <br />The Eagle No. 5 Mine, mining the "F" Coal Seam of the Cretaceous Age Williams Fork Formation, originally <br />• utilized room-and-pillaz minting methods until 1985, when economics dictated a change to the longwall <br />mining method. The aerial extent of the underground workings in the Eagle No. 5 Mine was approximately <br />2,049 acres in early 1990, when the No. 5 mine was sealed and mining moved to the Eagle No. 6 Mine. Full <br />production in the Eagle No, 6 Mine began in late 1990, with coal extraction from the underlying "E" Coal <br />Seam of the Williatns Fork Formation. Coal mined at the No. 5 and No. 6 Mines was loaded on unit trains at <br />[he mine facility azea and hauled by rail to mazket. The SA portals and a short section of the No. 5 Mine <br />mains were used for access to the Eagle No. 6 Mine. The aerial extent of the underground workings in the <br />Eagle No. 6 Mine (underlying portions of the No. 5 Mine) was approximately 640 acres at in ]ate 1995, when <br />mining ceased. The mines have been in temporary cessation ever since, therefore, during 2003, no active <br />mining took place at either of the Eagle Mine sites, and total acreage has not changed. <br />3.0 2003 TIYDROLOGIC MONITORING PROGRAM <br />The RAG EC hydrologic monitoring program includes data collected specifically to meet requirements of the <br />DMG, as well as data collected to meet the requirements of the Colorado Wastewater Dischazge Permit <br />System (CDPS). Note that "CDPS" parameters were formerly referred to as National Pollutant Dischazge <br />Elimination System (NPDES) pazameters in prior AHRs. Specific monitoring locations aze shown on Figure <br />2. <br />• As mentioned in the Introduction, Technical Revision TROT-32 was approved in June 2001. TR 01-32 <br />allows for cessation of many DMG hydrologic monitoring requirements while the mine is in TC. RAG EC <br />2 <br />I:\Env\Empire\AHR\2003\Text\Empire2003AHR.doc <br />