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2.04.3 -SITE DESCRIPTION AND LAND USE <br />_ The King I Mine is located in La Plata County, Colorado. The mine site may be <br />reached from Hesperus, south on State Highway 140 (about 2.4 miles) to the <br />junction of La Plata County Road 120, thence west 3.5 miles in Hay Gulch. At that <br />point, an unpaved road (access road) leads southerly for approximately 800 feet to <br />the King I Mine site. <br />Mining began here prior to 1941. During this time, only 10.88 acres of <br />surface have been disturbed due to mining operations. The access road from <br />County Road 120 to the mine bench has disturbed 0.92 acres. <br />LAND USE OF HAY GULCH HAS HISTORICALLY BEEN COAL MINING. GRAZING <br />OF LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE HABITAT <br />Some hay crops are raised along the bottom (drainage field) of Hay Gulch. <br />Numerous abandoned coal mines dot the gulch up-land areas where several coal <br />seams outcrop. <br />The Hay Gulch coal district lies on a dissected plateau cut by moderately <br />steep-sided canyons and valleys with a topographic relief of about 500 feet. The <br />mine bench is at an elevation of 7350 to 7440 feet with the portals of the mine lying <br />at about 7440 feet. Decades ago the King I Mine bench was originally open grazing <br />land. Most of the land is still used for grazing, hay crops and wildlife habitat. The <br />area is sparsely populated. No more than a dozen people live in the gulch at the <br />present time. <br />After the King I Mine is abandoned and the mining bench is reclaimed, the <br />natural use of this tract of land can revert to its historic use, that of grazing and <br />support facilities for livestock and wildlife habitat. <br />HAY GULCH HAS NEVER BEEN USED FOR PRIME FARM LAND <br />The meadow or drainage area of Hay Gulch is wet most of the year, the slopes <br />of the gulch are too steep for farming and cannot be irrigated, and the gulch has a <br />very short growing season. The sun is hidden much of the time by up-slope areas. <br />The drainage of the meadow accounts for the lack of dwellings in the gulch bottom. <br />What few buildings there are must be constructed above the meadow. A detailed <br />description of land use, capability and productivity is provided in 2.04.10 <br />(Vegetation Information). <br />SPECIFIC DISCUSSION OF 2.04.3 (3) (a) - ( fl <br />(a) The King I Mine of National King Coal, LLC is an underground, room and pillar <br />mine. <br />(b) The coal seam being mined varies in thickness from 50 to 74 inches. The <br />seam outcrops along the south side of Hay Gulch with overlying rock of the <br />Menefee Formation and the Cliff House Sandstone reaching thicknesses in <br />excess of 350 feet. A description of the coal is given in Section 2.04.6. <br />(c) Extent of coal removed to date is shown on mine maps included with this <br />application (See Map King I-005). <br />(d) The King I Mine has been in operation (production) since 1941. Other "old <br />workings" within the permitted area are shown on Map King I-005. See <br />National King Coal, LLC King I Mine <br />Section 2.04.3 <br />Page 1 February, 2007 <br />