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corrected as the operation is completed. Because the reclamation laws embrace a <br />"final end use" approach to planning reclamation, the plans proposed in the permit <br />application must be directed toward creating that final end use. The final end use <br />selected for this mining operation is an agricultural use for inclusion in the land <br />owner's large cattle ranch. Therefore, in many respects, the addressing of this <br />minimization standard is best found in the Reclamation Plan of the permit <br />amendment. A copy of that Reclamation Plan is included as Appendix A. Various <br />requirements in that plan will be referred to in other portions of this application. <br />Floodplain and Riparian (Avoid 100 year floodplain for development) - This <br />property and Running Creek in general does not have current flood plain mapping <br />available. According to the Elbert County Planning Department, it is expected that this <br />will be mapped in perhaps about 10 years. However, the county does have copies of the <br />old floodplain maps. Examination of those maps provided a reasonably good idea of <br />where the floodplain would be located. That is, the maps provided an approximate <br />elevation for the upper limit of the 100 year flood plain. Examination of the site indicates <br />that the elevation shown on those maps is a good approximation. Therefore, the <br />elevational contour of that old mapping was selected and is shown on the site plan. It is <br />apparent that in a 100 year flood, after excavation of the pit, much if not all of the pit <br />bottom would be inundated by flood waters to a depth of a few feet. As no structures are <br />proposed as a part of this permit application, flooding of the pit bottom could occur <br />without hazard to structures. Although the elevation of a 25 year and 50 year flood event <br />is not known, estimation seems to indicate that a 50 year flood event might flood the pit <br />bottom to some extent, but a 25 year event might not create any significant flooding. The <br />impact of this excavation on expanding the floodplain would effectively expand the <br />floodway in the area of the pit, but because the side slopes on the south, east, and north <br />boundaries of the pit are much higher than the expected elevation of a 100 year flood <br />event, the pit would act as an attenuator to reduce the flood intensity downstream <br />producing a more gradual rise and fall of flood waters downstream. It is highly unlikely <br />that the "ponding" of flood water in the pit would have a negative impact on the intensity <br />of the flood. Of course, in a flood much larger than a 100 year event the positive effective <br />of attenuating the flood intensity might be more questionable. <br />Miller Gravel Pit -Special Use Permit Page 8 of 26 <br />