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water to migrate laterally to small seepage areas at the edge of the site. <br />Water flows, during most of the year, through the north and south <br />underdrains. The middle underdrain has never flowed. Some seeps <br />have been noted towards the base of the mine bench. <br />e. Surface Water Effects and Mitigation <br />The following discussion is oriented toward those impacts which may <br />affect Hubbard Creek. Effects upon the North Fork of the Gunnison <br />River will be similar, but of a much smaller magnitude. Hubbard Creek <br />runs through the permit area between the mine bench and the former <br />location ofthe coal stockpile and is the only tributary ofthe North Fork <br />of the Gunnison which may be affected by operations at the Blue <br />Ribbon Mine. <br />Blue Ribbon Coal Company operated an adjudicated well completed in <br />the alluvium of Hubbard Creek adjacent to the mine bench. Water from <br />this well was used for sanitary and industrial purposes. Water was <br />produced at an average rate of about eight gallons per minute. Blue <br />Ribbon Coal Company obtained conditional rights for the use of this <br />water and ditch and storage rights for the now reclaimed Pond No. 1, <br />which served as a source of augmentation water to charge the well. The <br />water rights for the Blue Ribbon Mine have been abandoned. <br />The removal of eight gallons per minute (gpm) was a negligible <br />reduction in the average flow of Hubbard Creek. For example, in 1980, <br />removal of eight gpm equalled only 0.6 percent of the low flow of three <br />cfs. Since they have been discontinued, the operation of the water <br />supply well and the operation of the augmentation reservoir no longer <br />have any effects upon the hydrologic balance of Hubbard Creek or the <br />use of Hubbard Creek water downstream. <br />The impacts of the Blue Ribbon Mine on the quality of water flowing <br />in Hubbard Creek have proven to be minimal. There has been minimal <br />interruption of the quantity of water flowing to Hubbard Creek. Surface <br />flows from disturbed areas are routed through sediment ponds designed <br />to discharge water meeting the effluent limitations of Rule 4.05.2(7). <br />The surface disturbed area associated with the Blue Ribbon Mine is <br />approximately 20 acres, or about 0.1 percent of the drainage area of <br />Hubbard Creek, excluding those areas of upstream diversion. The <br />actual production of water from the surface affected area of the Blue <br />Ribbon Mine will be somewhat less than 0.1 percent of the flow in <br />Hubbard Creek due to the direct relationship of water yield to <br />elevation. Therefore, assuming that all runoff water from the mine is <br />lost through evaporation in sediment ponds (worst case), a loss of less <br />than 0.1 percent of Hubbard Creek yields is expected. <br />24 <br />