2008-03-06_INSPECTION - M1989056

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(Page 2) MINE ID # OR PROSPECTING ID # M-1989-056 INSPECTION DATE 02/28/08 OBSERVATIONS INSPECTOR'S INITIALS ESC This was a citizen complaint inspection of the Timnath Pit conducted by Erica Crosby and Peter Hayes of the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety. Dan Kehn of Don Kehn Construction was present during the inspection. The Division received a citizen complaint from Judy Kehn on January 7, 2008. The nature of the complaint is that the financial warranty for the site is not adequate to reclaim the site to the approved reclamation plan consisting of wetland habitat. The Division currently holds a reclamation bond in the amount of $192,222.50 in the form of a Corporate Surety from Employers Mutual Insurance. The Timnath Pit is located approximately 2 miles south of Timnath in Larimer County, Colorado. The 112c Mining and Reclamation Permit was issued to Don Kehn Construction on February 24, 1993 for a permit area of 280 acres. The permit was amended in 1994 to include an additional 72 acres adjacent to Larimer County Road 5. The Division met with Mr. Kehn and reviewed the mining and reclamation plan. According to Mr. Kehn, 144 acres of wetlands will need to be restored on site once mining is complete. Wetlands are restored at a 2:1 ratio, and 63.8 acres of wetlands must exist at any time to be in compliance with Army Corps of Engineers permit. Currently 62.1 acres of wetlands have been created, 1.7 acres short of the Army Corps of Engineers requirements. To date, not all of the established wetlands have been approved by the Army Corps of Engineers. The operator provided the Division with an aerial photograph of the site that was taken on August 13, 2007. The Division will use this aerial to verify the site conditions and to calculate a new reclamation bond based on the approved reclamation plan. The existing disturbance on site is located in a portion of the eastern side of Phase I, Phase II, the northeast area of Phase III and the Plant area. The acreage associated with the current mining disturbance is approximately 16 areas and the plant is approximately 14 acres for a combined area of 30 acres. The operator has diligently reclaimed all areas that have been mined to date which includes Phase IA, Phase IB and Phase IC. The eastern half of Phase IC has not been mined and remains an agricultural field. The reclaimed areas have been restored to wetland habitat with a combination of wetland, wet meadow and open water. The bond in the amount of $192,222.50 was the original estimate when the permit was issued in 1989. The Division will revise the estimate to take into account current costs, the actual disturbance on site and the requirements in the approved reclamation plan. In was noted during a review of the file that the operator did not provide a wetland seed mixture that includes the rate of seeding in pure live seeds per acre (PLS/acre). The Division has the seed mixture proposed in the original application (see attached), but in accordance with Rule 6.4.5 it must include the rate of seeding. The operator will need to submit a revision to the permit with the current seed mixture for the wetland, wet meadow and pastureland areas including the rate of seeding in PLS/acre on or before May 9, 2008. See page 3 for compliance due dates. Once the revision is approved by the Division, then the reclamation bond will be recalculated. I & S Contact Address CE NAME OPERATOR STREET CITY/STATE/ZIP cc: Dan Kehn Don Kehn Construction r r r 6550 SCR 5 Fort Collins, Colorado 80528 Carl Mount; DRMS Judy Kehn r r r BL FS HW HMWMD (CH) SE WQCD (CH)