_INSPECTION - C1981008 (46) - Laserfiche WebLink

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III. COMMENTS -COMPLIANCE Below are comments on the inspection. The comments include discussion of observations made during the inspection. Comments also describe any enforcement actions taken during the inspection and the facts or evidence supporting the enforcement action. This was a complete inspection of the New Horizon Mine conducted by Marcia Talvitie of the Colorado DRMS. Ross Gubka represented the operator, Western Fuels - Colorado (WFC), and was present throughout the entire inspection. It had rained throughout most of the previous night, and was raining at the time of the inspection. Due to the muddy site conditions, mining operations were shut down for the day. Availability of Records A completed copy of the "Availability of Records" form is included with this report. Roads All roads within and around the permit area were wet due to the continuing rain fall. Since the April inspection, the newly constructed alignments for BB Road and 2700 Road had been surfaced with 12" of subbase and 4" of 1/4" base course. These road segments had not yet been opened to traffic. Immediately south of the BB/2700 Road intersection, the crossing for the mine trucks had been prepared for the placement of steel reinforced concrete pavement 12" thick. In addition, 2700 Road south of the intersection had been built with a thicker layer of subbase to accommodate the trucks hauling coal to the Tri-State Generating Station. The portion of reconstructed 2700 Road that proceeds north from the intersection with BB Road descends at a 9% grade to meet with the BB Road bypass. WFC had been placing angular riprap in the ditch to control erosion (Figure 1). Hydrologic Balance Pond 007 had no discharge to Calamity Draw; the pond was being recharged by mine dewat6ring and by overflow from the dust control pond. Pond 008 contained water, but was not discharging. Pond 009 was completely dry. Rills observed on the south slope during the March inspection had been repaired, and a cutoff ditch routed surface flows from the south to a pipe buried in the southwest corner of the pond. Pond 011 was also dry. Side slopes were broadcast seeded earlier in 2008. In accordance with the pending approval of TR-56, dewatering of the mine will be directed to Pond 011 rather than Pond 007 in late May. Muddy road conditions prevented access to Ponds 012 and 013. Irrigation The West Lateral of the CCC Ditch was running (Figure 2), and providing water to both 26" and 12" lines (Figure 3). A newly rebuilt pump (Figure 4) was taking CCC Ditch water from the 12" line at a rate of 1400 gpm and supplying side roll sprinklers on parcels owned by WFC and Burbridge. Water was being pumped from Pond 007 to irrigate Staats and San Miguel Power parcels. No irrigation had yet begun on the undisturbed Morgan parcels. Support Facilities WFC has investigated options for handling empty oil drums observed during the April 2008 inspection. The barrels will be thoroughly drained at the site, and then hauled away by a licensed contractor. Reclamation Success WFC indicated that a bond release application for certain portions of the permit would soon be forth-coming. New Horizon Mine C-1981-008 13-May-2008 - 1 -