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'I A-?OUNr?NCOu <br />(OMPANYL.L.C. <br />A subsidiary of Arcb Western Resources, LLC <br />July 28, 2008 <br />Oecelgwo <br />JUL 3 0 2008. <br />Division or K6cl <br />Mining and 2,tfon, <br />Ms. Kelly Morgan <br />Compliance Monitoring and Data Management Unit <br />Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment <br />Water Quality Control Division (WQCD) <br />4300 Cherry Creek Drive South <br />Denver, CO 80222-1530 <br />West Elk Mine <br />P0Box591 <br />5174 Higbway 133 <br />Somerset, CO 81434 <br />(970) 929-5015 <br />Fax (970) 929-5595 <br />Re: Mountain Coal Company, LLC (MCC), West Elk Mine, CDPS Permit No. CO-0038776, <br />Discharge Monitoring Reports for the Second Quarter 2008. <br />Dear Ms. Morgan: <br />Attached are MCC's Discharge Monitoring Reports (DMRs) for the second quarter of 2008. <br />Also attached is the bio-monitoring report for Discharge Point 017. The report shows that there was no <br />toxicity to the two species tested. <br />During the quarter there were a total of nine exceedences. The following is a summary of those <br />exceedences: <br />Outfall 004 for pond MB-2R exceeded the Total Suspended Solids (TSS) parameter for the 30-day <br />average (40 mg/1) during the only day of discharge'at this location during the quarter on May 16, 2008. <br />This 30-day average is represented by a single sample since the pond did not discharge the remainder <br />of May or June. On May 15th , MCC conducted upstream and downstream sampling on the North Fork <br />of the Gunnison River prior to the discharge on May 16th . The sample analyses showed the river <br />upstream at 146 mg/l TSS and the downstream sample had a value of 139 mg/l TSS. These values and <br />the flows at Outfall 004 are indicative of the heavy precipitation and spring snow melt occurring at the <br />time. Unfortunately the laboratory did not send the analytical data for Outfall 004 to MCC until July <br />23, 2008, The upstream and downstream analyses are attached. During May the meteorological station <br />at the West Elk Mine recorded 1.48 inches of rain that fell on the 7th , 8th, 10', and 13th. The combined <br />rainfall on remaining snowpack may have exceeded the 10-year 24-hour event of 1.9 inches. <br />Outfall 014, Sylvester Gulch pond SG-l, exceeded the 30-day average at 40 mg/1 TSS, but not the 70 <br />mg/l TSS daily maximum parameter on April 9th due to a natural spring that was flowing into the pond <br />in concert with the previously mentioned heavy precipitation and snowinelt. The pond discharged <br />during a single day in April, one day in May, and was not discharged in June. The 30-day average <br />reflects a single sample from April 9th. <br />Outfall 017, Mine De-watering Discharge experienced 7 exceedences for the quarter. Three <br />exceedences were for TSS, three exceedences for potentially dissolved iron and one for total