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6.0 GEOLOGY <br />6.1 Stratigraphy <br />Most of the exposed rocks belong to the Mesaverde Group of Upper Cretaceous age. BME <br />divided the Mesaverde Group in this area into Iles, Lower Williams Fork and Upper Williams <br />Fork Formation equivalents as shown in Figure 6-1. The major coal seams are found in the <br />Lower Williams Fork Formation. The coals are generally associated with siltstones, <br />carbonaceous shales and occasional fine grained channel sandstones. <br />6.2 Structure <br />Exploration areas are located on the southwest flank of the Red Wash Syncline, an <br />asymmetrical flexure on the northeast flank of the Rangely Anticline. The syncline axis trends <br />northwest/southeast and plunges to the southeast towards the much larger synclinal structure <br />of the Piceance Basin. Strike within the area is to the northwest, but further to the southeast <br />the strike rotates clockwise and is oriented more southward. Dip within most of the area is <br />approximately 7'/2 degrees to the northeast. As the synclinal axis is approached, dip becomes <br />nearly horizontal. North of the synclinal axis, dip reverses steeply to the southwest, forming <br />the nearly vertically dipping east/west trending Coal Ridge hogbacks. No faulting is expected. <br />7.0 PROPOSED DRILLING SITES AND ACCESS <br />The exploration program for the proposed exploration license area may include the drilling and <br />logging of 14 exploration holes, some of which will include coring. Exhibit A and B (in the <br />pockets) shows the location of the access trails for the 14 proposed holes as well as the <br />boundary of Deserado Mine leases and the proposed exploration license boundary. <br />The 14 holes will result in surface disturbance of about 0.21 acre per location or a total of <br />about 2.9 acres. The new access roads to the holes would total about 16,060 feet in length <br />and be about 12 feet wide. The total new surface disturbance for the access roads would <br />therefore be another 4.4 acres. Much of the new access roads will consist of overland travel <br />without extensive disturbance. Therefore, impacts to the lands will be held to the minimum. <br />7