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OCT 2? 2000 Zco t _1 \ d© <br />SMENT OF T <br />01 <br />3600 (CO-130) <br />United States Department of the <br /> <br />J <br />Interior <br />BUREAU OFLAND MANAGEMENT TAKE PRIDE' <br />INAMERICA <br />Grand Junction Field Office <br />2815 H Rd <br />Grand Junction. Colorado 81506 <br />www.co.blm.gov/gjra/*a.html <br />IV ED <br />Mr. Brent Kerr <br />United Companies <br />P.O. Box 3609 <br />2273 River Road <br />Grand Junction, CO 81502 <br />OCT 2 22008. <br />ftAft <br />. g SAFE <br />CIT 2 4 2008 <br />bl? <br />Re: Request to modify mining plan at United Companies BLM Pit east of 32 Rd. on Orchard •? <br />Mesa. <br />Dear Mr. Kerr: <br />My staff received your letter requesting to modify the approved mine plan for the 32 Road pit on <br />September 22, 2008 (letter enclosed). The proposed mine plan modifications include opening up <br />one and a half to two future mining phases and then mine, process and stockpile on recently <br />mined phase or phase and a half (see attached maps). This would increase surface disturbance <br />on BLM surface from 5.8 acres to 9.3 acres at one time, but allow United to move all surface <br />disturbing activities off of adjacent private surface to allow for reclamation in the spring of 2009. <br />Once the adjacent private surface is reclaimed (6-7 acres) there would be less overall surface <br />disturbance in the project area. <br />The other proposed mine plan modification requests to build an eight to ten foot tall safety berm <br />with salvaged topsoil along the eastern boundary on top of phases seven and eight. This berm is <br />intended to prevent unauthorized access to improve public safety. My staff reviewed the <br />environmental assessment (EA) and Decision Record (DR) completed in 2001 for this project, <br />and the EA and DR completed for the nearby Upland gravel pit in 2006 to determine if the <br />proposed mine plan modifications required additional environmental analysis. <br />The EA completed for the United gravel pit states in the vegetation and reclamation section <br />"approximately four to five acres disturbed at one time", but the EA for the nearby Upland <br />gravel pit states that nine acres will be disturbed at one time. In the DR for the United gravel pit <br />stipulation nine states "unreclaimed pit disturbance shall be kept to the minimum needed for <br />mining, processing, and storage." When the EA and DR were issued in 2001 United was <br />utilizing adjacent private property for processing and storage, but with this proposal this property <br />Di,Wision of Reclamation, <br />W,,°,ning and .?; .l