_INSPECTION - C1981008 (29) - Laserfiche WebLink

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October 31, 2008 Western Fuels-Colorado (WFC) PO Box 628 Nucla, CO 81424 October 15-16, 2008,New Horizon Mine#1 &Mine#2, DRMS Permit# C-81-008 Complete, oversight inspection Ross Gubka& Tom Fry, WFC Marcia Talvitie, Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining, and Safety (DRMS) Henry Austin, USDI/ Office of Surface Mining (OSM) I participated in a complete inspection of the New Horizon Mine as indicated above. This complete inspection was carried over into EY 2009 by the DRMS / OSM Oversight Team. We initially planned to conduct this inspection during EY 2008 but did not due to scheduling difficulties. This is an active,private surface coal mine (no federal coal or surface acreage). The mine is a truck-shovel operation and supplies coal for use at the nearby Nucla Electrical Generating Station. The previous OSM inspection here was March 08, 2005, conducted by me. Weather was mild and clear, and ground conditions were dry throughout the mine. Prior to the inspection I reviewed DRMS inspection reports, and after the inspection I reviewed public information records at the Nucla-Montrose County Annex building in Nucla. DRMS conducted a complete inspection here on July 28, 2008. A bond release inspection (application SL-II) was held on August 25, 2008. This Phase I &Phase II bond release application was determined complete by DRMS on August 5, 2008. There are two approved post-mining land uses associated with the lands subject to bond release, irrigated pasture and non-irrigated pasture. Western Fuels has recently proposed a reference area located nearby the original box cut spoil material stockpile. This reference area proposal is Technical Revision# 58, and is being processed by DRMS at this time. Technical Revision# 57 is also being processed by DRMS and involves identification and handling procedures for prime farmland soils. DRMS has consulted as required with the local USDA/Natural Resource Conservation Service (MRCS) office in Norwood, CO, Mr. Jim Boyd, District Conservationist. I discussed the prime farmland delineation, and soils handling consultation process with Mr. Boyd on October 16 in his Norwood office. For the most part, Mr. Boyd is satisfied with the process to date. DRMS hosted a February 2008, meeting in Grand Junction with NRCS representatives Mr. Boyd and Mr. David A Dearstyne, Soil Scientist,NRCS, Montrose, CO office. This meeting set forth the USDA/NRCS criteria for prime farmland designation, definitions of prime farmland, discussed levels of NRCS soil surveys, and discussed similar soils and other important prime farmland factors. Mr. Boyd provided me a copy of a February 11, 2008 NRCS letter regarding discussions at the February 2008 consultation meeting.