2008-12-09_PERMIT FILE - C1996083A (4)

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2.04.7 Hydrology Description • Water right 83 is a perennial spring with a shallow pond that is typically full and overflowing. The spring associated with water right 83 has an average and maximum flow of 0.08 and 0.50 gallons per minute respectively. The Operator considers the pond associated with water right 76 to be a good pond because it contains water in the spring and into the summer under normal weather conditions. Additionally, high value springs have been identified on USDA-FS managed land within the permit boundary. They are shown on the following table. Spring Rate GPM Spring Rate GPM Ave to Max Ave to Max SP33-5 0.2 to 2.5 S34-4 1.2 to 4.8 S33-2 3 to30 S34-5 1.2 to 10.7 S34-1 0.6 to 4.3 SP34-11 2.8 to 18.8 SP34-2 3.0 to 22.2 S34-22 1.5 to 35.0 S34-3 0.2 to 1.7 • The seasonal quantity and quality of the water within each aquifer is presented in Volume III, Exhibit 3 and on Maps 10 and 11. The Operator does not have down gradient baseline monitoring wells in the northern section of the permit area because of technical difficulties. Ground water monitoring wells in the northern portion of the permit area may be technically infeasible to implement because of extreme depth. In addition, it is technologically impracticable and extremely problematic to obtain representative water samples at depths that exceed 2,000 feet. To partially compensate for the lack of down gradient wells the Operator had HydroGeo, Inc. prepare a report that uses existing up gradient baseline data to predict down gradient water quality in the B-Seam and the water bearing zone above the B-Seam. The report provides expected ranges in values for pH, total dissolved solids, total Iron and total Manganese. HydroGeo's September 2, 2008 report is located in Volume III, Exhibit 3. The USDA-FS controls surface access to any potential monitoring well sites. A few years ago the USDA-FS made a formal decision, with public input, to close Hubbard Creek road beyond the location of the DH-67 monitoring wells. Therefore, they strongly discourage re-opening Hubbard Creek road for access to a lower depth monitoring well site. The USDA-FS has approved one site (DH- 68) on Iron Point as a potential monitoring well site. • The location of DH-68 is shown on Map 9. Map 11 and Map 11-1 present a prediction of the depth of the water bearing zone above the upper B-Seam. The depth to the water bearing zone is 2,350-feet and the coal seam is 2,450 feet deep at DH-68. The extreme depth dictates two separate monitoring wells. A dual completion well would not be attempted at the required depth. One well would need to be installed in the formation above the B-Seam and one well in the B-Seam. The estimated cost to attempt to install the two wells is in excess of one million dollars. PR-10 ~pPRaV6A lrzy ~a ~ 2.04 - 24 - 09/26/08