_INSPECTION - C1981038 (48) - Laserfiche WebLink

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III. COMMENTS -COMPLIANCE Below are comments on the inspection. The comments include discussion of observations made during the inspection. Comments also describe any enforcement actions taken during the inspection and the facts or evidence supporting the enforcement action. This was a Partial Inspection of the Bowie No. 1 Mine conducted by Marcia Talvitie of the Colorado DRMS on 20-May-2009. No representative of the operator, Bowie Resources LLC, attended the inspection. The day commenced at the BRL office at 12:30 p.m., when the operator was provided with notice of the inspection. Areas covered during the inspection were the former ROM pile and the ongoing reclamation work at the East Mine. Roads • Two excavators were at work narrowing the lower portion of the East Mine haul road (Figure 1). Excavated material was loaded into haul trucks to be transported further up the hill for placement at the Warehouse Bench. The remaining surface was roughened, made ready for seeding and mulching (Figure 2). Hydrologic Balance • Silt fence had been installed on the downhill side of the area disturbed for the haul road narrowing project (Figure 2). • At the ROM pile, straw bales were positioned at the downhill limit of the remaining stretch of haul road,where some erosion had occurred earlier in the season. • Ponds 1, 2, 3 and 4 were dry (Figure 3). It appeared that the bottoms of Ponds 1 and 2 had recently been mucked out. Backfill & Grading • Another excavator was roughening the long slope east of the D-Seam portal bench (Figure 4). • Numerous survey stakes marking areas of Cut and Fill yet to be accomplished were observed (Figure 5). Revegetation • The entire valley of the North Fork of the Gunnison River was green and lush due to the season and to sporadic precipitation. • The reconstructed slopes above Stevens Creek had been recently hydro-mulched and seeded (Figure 6). • Areas of the East Mine that were seeded and mulched in 2008 were starting to show some growth. The rich topsoil hauled from the Well Field and placed on the slope below the Warehouse Bench appeared to be the most productive (Figure 7). • Vegetation is well established on the slopes of the West Ridge Coal Mine Waste Pile (Figure 8). Along the pile's crest, vegetation is thin, as might be expected, and consists mainly of cheat grass. • A community of Hoary cress, a.k.a. "Whitetop" has become established adjacent to a group of large boulders located northeast of the West Ridge Coal Mine Waste Pile (Figure 8). Air Resource Protection • A water truck was observed keeping the road sprayed along the route being used by the haul trucks. Reclamation Success • The reclamation contractor continues to make outstanding progress toward completion of reclamation at the East Mine. All of the slopes backfilled in 2008 appear to be stable with respect to both erosion and gravity. Bowie No. 1 Mine C-1981-038 20-May-2008