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West Elk Mine 2008 Annual Hydrology Report 72 <br />40 2008) and the casing has likely collapsed. Future water quality and water level monitoring of these <br />damaged wells is, therefore, not possible. <br />A temperature monitoring program designed to monitor the effect of mine discharge from Sylvester <br />Gulch on the water temperature of the North Fork of the Gunnison River was implemented at the <br />end of WY 2007. The temperature monitoring is not mandated by any permits, but was voluntarily <br />implemented by MCC. Temperature data loggers were initially installed at eight monitoring sites <br />on September 21, 2007. Several of the data loggers needed to be re-installed / reinforced due to <br />high runoff and the data collection interval was re-programmed for all temperature data loggers in <br />WY 2008. The temperature monitoring data will be summarized in future AHRs. Five of the <br />temperature monitoring sites are located in Sylvester Gulch (MCSG-1, MCSG-2, MCSG-3, <br />MCSG-4, MCSG-5) and three are in the North Fork of the Gunnison River (NFG-1, NFG-2 and <br />NFG-3). No temperature variations were noted between monitoring stations in WY 2008, <br />indicating there are were no temperature impacts resulting from MCC's mining operations. <br />During part of WY 2008, MCC conducted bio-monitoring tests as required by the CPDS permit <br />(MCC, 2009). Bio-monitoring sampling, including whole effluent toxicity or "WET" tests, were <br />conducted in the fourth quarter of 2007 and the first and second quarter of 2008 on mine water <br />• from the MWPF (017A) discharged to the West Fork of Sylvester Gulch. No WET testing was <br />conducted during the third quarter of 2008, because samples were not collected prior to the <br />cessation of discharge on July 17, 2008 (MCC, 2009). On September 11, 2008, MCC requested a <br />waiver from the WQCD to waive the WET testing for the third quarter of 2008, since no further <br />discharges would be made during the remainder of the quarter. The waiver was granted and <br />confirmed by email and correspondence dated October 24, 2008 (CDPHE, WQCD, 2008). The test <br />results indicated that neither daphnid (Daphnia magna) nor the fathead minnow (Pimephales <br />promelas) populations were adversely affected in the fourth quarter of 2007 or the first or second <br />quarter of WY 2008 (MCC, 2009). <br />During WY 2008, there were four permit exceedances at Outfall 007A and five exceedances at <br />Outfall 017A (MCC, 2009). MCC notified the WQCD of the exceedances at a meeting on August <br />21, 2008. MCC stopped discharging from Outfall 017A on July 17, 2008. The five permit <br />exceedances occurred at Outfall 017A during the third quarter of WY 2008, prior to cessation of <br />discharge at Outfall 017A. As a result of the above-mentioned permit exceedances, Permit <br />Amendment 2 (CDPHE, 2009a and 2009b) will be effective in WY 2009. <br />11 <br />June 2009 HydroGeo, Inc.