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K. 114,11, Ile <br />INFORM 4 ?co <br />INFORMATION NETWORK FOR RESPONSIBLE MINING <br />PO Box 461235 <br />Glendale, CO <br />80246-1235 <br />Damien Borg <br />daniien@informcolorado.org <br />www.infon-ncolorado.org <br />Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety <br />Department of Natural Resources <br />1313 Sherman Street, Room 215 <br />Denver. CO 80203 <br />Executive Director <br />August 6, 2009 <br />AUG 0 6 2009 <br />DIVisjoiI.e? ,.toamation, <br />V Mining and Safety <br />RE: Public commen?on Denison's Sunday Mine Complex Environmental Protection <br />Plan (File numbers-t 1977-285; M-1977-416; M-1978-039HR; M-1980-055HR; M- <br />1981-021) <br />Dear Division Staff, <br />Thank you for the opportunity to offer these public comments regarding the <br />Environmental Protection Plan (EPP) for the Denison Sunday Mine Complex. These <br />comments are submitted on behalf of Sheep Mountain Alliance and INFORM. <br />Sheep Mountain Alliance is a grassroots citizen organization dedicated to the <br />preservation of the natural environment in the Telluride Region and Southwest Colorado. <br />To this end, Sheep Mountain Alliance will protect the health of regional ecosystems, <br />wildlife habitats and watersheds, and will promote a sense of community, quality of life <br />and a diverse and sustainable local economy. <br />First off, we would like to commend Denison's staff and contractors for the obvious hard <br />work that has gone into the preparation of the Environmental Protection Plan (EPP). The <br />immense volume of material clarified Denison's repeated extension requests. That being <br />said, we do have questions/concerns regarding aspects of the EPP. <br />The main areas of apprehension are water quality issues. The Sunday Mine Complex is <br />proximate to the Dolores River. All water (both ground and surface) from the Denison <br />mine sites should be presumed to flow into the Dolores River- home to threatened and <br />endangered fish, as well as, a prime area for recreation- thus, leachate migration and <br />testing, and ground water infiltrating the mine must be fully examined. First, on the topic <br />of leachate migration risks, the Denison EPP states: <br />6#03 <br />"Potential Leachate Migration Risk: <br />The potential for development rock or ore to form leachate containing metals is <br />dependent on several factors including the following: