_INSPECTION - C1980007 ‎(49)‎

• Permit No: C1980007
• IBM Index Class Name: INSPECTION
• Doc Name: Inspection Report
• Inspection Date: 7/29/2009
• Email Name: TAK
• Media Type: D
• Archive: No

Processing Waste
The outslopes of the Refuse Pile Expansion(RPE)pile and the Lower Refuse Pile(LRP) showed no
signs of structural instability. Survey markers were in place on the faces of both piles. The top of the
LRP is being used for equipment storage, as approved. The operator is backhauling its refuse from the
Bowie No. 2 Mine wash plant to the RPE at the West Elk Mine where it is held in a temporary
stockpile on top of the RPE and then is incorporated into individual lifts (see photo). MR-350
approved incorporating this backhauled refuse into the RPE.
Support Facilities
No problems were found in the following areas: materials storage bench, trash compactor, explosives
storage area, barrel storage building,hydraulic components storage, the Sylvester Gulch mine water
pumping facility, and the polishing pond. The new mine water treatment pond in Sylvester Gulch has
been excavated since the June 2009 inspection. This work was approved in TR-116. Silt fence was in
place downslope from this new disturbance. No problems were found with methane drainage well
sites along the road leading to the West Flatiron area and in the east half of panel E-1. The older pads
have been reclaimed. Grass revegetation is coming along well on these older sites. No signs of
excessive erosion were found on any of the well pads.
General Mine Plan Compliance
The operator appeared to be following the approved mine plan.
Revegetation
No weed problems were found during the inspection. The operator's representative explained that the
mine has been conducting its regular summer weed-spraying program.
Air Resource Protection
No fugitive dust problems were found during the inspection.
Subsidence
Stream flow in Sylvester Gulch was observed upstream and downstream from the area that was
undermined last year by the southwest corner of B-seam Panel 25. The flow rate in Sylvester Gulch
appeared to be the same(less than a cubic foot per second) at both locations, indicating no loss of flow
due to pirating by subsidence cracks.
As part of the special focus evaluation, subsidence features were searched for on the land surface in
areas undermined in the last two years, including: Box Canyon(B-seam panel 18), the hillslope above
Highway 133 (B-seam panel 18), the hillslope on the east side of Sylvester Gulch(B-seam panel 25),
and the east end of panel E-1. The only structures in these areas are roads. There are no renewable
resource lands in these areas. The only evidence of subsidence found were rockfalls on the east side
Sylvester Gulch.
Subsidence cracks over B-seam panel 21 along the West Flat Iron road were examined for changes that
have occurred since last summer when they were found(see July 2008 DRMS inspection report). No
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