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C7 <br />• <br /> <br />Due to staffing reductions forced by the global economic downturn, MRV is at <br />this time, staffed only by me. <br />Of these EPA permitted emplacements, one surface pit was reclaimed (filled, <br />contoured, mulched and seeded) and one was left opened for DRMS inspection <br />per DRMS request. <br />In response to paragraph one under "Observations", MRV takes the stand that it <br />did not act in any inapt manner whatsoever by engaging in the backfilling. <br />Despite the reaction to Steen's letter of April 7, 2009 to the DRMS with regards <br />to his opinion towards sand (tails) backfilling, we remind you that by virtue of <br />the "Operating Agreement" he has no grounds to provide an interfering opinion, <br />especially so uninformed an opinion. This letter was circulated around Gold Hill <br />by Steen in direct action to stir up tension and discontent with the project among <br />the local residents. It is sad that we had to firstly receive a copy of this letter <br />from one of these residents. It is also distressing to read Steen's personal attacks <br />on Matt Collins, a credible degreed mining engineer and our former General <br />Manager who I was proud to employ. <br />On August 8, 2009, 20 residents of the Gold Hill area participated in Joe <br />Weaver's "Above Ground Walking Tour" of Horsfal Flat and the Cash Mine <br />shaft area. I personally was quite moved by the comments I received from these <br />folks. They want to see Mount Royale Ventures succeed, and as they point out <br />- we are good neighbors. Steen's actions and letters are clearly antagonistic in <br />nature. <br />The benefits of sand backfill are many. They, in MRV's case, are virtually <br />inert; the mill removes the "bad stuff". They seal old mine workings to prevent <br />water permeation and unwanted ground subsidence. Underground tailings <br />backfilling is standard practice in hundreds of mines worldwide and is <br />commonly regarded as the current best management practice for tailings <br />disposal. The Stillwater Mine is an excellent example to examine in detail. In <br />Colorado, the Black Cloud Mine in Leadville used another tailings backfill <br />technique. I have personal experience in the tailings backfilling employed at the <br />Husky Mine operated by United Keno Hill Mines in Elsa, Yukon, Canada. <br />The EPA has a very good understanding of mine tailings backfilling as is <br />evident by the literature and guidance documents available and by their very <br />approval in this case. It is unfortunate that this understanding is not widely <br />disseminated amongst certain local individuals. <br />I also suggest that DRMS look at the safety aspect of its mandate. If filling <br />some of those old stopes and shafts on Gold Hill saves the life of one deer, cat, <br />dog, child or adult, these activities should be looked at seriously and not at the <br />whim of some uninformed malcontent.