_INSPECTION - C1980005 (7) - 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 complete inspection of the Seneca II Mine conducted by Sandy Brown. The site was inspected on September 24 and the records were checked on September 25. Dennis Jones accompanied me on the site inspection.Weather was clear and warm. There was no mining or reclamation activity at the site during this inspection. There were cattle grazing on most of the reclamation which is divided into several separate fenced pastures. Mine identification, permit boundary and stream buffer zones were in place. The pre-law Wolf Creek area was walked. The slide area on the north side was regraded and seeded in 2007 along with the larger area to the south. There were a few small rills, however the slope was stable. Vegetation observed in this area included: big sagebrush, rabbitbrush, brome, orchard grass and alfalfa. There was no standing water in the depression south of the ridge, it was essentially a small mud-hole. Dennis Jones said he had taken a sample earlier this summer, he wasn't sure of the exact date or results, however the pH had increased from the ph of 3.5 measured a couple years ago. One gambel's oak and one serviceberry were observed on the western facing slope northeast of the depression. Elk were heard bugling in the drainage to the south of the old Wolf Creek area. I walked the southern part of the East Wadge block that will remain in the Seneca II permit boundary after the proposed Sage Creek Mine permit application is approved. The hillside has stabilized considerably since I last visited the area a couple years ago. It appeared some earth work had been undertaken higher up on the hillslope, but I did not walk up there. The remaining roads were inspected: Road E1, Road F (the upper portion), Road C and the South Road. These roads were all in good condition. All ponds were inspected. Pond 004 was a light turquoise color, most likely due to an algal bloom. Debris caught in the trash rack was removed and the discharge surged from about 22 gpm to 146 gpm. Baseflow in this pond averages 20-30 gpm. Mr. Jones noted that iron and selenium levels may present a problem in achieving water quality standards. Pond 008 was discharging at about 15 gpm. There was a dead cow in this pond. The Wadge Impoundment, discharge point 002 was discharging at 87 gpm. Pond 003, the shop pond was not discharging. The Pecoco pond was inspected. It is not a discharge point; the water flows through the Wadge impoundment before leaving the mine site. Several stockponds were observed. T-32 was full of water, T-28 contained water, and T-33 was about half-full. Records were checked in the Seneca office trailer on September 25. A copy of the records checklist is attached. It was noted that all bond release correspondence is filed with the associated bond release application in a three ring binder on the bookshelves. Records were up to date and well organized. Overall the site is in very good condition. 4