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ii oiryl-,7006 -1-154 <br />` PLANNING AND BUILDING SERVICES DIVISION <br />,1J1,,,LAR1MMEEPR, <br />COUNTY <br />P.O. Box 1190 <br />Fort Collins, Colorado 80522-1190 <br />Planning (970) 498-7683 Building (970) 498-7700 <br />Planning Fax (970) 498-7711 Building Fax (970) 498-7667 <br />http://www.larimer.org/planning <br /> <br />October 6, 2009 <br />un r .9 <br />Mr. Michael Cunningham <br />Colorado Division of Reclamation Mining and Safety <br />1313 Sherman Street, Room 215 <br />Denver, CO 80203 <br />Subj: Bonser Gravel Pit Reclamation Plan <br />Coulson Excavating Inc. (Operator) <br />Dear Mr. Cunningham, <br />We spoke via telephone in September regarding the Bonser Pit and the operator's proposed <br />reclamation plans. I appreciate your input per that conversation. To address the neighbor's <br />concerns, I am writing a formal request regarding an inspection at the Bonser Pit site. The pit is <br />located. in Larimer County, east 67-roveland and west of Interstate 25. The operator has an <br />approved 112 Permit from the State. As part of their Comity approval, the pit"'operator (Coulson <br />Inc.) constructed a significant berm on their property. to provide screening between the use and an <br />adjoining property owner. This berm is made up of approximately 72000 cubic yards of <br />overburden material from the site. <br />In Larimer County, approved gravel pits typically remove all berms once mining is complete at the <br />site, as part of their reclamation plans and to allow for further development. For that reason, berm <br />removal is not typically required by the County as a condition of approval. In the past this applicant <br />verbally represented they will remove the berm. However, recently they indicated they will not <br />remove the berm as part of their post mining or reclamation plan, and this has again raised concerns <br />in the neighborhood. There are several issues of interest. The applicant committed verbally at the <br />public hearing and since that time to removing the berm. The berm is not shown on the reclamation <br />plans for the Bonser Pit site, and it is not clear that the berm falls entirely within the permit <br />boundary area. In the reclamation plan approved by the State, it appears that the operator would <br />need to remove the berm to use the overburden used to construct it to provide fill material for dam <br />construction. It is unclear if this would be a requirement from the State, since the applicant did not <br />show the berm in their reclamation plans. As a final note, the operator has not responded to County <br />requests for clarification on this issue, so that we can address the neighborhood concerns.