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Exhibit C — Mining Plan (Rule 6.3.3) <br />The topsoil that will be used for reclamation will be stockpiled onsite, but it must be adequately protected to be <br />optimally useful for reclamation. The plan proposes stockpiles with 1:1 slopes. These slopes are too steep to protect it <br />against water erosion and they are too steep to establish temporary vegetation needed as a protective cover. Please <br />revise the maximum slope gradient to be used for the stockpiles. <br />Please be reminded that sufficient topsoil must be retained onsite to reapply to the banks of the pond. The topsoil <br />stockpiles should be located out of the way of pit operations, and above any portion of the pit floor that may flood. <br />The plan states that dewatering might occur on a limited basis, and that water would be pumped onto nearby fields <br />(also owned by the operator) as irrigation. This office can allow such limited dewatering, but it must not be pumped <br />directly to the river or be allowed to reach the river as surface flow. (Please see the comment about a discharge permit <br />under Exhibit F, below.) <br />The plan is not clear about what the pit slope gradient will be during mining, but it appears to be steeper than 3:1. <br />Please better describe the method of slope reduction (such as cut and fill from above, or pushing up material from the <br />floor), and state what the slope gradient will be during mining. Please explain the term "backfilling" as used in the <br />plan. <br />Please state how much of the pit slope (expressed as the length along the highwall or slope) will be steeper than 3:1 at <br />any point in time. <br />Is there to be a setback of unmined land between the permit boundary and the margin of the pit? Please be reminded <br />that no mining - related activity may occur outside the permit boundary, including haulage, topsoil stockpiling, or any <br />reclamation activities. Please clarify. <br />Exhibit D — Reclamation Plan (Rule 6.3.4) <br />The plan refers to NRCS seeding recommendations, but the seed mix is not included in the plan. Please provide the <br />seed mix as well as any other revegetation recommendations to be employed. <br />Exhibit E — Mining and Reclamation Maps (Rule 6.3.5) <br />Both mans include a 6.1 -acre figure, though page one of the application states that the permit will be 6.4 acres. Please <br />clarify this discrepancy by providing corrected exhibit materials. <br />Both maps lack a signature of the (qualified) person who prepared the maps, and a date. Please add that to the maps. <br />(This requirement is found under Rule 6.2.1.) <br />Both mans lack a labeled permit boundary line. Please add this to the maps. <br />Both maps lack a depiction of the full length of the new road to be constructed/improved. The segment of new road <br />should be clearly labeled, with its dimensions indicated, and the permit boundary indicated. (If necessary, the road <br />itself may be shown on separate map sheets.) The maps showing the northeastern terminus of the road should include <br />the gas well. <br />Both mans should more clearly define the breakdown of acres in the affected area. Of the 6.4 total acres, it is not clear <br />if the road comprises a full 1.6 acres, or if the 4.8 -acre project area includes the southern tip where no mining is <br />planned. <br />Both mans lack depiction of the fences and of the well pad and facilities. Please add these features to the mining map, <br />and add them to the reclamation map if they are to remain after reclamation. (Please see the comment regarding the <br />well under Exhibit L, below.) <br />