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STATE OF COLORADO <br />DIVISION OF RECLAMATION, MINING AND SAFETY <br />Department of Natural Resources <br />1313 Sherman St., Room 215 <br />Denver, Colorado 80203 <br />Phone: (303) 866-3567 <br />FAX: (303) 832-8106 <br />29 December 2009 <br />James A. Kiger <br />Oxbow Mining, LLC <br />P.O. Box 535 <br />Somerset, CO 81434 <br />Re: Elk Creek Mine - Permit No. C-1981-022 <br />Technical Revision No. 65 (TR 65) - Ventilation Boreholes <br />Preliminary Adequacy Review <br />Dear Mr. Kiger: <br />COLORADO <br />D I V I S I O N OF <br />RECLAMATION <br />MINING <br />SAFETY <br />Bill Ritter, Jr. <br />Governor <br />Harris D. Sherman <br />Executive Director <br />Ronald W. Cattany <br />Division Director <br />Natural Resource Trustee <br />The Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety received the application for TR-65 from <br />Oxbow Mining LLC (OMLLC) on 29 October 2009 and determined it to be Complete for <br />purposes of filing on the 9`h of November. Proof of Publication of the Public Notice <br />(Delta County Courier) has not yet been received by the Division. <br />TR-65 provides for the addition of up to thirty-three gob vent boreholes and associated <br />temporary light use roads and drill pads for Long Wall Panels 17, 18 and 19. Eleven new <br />pads and 21 boreholes are to be located on surface owned by the Hotchkiss Ranch, while <br />12 pads and 12 boreholes are proposed for USFS lands. A total of 11.5 acres of new <br />disturbance is proposed for construction of the drill pads, with road construction <br />contributing an additional 5.7 acres. <br />The Division's review of this technical revision overlaps with TR-64, which addresses <br />three ventilation boreholes at the east end of Panel 16. The TR-64 boreholes are also <br />located on USFS lands. <br />Reclamation Cost Estimate <br />The Division will prepare a reclamation cost estimate for the additional disturbance <br />proposed with TR-65. <br />Threatened and Endangered Species Assessment <br />A "Block Biological Clearance Project" was prepared for the Elk Creek Mine in August <br />2005 by Monarch and Associates. This document was incorporated into Exhibit 2.04.7 of <br />the permit with MR-79 in June 2006. Areas to be affected by TR-65 were included in the <br />scope of the project. <br />Office of Office of <br />Mined Land Reclamation Denver • Grand Junction • Durango Active and Inactive Mines