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MIDTERM PERMIT REVIEW <br />Bear No. 3 Mine <br />(C-1981-033) <br />This document presents the results of the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety's <br />(Division) 2010 Midterm Review of the Bear No. 3 Mine permit. This Midterm Review was conducted <br />to fulfill the requirements of Rules 2.08.3, 2.06.2(10), 2.06.3(4), 2.06.5(2), 2.06.7(5) and 3.02(4). <br />Rule 2.08.3 requires that the Division conduct a review of each permit issued, prior to its midterm. Based <br />on this review, for good cause shown, the Division may require reasonable revisions or modifications of <br />the permit provisions to ensure compliance with the Act and Regulation. <br />Rules 2.06.2, 2.06.3, 2.06.5 and 2.06.7 require that experimental practices, mountaintop removal <br />variances, variances from approximate original contour (AOC) and variances from contemporaneous <br />reclamation, respectively, be reviewed by the Division where applicable during the Midterm Review. <br />Rule 3.02.2(4) requires that the Division review the amount of the bond and the terms of acceptance of <br />the bond every 2 '/2 years. <br />This 2010 Midterm Review consists of a review of the Bear No. 3 Mine permit application and findings <br />document to identify items that may have been overlooked during the most recent permit renewal review. <br />The Division also reviewed all subsequent revisions and stipulation responses to ensure that all permit <br />commitments and conditions were being followed. Problems and observations from past inspection <br />reports were also considered. <br />SECTION I - HISTORY <br />The Bear Coal Company operation currently consists of one inactive underground mine, the Bear No. 3 <br />Mine. Bear Coal Company used to operate two other underground coal mines, the Bear No. 1 Mine and <br />the Bear No. 2 Mine. The Bear No. 1 and No. 2 Mines operated until 1981. Reclamation operations at <br />Bear No. 1 and Bear No. 2 were conducted in 1982 and 1983. On December 15, 1997, the Division made <br />its proposed decision to approve the Phase I, II and III bond release at the Bear No. 1 and the Bear No. 2 <br />Mines. However, the Division decided to suspend the proposed decision for two years in order to observe <br />if the Bear No. 1 and No. 2 mine workings would be flooded and discharge through the reclaimed mine <br />portals. With no flooding or discharge out of the Bear No. 1 and No. 2 reclaimed portals, the Division <br />reissued its proposed decision to approve the bond release on November 15, 1999. <br />The Bear No. 3 mining operation is located approximately ten miles northeast of Paonia, Colorado, and <br />one-quarter mile east of Somerset, Colorado, adjacent to the North Fork of the Gunnison River. At the <br />Bear No. 3 Mine, average annual production from the room and pillar operation ranged from 250,000 to <br />500,000 tons of coal. Coal was extracted from the B and C Seams within Bear fee coal and within Federal <br />Coal Leases D-052501, COC57632, COC57633 and C-0117192. Approximately 8.4 acres were disturbed <br />at the Bear No. 3 Mine. <br />The original permit (C-81-033) was issued on July 19, 1982, for mining in the C-seam. On July 3, 1985, <br />Bear Coal Company submitted a permit revision proposing to continue mining the C-seam under Federal <br />Coal Lease C-0117192. This revision was approved September 18, 1985. The first renewal application <br />was received on November 6, 1986 and, following normal review procedures, was approved on June 18, <br />1987. A second renewal application was received on January 16, 1992 and it was approved on January