2010-03-11_REVISION - C1981008

• Permit No: C1981008
• IBM Index Class Name: REVISION
• Doc Date: 3/11/2010
• Doc Name: Response To Comments Received
• From: DRMS
• To: JoEllen Tuner
• Type & Sequence: RN5
• Email Name: MLT
• Media Type: D
• Archive: No

STATE OF COLORADO
DIVISION OF RECLAMATION, MINING AND SAFETY
Department of Natural Resources
1313 Sherman St., Room 215
Denver, Colorado 80203
Phone: [phone]
FAX: [phone]
11 March 2010
JoEllen Turner
Box 346
Nucla, CO 81424
Re: New Horizon Mine - Permit No. C-1981-008
Permit Renewal No. 5 (RN-05)
Permit Revision No. 6 (PR-06)
Response to Comments Received
Dear Ms. Turner:
COLORADO
D I V1 5 1 ON OF
RECLAMATION
MINING
SAFETY
Bill Ritter, Jr.
Governor
Harris D. Sherman
Executive Director
Ronald W. Cattany
Division Director
Natural Resource Trustee
The Division's Denver office received a letter (via fax) from you on the 9 March 2010. The
purpose of this letter is to respond to issues you raised, and to provide clarification regarding the
Division's procedures.
Permit Renewal No. 5 (RN-05)
Renewals to a coal mining permit are required periodically (every 5 years, in the case of the New
Horizon Mine) in accordance with Rule 2.08.5. The RN-05 application for the New Horizon
Mine was submitted on 13-Nov-2007. The RN-5 application did not include any proposed
changes to the text or maps that comprise the permit. Changes (revisions) to the permit that did
occur during the RN-05 time frame were accomplished with TR-57 and TR-58.
In evaluating an operator's request for renewal, the Division reviews the permit for compliance
with the regulations. Documentation of the Division's RN-05 review was provided in the
"Proposed Decision and Findings of Compliance" document, issued upon completion of the
review process. Two Stipulations attached to the Findings document directed Western Fuels to
address specific issues with respect to the New Horizon Mine. The Findings Document was
issued for RN-05 August 24, 2009. A personal copy was provided to Mr. and Mrs. Morgan, and
a copy for public viewing was posted at the Nucla Annex. On August 24, 2009 we also sent you
a letter notifying you of our proposed decision. Notice of our proposed decision was published
in the Forum on September 3'd and 10`h 2009, and the deadline for requesting a hearing before
the Mined Land Reclamation Board to object to our proposed decision was the 5th of October.
No written objections or requests for a hearing were received. RN-5 was issued on the 8`h of
October 2009.
Permit Renewal No. 5 did not incorporate any changes to the permit. Therefore, there were no
RN-05 maps or text revisions to be posted at the Nucla Annex.
Office of Office of