Laserfiche WebLink
• have a detailed guideline with specifications for conducting a baseline soil resource <br />assessment, reference is also made to the current Wyoming Department of Environmental <br />Quality (WDEQ) Guideline No.1 "Topsoil and Overburden" (WDEQ, 1996). <br />The soils scope -of -work was discussed with CDRMS personnel at a meeting in June 2008 <br />that was attended by Mr. Vern Pfannenstiel (Manager, Environmental <br />Services /Reclamation — West, Peabody Investment Corporation). Subsequent discussion <br />also occurred between Jim Nyenhuis and Mr. Dan Hernandez ( CDRMS) in September <br />2008 prior to the start of soils field work. The main soils requirement is that a detailed <br />Order 1 or 2 intensity soil survey be completed on all potentially disturbed surface areas <br />projected for the Sage Creek Mine. <br />This requirement is consistent with specifications of WDEQ Guideline No.1, as described <br />on pages 2 and 3 of that guideline, which further states that non - affected areas need only <br />be mapped less intensively to the Order 3 level or better (WDEQ, 1996). Soils mapping of <br />the probable non - affected portion of the Soils Study Area, approximately 11,114 acres in <br />size, was recently completed to the detailed Order 2 level (NRCS, 2007; Peacock, 2009) <br />by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) as part of their Routt <br />County Area Soil Survey (NRCS, 2008). In addition, a portion of the non - affected area is <br />also within the current Seneca II Mine permit area and as such was mapped to the Order <br />1 -2 level as part of the Seneca II Mine baseline soil survey. <br />• Portions of the Sage Creek Mine potential surface - affected areas are within currently <br />permitted areas of the Seneca II Mine and Twentymile Coal's Foidel Creek Mine. The <br />primary mine -portal area, several additional portal /pothole excavation areas, and a small <br />portion of the waste rock storage area are entirely within the current Seneca II Mine permit <br />area. In addition, a large portion of the potential transportation corridor overlaps the Foidel <br />Creek Mine permit area. Based on discussion with CDRMS (Hernandez, 2008), these <br />areas would not need to be remapped and sampled because they have already been <br />mapped in detail to either the Order 1 or 2 level of intensity and characterized as part of the <br />previously completed Foidel Creek Mine soils baseline studies ( Twentymile Coal <br />Company, 1999). <br />However, the previous Seneca II Mine soils mapping of these areas was field- checked and <br />refined when it was delineated onto the new Sage Creek Mine project base map which is a <br />recent (September 2008) air -photo map. The mapping refinement also adopted the current <br />extent of Seneca II Mine reclaimed land as delineated on their "Phase III Bond Release" <br />map (Seneca Coal Company, 2008). The previous Foidel Creek Mine soils mapping was <br />also field- checked and transferred to the new project base map. <br />The remaining areas of potential surface disturbance that need additional soils mapping <br />and sampling to the Order 1 -2 level of intensity include: (1) most of the potential waste rock <br />storage area, located immediately adjacent to the northwest side of the Seneca II Mine <br />permit area, and (2) a portion of the potential transportation corridor that lies in hilly terrain <br />• 2 <br />