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United States Department of the Interior <br />tiF <br />1, OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING <br />Reclamation and Enforcement <br />Western Region Office <br />1``' 'Rr, A V 1999 Broadway, Suite 3320 <br />• > Denver, CO 80202-3050 <br />JUN 2 L 2010 <br />j s,t;4ia"60n' June 21, 2010 <br />Wining and SaWY <br />Loretta Pineda, Director <br />Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety <br />1313 Sherman Street, Room 215 <br />Denver, CO 80202 <br />RE: Partial Phase I Bond Release (SL-2), Seneca II-W Mine, Permit No. <br />C-1982-057, DBMS Proposed Decision and Findings of Compliance, May 7, 2010 <br />Dear Ms. Pineda, <br />o <br />rFOFS '/ <br />This letter acknowledges the Office of Surface Mining (OSM), Denver Field Division's (DFD) <br />receipt and review of the above Phase I Bond Release Proposed Decision document prepared by <br />the Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety (DRMS) dated May 7, 2010. DFD agrees with <br />the findings and decision document and hereby provides OSM concurrence for the above bond <br />release action in accordance with 30 CFR 740.15 (d) (3), and 30 CFR 906.30, Article IX, Section <br />24, of the State-Federal Cooperative Agreement. <br />DRMS's Proposed Decision documents the applicant's compliance with the Colorado approved <br />regulatory program at Rule 3.03.2, and DRMS's bond release guidelines dated April, 18, 1995. <br />Seneca Coal Company, LLC (SCC) originally requested that 1,116.2 acres be released. DRMS' <br />proposed decision will release SCC from liability for backfilling, grading, and drainage <br />reestablishment on 721.9 acres of the site. Specifically excluded from the Phase I bond release <br />decision are 402.85 acres in the South Extension Area, 10 acres for the Pit A highwall slump, <br />0.59 acres for drainage channel reconstruction, 0.03 acres for the Culvert I-1 Area, 12.1 acres for <br />a scraper road cut exclusion, and 18.7 acres for roads where as-built certifications are needed. <br />The Bureau of Land Management concurred with DRMS' proposed decision in a letter dated <br />June 11, 2010 (copy enclosed). <br />OSM finds that SCC has met or exceeded the requirements for Phase I bond release on the 721.9 <br />acres of land as described above. DRMS currently holds a perfonnance bond in the amount of <br />$11,117,348.00 for the Seneca II-W Mine. This action will release $2,038,488.00. DRMS has <br />determined that the remaining bond amount of $9,078,860.00 is sufficient to assure completion <br />of all reclamation work at the site if the work had to be performed by DRMS, including the cost <br />of topsoil redistribution and reestablishing vegetation on any revegetated areas, should those <br />areas fail. OSM concurs with the proposed bond release amount.