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Memo to Mike King 2 July 16, 2010 <br />Brief on Prospecting Notice Modifications Prospecting Notice P-2008-043 <br />Aquifer pump testing for purposes other than mineral prospecting and mining is a commonplace activity in <br />Colorado, nationwide, and globally. In Colorado, the State Board of Examiners of Water Well <br />Construction and Pump Installation Contractors and the Office of the State Engineer are the primary <br />regulatory authority over the construction of wells used for pump testing, the conduct of the pump tests, <br />and the eventual plugging and abandonment of the wells. In the vast majority of pump tests, the produced <br />water is discharged to the surface of the land and/or to waters of the state. Therefore, MD-04 is <br />conventional aquifer pump testing procedure in comparison to the proposals under MD-02 (forced <br />infiltration with evaporation) and MD-03 (underground injection). This is reflected in the State Engineer's <br />Water Well Construction Rules at Rule 14.4, which states, in part: <br />Aquifer testing and/or test pumping of any monitoring and observation hole/well shall not exceed a <br />cumulative total of two hundred (200) hours unless prior written approval for additional testing is <br />obtained from the State Engineer. The well owner or his agent shall be responsible for obtaining <br />permits and complying with all rules and regulations pertaining to the discharge of all fluids <br />produced during the testing. <br />Powertech had obtained a permit from the Water Quality Control Division under the Colorado Discharge <br />Permit System for discharge to Spring Creek. It is the understanding of the DRMS that this permit is now <br />being modified to include an effluent limitation for radium. <br />Both DRMS and the State Engineer have regulatory authority over pump testing when it is being done <br />under Notices of Intent to Conduct Prospecting or under Mined Land Reclamation Permits. DRMS does <br />not impose well construction or plugging and abandonment requirements for pump test wells any different <br />than what is required by the State Engineer, but does require reclamation and bonding for the drill sites and <br />bonding for well plugging and abandonment. As an implementing agency for the ground water standards <br />and classifications of the Water Quality Control Commission, DRMS also requires ground water protection <br />measures if water produced by pump testing will be discharged to ground water, as would be the case under <br />MD-02 and MD-03. As discussed previously, under MD-04 the produced water will be discharged to a <br />surface stream; that discharge is under the regulatory authority of the Water Quality Control Division. <br />DRMS issued authorization to proceed under MD-04 on July 6, 2010. Powertech has not yet commenced <br />activities under MD-04, and DRMS imposed a condition on the authorization for five working days <br />advance notice to DRMS to facilitate the inspection of the MD-04 activities. Such notice has not been <br />provided as of this date. MD-04, for which Powertech has DRMS authorization to proceed, and MD-03, <br />for which DRMS authorization has not yet been granted are separate and distinct alternatives for disposal <br />of water produced by pump testing. Powertech has not withdrawn MD-03, and in discussions with DRMS <br />has stated that they want to maintain both options at this time. <br />enclosure(s) <br />cc: Loretta Pifieda, DBMS, via email and w/ enclosures <br />David Berry, DRMS, via email and w/ enclosures <br />cAacs files\My Documents 4-19-06 thru\centennial project P2008043 status memo 7-16-2010.docx