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United States Department of Agriculture <br />/-S <br />• Natural Resources Conservation Service <br />655 Parfet Street, Room E200C <br />Lakewood, Colorado 80215 <br />March 30, 2010 <br />Ryan J. McHale, PE <br />VP Operations <br />Venture Resources, Inc. <br />PO Box 1974 <br />Idaho Springs; CO 80452 <br />Re: Hukill Gulch Millsite <br />Dear Mr. McHale <br />Based on our discussion and my review of the material submitted, I offer the following <br />comments and recommendations: <br />As part of your operations, you will need to remove all tailings down to the original native <br />material. The first 3 inches of soil should be stockpiled. You may need to add from the <br />• surrounding areas as wcll_ According to the soil description, it is a very cobbly coarse sandy <br />loam. The pH should be tested. But mixing will hopefully delete any concentrations. <br />In the shallow soils found in the mountains, moisture is stored in the fractured bedrock for plants <br />to utilize. Since I'm guessing that you will be required to put a cap over.the tailings, you will <br />need. to place enough material on top of the cap to provide water storage. Some overburden can <br />also be removed, and used as a growth medium. It is probable that you will need to import soil. <br />According to the soil survey, the available water capacity of the Cathedral soil is .06 -.07 <br />Inches/inch. In other words, 12 inches of soil can store about .7 /inch of water. This is what <br />would be available at the beginning of the growing season. In addition, there will be about 7 <br />inches of precipitation throughout the growing season. <br />Since most of the commercially available grass species require 10 to 14 inches of precipitation, <br />the addition of organic matter will be necessary. It should be mixed with the topsoil to improve <br />the soil's water holding capacity. <br />In our conversation, you had mentioned the use of wood chips as mulch. I have not seen a <br />successful seeding when woodchips are used. When chirps are applied, the microorganisms in <br />the soil multiply to the point where they use up all of the nitrogen and this causes the seeding to <br />fail. <br />Helping People Help the Land <br />An Equal Opportunity Employer and Provider