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II. The Board Lacks Statutory Authority to Order Dewatering of the Mine and <br />Treatment of Mine Pool Water in These Circumstances. <br />As shown above, the mine pool does not, and cannot, support a finding that Cotter <br />violated the three statutes enumerated on page 9 of the Order - Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 34-32- <br />116(7)(c), -116(7)(g), and -116(7)(h). Under these circumstances, the Board lacks statutory <br />authority to order dewatering of the mine and treatment of mine pool water, as specified in <br />paragraph number 2 on page 9 of the Order. <br />In ordering mine dewatering and the treatment of mine pool water, the Board relies on the <br />authority granted by Colo. Rev. Stat. § 34-32-124. See Order ¶ 34. Subsection (2)(a) of that <br />statute authorizes the Board to order corrective actions to address specific violations at a site: "If <br />the board determines that there exists any violation of any provisions of [that] article ... the <br />board may issue a cease-and-desist order. Such order shall set forth the provisions alleged to be <br />violated, the facts alleged to constitute the violation.... and may include the nature of any <br />corrective action proposed to be required." Colo. Rev. Stat. § 34-32-124(2)(a). Conversely, <br />Subsection 34-32-124(2)(a) does not grant authority to order a corrective action if there is no <br />causal nexus between the corrective action and the statutory violation. <br />Here, the mine pool provides no basis for finding a violation of the three statutes <br />identified on page 9 of the Order. Accordingly, the Board is without statutory authority to order <br />a remedy, mine pool dewatering and treatment, based on such violation. The Order should be <br />reconsidered to address these issues. <br />9