Laserfiche WebLink
BRL satisfactorily answered all of the Division's adequacy questions for Permit Revisions Nos. 2 and 3. <br />The Division proposed to approve with conditions Permit Revision No. 2 on September 13, 1999. New <br />stipulation number 7 was attached to the conditional approval of Permit Revision No. 2. On October 12, <br />1999, the Division received objections to the proposed decision and a request for a formal hearing. The <br />proposed decision to approve Permit Revision No. 2 was brought before the Mined Land Reclamation <br />Board (Board) on October 20, 1999. The Board approved the Division's proposed decision to approve <br />with stipulations Permit Revision No. 2 on that same date. <br />On February 1, 2000, the Division proposed to approve with stipulations Permit Revision No. 3. No new <br />stipulations were attached to the conditional approval of Permit Revision No. 3. No requests for a board <br />hearing were received at the Division. Therefore, the decision became final on March 2, 2000. <br />The Division received the submittal for Permit Revision No. 4 on October 6, 2000. This revision <br />proposed to incorporate two areas into the permit and allow for longwall and room and pillar mining of <br />the D seam in those two areas. After an initial incompleteness determination, the Permit Revision No. 4 <br />submittal was called complete on October 23, 2000 and the appropriate notification letters were sent out. <br />In response to the Division's completeness letters, several state and federal agencies sent comment letters <br />to the Division concerning PR-04. The Division did not receive any comments from the public <br />concerning Permit Revision No.4, nor were there any requests for an informal conference. <br />The Division sent its first adequacy review letter on November 8, 2000. Additional adequacy review <br />letters were sent by the Division on December 27, 2000 and on February 5, 2001 <br />The Division requested and the Office of Surface Mining confirmed that the activities proposed in Permit <br />Revision No. 4 did constitute a federal mine plan change requiring Secretarial approval. The Secretarial <br />approval was granted after the Division issued its proposed decision. <br />In a submittal dated December 8, 2003, BRL modified its mine plan, based on the results of a recent <br />exploratory drilling program. The operator sent responses to the Division's adequacy review letters in <br />submittals dated December 8, 2000, February 5, 2001, February 19, 2001 and February 23, 2001. <br />The Division's concerns and those of other governmental agencies were answered satisfactorily. <br />Therefore, on February 27, 2001, the Division proposed to approve with conditions Permit Revision No. <br />4. Three new stipulations, numbered 8, 9 and 10, were attached to the approval of Permit Revision No. 4. <br />The submittal for Permit Revision No. 5 was received at the Division on May 16, 2001. This revision <br />proposed to increase the permit boundary to the west by 480 acres and allow for longwall mining west of <br />the present mining, and west of the main fault but just east of Terror Creek. Also, one gob vent borehole <br />and its associated road would be constructed. <br />Permit Revision No. 5 was called complete on May 29, 2001. Completeness letters were sent out and the <br />public notice of completeness was published. The Division received comment letters from several <br />governmental agencies, including the Colorado Historical Society, the Bureau of Land Management and <br />the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. <br />The Division sent its first adequacy review letter on July 26, 2001. BRL responded to the Division's <br />concerns in a submittal dated August 23, 2001. In that submittal, BRL requested that a second de-gas hole <br />and its associated road be included in PR-05. The Division sent another adequacy review letter on <br />September 14, 2001. BRL responded to the Division's second adequacy review letter in a submittal dated <br />September 19, 2001. A review of the Applicant Violator System (AVS) resulted in Stipulation No. 12 <br />being attached to the PR-05 decision to approve the revision with conditions. Stipulations numbers 7 and <br />8, plus additional AVS concerns associated with PR-05, were combined into Stipulation number 12.