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Rather, the coal waste was trucked and permanently stored in the coal waste pile at the Somerset Mining <br />Company by agreement. After construction of the Bear No. 3 Mine facilities was completed, mining in <br />the C-seam progressed until reserves in that coal seam were exhausted. <br />After the reserves in the C-seam were mined out, BCC then ramped down from the C seam workings to <br />the B-seam coal. This ramp entered the B-seam at a point approximately 300 feet south of the <br />southernmost extent of the Edwards/Clark Mine B seam workings. This meant that a barrier of 300 feet of <br />coal was left in place between the Bear No. 3 Mine B seam workings and the Edwards/Clark Mine B <br />seam workings. Mining then progressed in the B seam, with panels essentially directly below the Bear <br />No. 3 Mine C seam panels. With most of the B seam coal reserves already mined out, BCC decided to <br />close the Bear No. 3 Mine when a large cave-in made further mining uneconomical. Permanent seals were <br />installed at various points in the Bear No. 3 Mine B seam mine workings. <br />On November 11, 1996, BCC permanently ceased all mining operations at the Bear No. 3 Mine due to <br />difficult geologic conditions encountered throughout the mine. The status of the Bear No. 3 Mine became <br />"inactive" at that time. All three C seam portals at the Bear No. 3 Mine were sealed on January 9, 1997. <br />Drainage pipes were installed through each of the portal seals so that mine water would not build up <br />behind the portal seals. During 1997, the two warehouses and shop building, mine fan, portal bench <br />transfers, conveyor structure, stacking tube, substation and miscellaneous mine equipment and debris <br />were removed. The Bear No. 3 portals were backfilled according to Mine Safety and Health <br />Administration requirements, and the mine benches and bench access roads were backfilled and graded <br />during June and July of 1997. The facilities bench was graded and topsoiled in 1998. The disturbed area <br />was, then, reseeded as well in 1998. A sedimentation pond with one collection ditch and one culvert <br />remain on site for sediment control. During reclamation, a spring developed in the hillside in the area of <br />the Edwards/Clark B-seam portal. In order to treat and discharge the hillside spring water into the river, a <br />collection ditch and culvert, the hillside spring water treatment pond and its discharge pipe to the river <br />were constructed and remain on site as well. <br />The mine office building was demolished and the combustible debris burned in place in 2007 while the <br />noncombustible material was disposed of offsite during 2008 and 2009. The demolished mine office <br />foundation concrete was broken up and disposed of offsite and the former mine office area was backfilled <br />and graded during 2009. The paved access road and bridge remain as approved in the permit. However, <br />Mountain Coal Company requested, during the November 3, 2009 bond release inspection, that the fence <br />along the river be removed. The fence was ultimately removed in December of 2010. The approved post <br />mining land use is limited residential and undeveloped land. <br />There are three issues occurring at the Bear No. 3 Mine that resulted in the exclusion of the west side of <br />the reclaimed hillside from the SL-4 bond release. First, signs of slope instability, including cracks and <br />holes, are occurring in the area where the two mine portal entries were sealed and backfilled. There is a <br />large landslide immediately adjacent to the western boundary of the Bear No. 3 Mine that was first <br />noticed in 1997. The landslide may be affecting the stability of the reclamation work at these two <br />reclaimed mine portal entries. Therefore, the reclaimed portal area and those sections of the reclaimed <br />hillside access roads that lie to the west of the riprapped hillside drainage channel were excluded from the <br />Phase I bond release (SL-4) consideration. <br />Second, there is evidence of a possible thermal event occurring within the mine. Smoke/vapor and the <br />odor of smoldering coal have been present in the immediate area of the west side backfilled mine portals <br />area. The thermal event may be affecting the slope stability and seals of the two backfilled mine portal <br />entries and also may be a public safety concern. Therefore, the area was excluded from SL-4 as well.