Laserfiche WebLink
Mike Boulay -4- April 11, 2011 <br />industrial part of the permit area included livestock grazing, the appropriate <br />designation would likely be combination Rangeland/Wildlife Habitat, but if planned <br />postmining use would not include livestock grazing, the appropriate designation <br />would be Wildlife Habitat. <br />We presume that premine and postmine land uses for all areas to the east of Reed <br />Wash within the permit area are identified as "Industrial", as stated in the narrative, <br />based in part on the Mesa County land use classification. However, for the <br />purposes of the DRMS permit and associated reclamation requirements and <br />standards, it may be appropriate that the boundary between "Industrial" and "Fish <br />and Wildlife" land use be defined by the perimeter of the lands that have been <br />physically disturbed by past industrial activity. Given that the soils and vegetation <br />conditions, and reclamation practices within the currently undisturbed greasewood <br />habitat on either side of Reed Wash are the same, it would seem logical that land <br />use (and associated reclamation success standards) should also be consistent. <br />Please give this matter consideration and either define the Previously Disturbed <br />Lands perimeter as the land use boundary, or provide justification for inclusion of <br />the undisturbed greasewood habitat east of Reed Wash as "Industrial". <br />CAM: Typo corrected on page 2.04-2, changed Reed 'Gulch' to Reed 'Wash'. <br />Page 2.05-40, changed land use types east and west of Reed Wash. Map-07 has <br />been revised to show a clear delineation between industrial and fish & wildlife land <br />use types on the east side of Reed Wash. Page 2.04-1 removed the 'commercial' <br />land use type as it is not applicable to the DRMS permit, the type was used based <br />on Mesa County land use types. 'Rangeland' was added as a land use type on <br />page 2.04-1. <br />4. Premine land use for lands within the permit area to the west of Reed Wash is not <br />entirely clear, as there are some statements indicating 'Wildlife Habitat' is the sole <br />use (Section 2.04.3(2)(a)), and other statements indicating combined uses of <br />"Rangeland" and 'Wildlife Habitat" (Section 2.05.5(2)(a)). Map 7 depicts an area of <br />"Fish and Wildlife Habitat" and also an area of "Commercial" land use (within a 3+ <br />acre square parcel not mentioned in the text) to the west of Reed Wash. Also, <br />there is a very small (0.18) acre parcel of "Irrigated Pasture" along the northwest <br />boundary of the permit area, noted on the Vegetation Map (Map 3), but <br />"Pastureland" is not identified as a land use category. Please state under <br />2.04.3(2)(a) what the land uses within the permit area are at the time of filing <br />of the application, in accordance with the land use definitions in Rule 1.04, <br />and amend Map 7 as warranted to be consistent with the narrative. If the area <br />west of Reed Wash is currently grazed by livestock during portions of the year, the <br />land use designation should include Rangeland, (and possibly a small area of <br />pastureland) in combination with Fish and Wildlife Habitat. If the postmining land <br />use designation for portions of the permit area will differ from premine land use, <br />then that will need to be described. For instance, if a portion of the permit area was <br />grazed by domestic livestock prior to permitting of the loadout, but livestock