2011-07-07_GENERAL DOCUMENTS - C1981022

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Creek Mine permit application, it was decided to separate the permit application reorganization effort from the permit renewal process. Since the permit renewal adequacy questions were more pertinent to the reorganization, rather than to the permit renewal itself, the OMI responses to the permit renewal adequacy review questions were submitted in a new revision, Permit Revision No. 4 (PR -04) on 15 September 2000. Issuance of the Permit renewal was contingent upon the submittal of PR -04, and the permit renewal was issued on 25 September 2000. Technical Revision No. 32 (TR -32) was submitted on 17 September 1999. TR -32 was for the construction of surface facilities, and the initial development and mining of the Elk Creek Mine. In this TR review, the Division reevaluated the reclamation cost estimate for the entire mine. A decision to approve TR -32 was issued on 10 July 2000. PR -04, submitted by Oxbow Mining Inc. (OMI) on 15 September 2000, is primarily an updated and reformatted permit application. The updated permit incorporates all relevant information from the original mining and reclamation plan including all approved revisions to the permit. OMI also proposed to add 3,965 acres to the permit area. A mine plan for the additional area was submitted as a separate Permit Revision (Permit Revision 05). No new mining or reclamation activities were proposed in PR -04. An adequacy letter was sent to OMI on 9 November 2000. The Division approved PR -04 on 14 January 2002. On 19 September 2001, OMI submitted Succession of Operators application no. 5 (SO -05). This application was submitted to change the ownership of the mine from OMI to Oxbow Mining, LLC. The application was deemed complete on 27 September 2001 and approved on 23 October 2003. On 15 February 2002 OMLLC submitted Permit Revision No. 5 (PR -05). The revision was deemed incomplete on 26 February 2002 and again on 21 March 2002. PR -05 was subsequently deemed complete on 1 August 2002. PR -05 was a mine plan change that also incorporated a federal lease modification of 160 acres. No new lands were incorporated into the permit boundary with PR -05. The Permit Revision was approved on 27 January 2003. The original permit has been granted renewal for successive five year permit terms five times, the most recent renewal decision was finalized in May 2009. On 18 March 2008 OMLLC submitted an application for the renewal of a valid, existing permit for coal mining (Permit Renewal 05 — RN -05). The renewal was deemed complete on 24 March 2008 and a proposed decision to approve RN -05 was issued on 10 February 2009. A new permit was issued on 28 May 2009 with the permit term running from 11 October 2008 until I 1 October 2013. Since the permit renewal issuance date of May 28, 2009 for RN -05 there have been no Notices of Violation issued. Eight technical revisions (TR's) and nine minor revisions (MR's) were submitted and processed since the RN -05 permit renewal. The recent permitting actions are summarized below in Section H of this document. There are also three TRs pending as follows: TR -70 was received on April 15, 201 land is a Vessels Coal Gas Inc. borehole proposal, TR -71 was received on June 27, 2011 and is an application for additional gob vent boreholes, and TR- 72 was also received on June 27, 2011 and is an application for additional gob vent boreholes on USFS managed lands. Sanborn Creek and Elk Creek Mine -4- July 7, 2011