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Dear Mr. Berry: United States Department of the Interior OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING Reclamation and Enforcement Western Region Office 1999 Broadway, Suite 3320 Denver, CO 80202 -3050 November 4, 2011 Mr. David Berry Director, Coal Regulatory Program Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety 1313 Sherman St. Room 215 _Denver-, _Colorado 80203__ ' Although received on November 2, 2011, this letter was erroneously dated October 20, 2011. Re: Technical Review Comments — Permit Revision Application TR -61: Western Fuels - Colorado's Proposed Soil /Overburden Sampling and Analysis Plan for the New Horizon Mine In a letter to the Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety (DRMS) dated October 14, 2011, OSM had provided review comments on Western Fuels — Colorado's (WFC's) September 30, 2011, technical revision application (TR -61). This proposed revision application is applicable to Permit C- 1981 -008 for the New Horizon Mine. The proposed permit revision application includes a plan to conduct sampling and analysis of identified in -place undisturbed soil and stockpiled soil materials, as well as overburden materials that have been redistributed over previously mined and regraded lands. The additional chemical and physical data to be acquired for these Morgan property sites, are to be used in determining what steps (if any) need to be taken to ensure that the prime farmlands mined on this property are eventually reclaimed to a condition that reasonably restores the agricultural yield capability that existed prior to mining In a letter to WFC dated October 14, 2011, you had provided both OSM and DRMS's review comments to the mine operator. In a submittal to DRMS dated October 20, 2011, WFC's consultant (Lewicki & Associates) provided a response to the DRMS's October 14 review letter. In a second letter dated October 31, 2011, you had provided an additional set of sampling plan deficiencies to WFC. This second set of deficiencies had been based largely on those I had conveyed to you in a letter dated October 28, 2011. In a submittal received by your office on November 2, 2011, WFC provided additional information addressing the deficiencies listed your letter dated October 31, 2011. At the request of and in cooperation with DRMS, our office has conducted a technical review of the plans included within WFC's November 2, 2011 TR -61 revised submittal. Please be advised that OSM's review of the amended submittal finds that the review comments we had provided in our above cited letter dated October 28, 2011, have been satisfactorily addressed. Regarding stockpiled soil resources, WFC has revised TR -61 to state that composite soil samples taken at each boring location for sampling of the soil stockpiles will not exceed a sampling interval of 5 feet. This added language allows for adequate soil sampling to reasonably