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February 1, 2012 C -1981 -008 /New Horizon Mine MLT <br /> <br /> <br />Number of Partial Inspection this Fiscal Year: 7 <br />Number of Complete Inspections this Fiscal Year: 2 Page 3 of 6 <br /> <br />HYDROLOGIC BALANCE - Rule 4.05 <br />Drainage Control 4.05.1, 4.05.2, 4.05.3; Siltation Structures 4.05.5, 4.05.6; Discharge Structures <br />4.05.7, 4 .05.10; Diversions 4.05.4; Effluent Limits 4.05.2; Ground Water Monitoring 4.05.13; <br />Surface Water Monitoring 4.05.13; Drainage – Acid and Toxic Materials 4.05.8; Impoundments <br />4.05.6, 4.05.9; Stream Buffer Zones 4.05.18: <br /> Much of the surface of Pond 007 was frozen, and only a few ducks were utilizing the thawed <br />portion. Fewer water fowl are using the pond this year; this may be due to the pond’s water <br />level being lower than in previous years. <br /> Pond 009 was dry, and the floor of Pond 011 was nearly so. <br /> At Pon d 013, numerous ducks were taking advantage of the unfrozen water surface. This <br />pond receives a more or less continual inflow of water that is pumped from the floor of the <br />active pit. The pond also discharges on a continual basis to Tuttle Draw. <br /> A drill rig was stationed on the northeast corner of the Burbridge farmstead, just outside the <br />mine permit boundary. Mr. Fry said that the landowner is drilling a water well. <br /> <br />GENERAL MINE PLAN COMPLANCE: <br /> Western Fuels completed blasting the Morgan portion of the present cut on the preceding <br />day, Jan. 31. During this inspection, the drill rig was active, drilling a pattern of holes into <br />the “Bench 2” overburden on the WFC parcel. <br /> <br />RECLAMATION SUCCESS - Rule 4.15, Rule 3: <br /> During the Jan. 11, 2012 inspection, cattl e were seen grazing on the Benson -East parcel. <br />Those cattle were no longer on the property during the current inspection. However, we did <br />observe what appeared to be piles of cow manure scattered across the adjacent Richards <br />parcel, which has an approved post mining land use of Dryland Pasture. I asked Mr. Fry <br />about the manure, and he said that some of Richards’ cattle from an adjoining parcel he <br />(Richards) owns , outside of the permit area , made their way onto the reclaimed area through <br />a “hole in the fen ce”. He said this seems to “happen” nearly every year . Western Fuels <br />contacted Mr. Richards, and had him remove his cattle from the permit area. <br /> <br />REVEGETATION – Rule 4.15 <br />Vegetative Cover; Timing: <br /> No livestock were grazing the Irrigated Pasture Reference Area. <br /> Cattle (owned by Weimer) were grazing on the Staats parcel south of 5th Road. These cattle <br />have the freedom to cross into and out of the permit area by crossing Calamity Draw. <br /> Cattle owned by Burbridge were grazing on the Burbridge and San Miguel P ower parcels. <br />Temporary fencing prohibited them from moving onto the Benson -South field (which is now <br />owned by Staats). <br /> Mr. Fry said that aerial seeding of forage kochia was conducted on the dryland pasture areas <br />on January 18, 2012. They used plane and pilot based o ut of Olathe, Colorado, a town <br />located 40 miles NE of Nucla. <br /> <br />