2013-02-21_ENFORCEMENT - C1981033

• Permit No: C1981033
• IBM Index Class Name: ENFORCEMENT
• Doc Date: 2/21/2013
• Doc Name: Pattern of Violations and Recommendation for Show Cause Order
• From: Sandy Brown
• To: Loretta Pineda & David Berry
• Email Name: SB1
• Email Name: DAB
• Email Name: SLB
• Media Type: D
• Archive: No

DIVISION OF RECLAMATION, MINING AND SAFETY
Department of Natural Resources
1313 Sherman St., Room 215
Denver, Colorado 80203
Phone: [phone]
FAX: [phone]
TO: Loretta Pineda, Division Director
David Berry, Coal Program Supervisor
FROM: Sandra Bro
DATE: February 21, 2013
RE:
Background Information
Mined Land Reclamation
STATE OF COLORADO
Bear Mine No. 3, Bear Coal Company, Permit No. C- 1981 -033
Pattern-of- Violations and Recommendation for Show Cause Order
COLORADO
DIVISION OF
RECLAMATION
MINING
—&—
SAFETY
John W. Hickenlooper
Govemor
Mike King
Executive Director
Loretta E. Pineda
Director
David Berry and I have been working with Julie Murphy of the Attorney General's Office ( "AGO ")
regarding the now - expired Permit Number C- 1981 -033 ( "Permit ") issued to Bear Coal Company, Inc.
( "Bear "), for its Bear Coal Mine No. 3 ( "Mine "). Bear did not renew its Permit as required by the
Colorado Surface Coal Mining Reclamation Act, C.R.S. §§ 34 -33 -101, et seq. ( "Act "), and the
Regulations of the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Board for Coal Mining, 2 CCR 407 -5 ( "Rules ").
Further, Bear failed to complete reclamation of the Mine as required by the Act, Rules, and Permit. The
Division holds $160,000 in two Certificates of Deposit as Bear's performance bond for the Permit and,
if forfeited, the funds would enable the Division to complete reclamation. Thus, the Division proposes
to revoke the Permit and forfeit the performance bond for Bear's violations as discussed below.
The Division initially issued the Permit in 1981 and issued the most - recent renewal on July 19, 2007.
Though Bear ceased mining activities at the Mine in 1996, the Act and Rules required renewal of the
Permit because reclamation activities were not complete. C.R.S. § 34- 33- 109(1); R. 2.01.3(1).
On October 24, 2011, the Division informed Bear that the Permit would expire on July 19, 2012. In
order to secure the right of successive renewal, the Act required Bear to submit a complete Permit
Renewal Application by January 21, 2012. On December 29, 2011, the Division received a letter from
Bear stating that Bear did not intend to renew the Division's Permit. See Attachment A. The letter
further stated "Bear is willing to perform work on site up until the permit expires. This work would
include installing the pond bypass line and reclaiming the treatment pond. However, at this time, Bear
does not have regulatory approval to perform these tasks. Expeditious approval of the pond bypass line
by [the Division] and CDPHE would benefit all parties involved."
The Division approved a revision for the treatment bypass ditch on December 20, 2011. However, Bear
failed to either complete reclamation during the time it had the necessary regulatory approvals or to seek
renewal of the Permit. To -date, Bear has not completed its reclamation obligations under the terms of
its Permit, the Act, and the Rules. Furthermore, Bear has not conducted required maintenance at the
Mine and has not demonstrated compliance with the bond release criteria. As a result of Bear's non-
compliance with the Act, the Rules, and its Permit, the Division took the following enforcement actions:
Office of Office of
Denver • Grand Junction • Durango Active and Inactive Mines