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Peabq!q Peabody Sage Creek Mine <br />PO Box 250 <br />36600 Routt County Road 27 <br />Peabody Sage Creek Mining, LLC Hayden, CO. 81639 <br />Rr"TIVED <br />May 10, 2013 <br />Mr. Jason Musick MAY 15 2013 <br />Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety DiVlsion of Reclamation, <br />1313 Sherman Street, Room 215 <br />Mining & Safety <br />Denver, CO 80203 -2273 <br />RE: Peabody Sage Creek Mine (Permit No. C- 2009 -087) -- MInor Revision (MR19 -13) <br />Wetlands Enhancements <br />Dear Mr. Musick: <br />The CDRMS regulations require mining activities be planned and conducted to minimize <br />disturbance of the prevailing hydrologic balance in both the mine plan and adjacent areas. This <br />includes prevention of long -term adverse changes to the hydrologic balance including any <br />material damage outside the permit area (Section 4.05.1 (1)). The regulations also require all <br />surface drainage, including drainage from reclaimed areas, be passed through a sediment pond, a <br />series of sediment ponds, or other treatment facilities before leaving the permit area (Section <br />4.05.2 (1)). Sediment ponds, or other treatment facilities, may be retained in the post - mining <br />landscape as long as they are compatible with the approved postmining land use(s) (Section <br />4.05.2 (2)). <br />Clearly, the rules allow use of other treatment facilities or systems at surface coal mines to <br />achieve compliance with the rules for protecting the hydrologic balance. The wetlands below <br />Pond 002 logically qualify as other treatment facilities under the rules, and due to their nature, <br />are preferred over other potential treatment facilities. Activities planned for the wetlands below <br />Pond 002 including placement of straw bales to disperse flow, seeding and planting, involve <br />negligible land impacts. The enhanced wetlands will be self - sustaining over the long run with <br />minimal maintenance, serving as a postmining feature that achieves higher and better use <br />(Section 4.16.1 (2)) while providing an additional measure of potential water treatment to protect <br />the hydrologic balance outside of the permit boundary during and following mining. We believe <br />this contributes to the existing and approved wildlife postmining land use objectives and <br />ecological diversity of the area. <br />Attachment 1 <br />