HomeMy WebLinkAbout20160634.tiff DNR COLORADO
CO Division of Reclamation,
• Mining and Safety
Department of Natural Resources
1313 Sherman Street, Room 215
Denver, CO 80203
February8, 2016 RECEIVED
FEB 1 2 2C13
Weld County Commissioners WELD COUNTY
915 10th St COMMISSIONERC
Greeley, CO 80631
Re: Keenesburg Strip Mine (Permit No. C-1981-028)
Bond Release Application No. 8 (SL-8)
Dear Weld County Commissioners:
This letter, as required by Rule 3.03.2(5)(a) of the Rules and Regulations of the Colorado Mined
Land Reclamation Board for Coal Mining, is to inform you that the Division of Reclamation,
Mining and Safety has issued a proposed decision to approve Bond Release Application No. 8
for the Keenesburg Strip Mine. This decision will be published in the Fort Lupton Press as soon
as possible. Publication of the notice initiates a thirty (30) day public comment period. If,
within thirty days, there are no requests for an adjudicatory hearing, the decision will become
final.
This is a Partial Phase I, II and III bond release for parcels P1 and P2 encompassing 56.12 acres.
As an interested party, you have the right to an adjudicatory hearing as outlined under Rule
3.03.2(6) of the Rules and Regulations. The request for an adjudicatory hearing must be written
and state with specificity the reasons why the hearing is requested. The request must be received
within thirty days of the first publication of the proposed decision in the Fort Lupton Press.
Copies of the proposed decision and findings are available for review at the Division office at the
above address and on the Division's website at
http://mining.state.co.us/Reports/MiningData/Pages/ImagedDocumentData.aspx. If you have
questions or need additional information, please contact me.
2016-0634
(>2--01P---020/IF CI : L I?W °`/I7 OF_CpC
1313 Sherman Street, Room 215, Denver, CO 80203 P 303.866.3567 F 303.832.8106 http://mining.state.co.us
John W. Hickentooper, Governor I Mike King, Executive Director I Virginia Brannon, Director ** *,
\ 1R 76
Sincerely,
Tabetha N. Lynch
Environmental Protection Specialist
Tabetha.lynch@state.co.us
Certified Mail Receipt No. 7014 2120 0001 7869 6172
Return Receipt Requested
C-SL-16
DNR COLORADO
CO Division of Reclamation,
Mining and Safety
Deprotmeot C'Natui.1 Resources
1313 Sherman Street, Room 215
Denver, CO 80203
February 8, 2016
RECEIVED
Carly Koppes
Weld County Clerk and Recorder FEB 16 2016
1402 N. 17th Avenue WELD COUNTY
Greeley, CO 80631 COMMISSIONERS
Re: Keenesburg Strip Mine (Permit No. C-1981-028)
Bond Release Application No. 8 (SL-8)
Dear Sir or Madam:
The Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety requests that you maintain the
enclosed "Proposed Decision and Findings of Compliance" for the Keenesburg Strip Mine on
file for public review for sixty(60) days.
If you have questions or need additional information, please contact me. Thank you for your
cooperation.
Sincerely,
Tabetha N. Lynch
Environmental Protection Specialist
Tabetha.lynch@state.co.us
Enclosure
C-SL-15
Ut CO r
A A
1313 Sherman Street, Room 215, Denver, CO 80203 P 303.866.3567 F 303.832.8106 http://mining.state.co.us
John W. Hickenlooper, Governor I Mike King, Executive Director I Virginia Brannon, Director « '
* id7a
,.. DNR COLORADO
CO • Division of Reclamation,
Mining and Safety
Department of Natural Resources
1313 Sherman Street, Room 215, Denver, CO 80203 P 303.866.3567 F 303.832.8106 http://mining.state.co.us
COAL MINING PERMIT-BOND RELEASE DECISION
Keenesburg Strip Mine,Coors Energy Company
Permit No. C-1981-028
The Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety has proposed the decision stated below. Provided there
are no objections, the decision will become final in accordance with the requirements of Rule 3.03.2(5)(b).
Bond Release No. 8 Decision: Approve
Submittal Date: November 2, 2015 Decision Date: February 8, 2016
Description of Release: Partial Phase I, II and III Bond Release.
DIVISION OF RECLAMATION, MINING AND PERMITTEE
SAFETY
Authorized Representative-Division Authorized Representative-Permittee(if applicable)
Date: February 8,2016 Date:
CHANGE IN ACREAGE REVISED TOTAL ACREAGE PERFORMANCE BOND
Disturbed: -56.12 Disturbed: 215.29 Prior Liability: $1,629,326.91
Affected: -56.12 Affected: 215.29 Change in Liability: ($431,867.06)
Permit: 0.00 Permit: 555.40 Revised Liability: $1,197,459.85
State: 0.00 State: 0.00 Bond Held: $1,629,326.91
Federal: 0.00 Federal: 0.00
Private: 0.00 Private: 555.40
County: 0.00 County: 0.00
SL-8 RELEASED ACREAGE REMAINING IN PERMIT BOUNDARY
Phase I Phase II Phase III
Disturbed 56.12 56.12 56.12
Affected 56.12 56.12 56.12
Permitted 0.00 0.00 0.00
REVISED APPLICATION PAGES REVISED MAPS
ND-
NA NA
DELETED APPLICATION PAGES DELETED MAPS
NA NA
C-SL-08
Partial Phase I, II and III Bond Release
Proposed Decision
and
Findings of Compliance
for the
Keenesburg Strip Mine
PERMIT NUMBER C-1981-028
Bond Release Application No. SL8
oNR.. COLORADO
CO Division of Reclamation,
I Mining and Safety
Depart ent cf Natural Resources
Virginia Brannon, Director
Prepared by
Tabetha N. Lynch
Environmental Protection Specialist
Proposed Decision Date
2/8/2016
Introduction
This document is the proposed decision of the Colorado Division of Reclamation,Mining and Safety(the
Division)in response to a request for Partial Phase I,II,and III bond release at the Keenesburg Strip Mine,
Division file number C-1981-028. The package contains four parts. These include: 1) procedures and
summary of the bond release process; 2) criteria and schedule for bond release; 3) observations and
findings of the Division regarding compliance with the bond release requirements of the Colorado Surface
Coal Mining and Reclamation Act and regulations promulgated thereunder;and 4)the Division's proposed
decision on the request for bond release.
Detailed information about the review process can be found in the Act and the Regulations of the Colorado
Mined Land Reclamation Board for Coal Mining. All Rules referenced within this document are
contained within the Regulations. Detailed information about the mining and reclamation operations can
be found in the permit application on file at the Division offices, located at 1313 Sherman Street, Room
215, in Denver, Colorado.
The Keenesburg Strip Mine is a surface mine which was permitted and operated by Coors Energy
Company(CEC). The ownership of the land for which bond release has been requested is private,and the
coal ownership was state and private.
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I. PROCEDURES AND SUMMARY OF THE REVIEW PROCESS
Coors Energy Company applied for a partial Phase I, II, and III bond release under the Colorado Surface
Coal Mining and Reclamation Act following reclamation of the Keenesburg Strip Mine with the SL8 bond
release application. The SL8 bond release areas consist of the facilities area and main access road(parcels
P1 and P2 depicted on Keenesburg Mine Map provided with the SL8 application). The mine is located in
Weld County, all or portions of Sections 2 and 11,T2N,R64W;and Sections 25 and 36,T3N,R64W; 6th
Prime Meridian.
CEC has previously requested and been approved for seven bond releases. Bond release SL1 was
approved on August 11, 1998 for Phase I on 179 acres and Phase II on 111 acres. Bond release
SLI released$1,787,113.00 of the reclamation liability.
A second bond release, SL2, was approved August 31, 2005. Bond release SL2 approved Phase
I release on 51.76 acres. The Division approved$287,918.00 for release from the reclamation liability for
ten reclamation parcels included in the request.
A third bond release application, SL3, was approved on April 18, 2006. Bond release SL3 was a
Phase II bond release for 53.90 acres.The Division approved the release of$130,189.80 of the reclamation
liability for Phase II bond release on ten reclamation parcels.
A fourth bond release application, SL4,was approved on January 8,2010. Bond release SL4 was a Phase
III bond release of 165.29 acres. The Division approved the release of$167,911.00 of the reclamation
liability for Phase III bond release on 17 reclamation parcels.
A fifth bond release application, SL5, was approved on September 10, 2010. Bond release SL5 was a
Phase II bond release of 51.05 acres The Division approved the release of$120,385.00 of the reclamation
liability for Phase II bond release on 11 reclamation parcels.
A sixth bond release application, SL6, was approved on January 4, 2012. Bond release SL6 was a Phase
III bond release of 42.29 acres.The Division approved the release of$63,799.00 of the reclamation liability
for Phase III bond release on 9 reclamation parcels.
A seventh bond release application, SL7, was approved April 2, 2015. Bond release SL7 was a Phase I
bond release of 27.1 acres. The Division approved the release of$342,547.09 of the reclamation liability
for Phase I bond release on 3 reclamation parcels.
The SL8 application for a partial Phase I,II and III bond release was received by the Division on November
2, 2015. The application was deemed Complete on November 12, 2015. CEC published notice of the
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bond release application in the Fort Lupton Press once weekly for four consecutive weeks beginning
November 4, 2015. CEC also notified land owners within and adjacent to the mine permit area and other
interested parties of the application for bond release as required by Rule 3.03.2(1). The proof of
publication was submitted to the Division on December 1, 2016.
No comments, written objections, or requests for an informal conference regarding the bond release
application were received by the Division.
The Division scheduled and conducted a bond release inspection on December 10, 2015. The site
inspection was conducted in accordance with Rule 3.03.2(2). Present at the inspection were Danny Kipp
and Ben Moline with Coors Energy Company, Robin Bay with Habitat Management, Inc., Troy Florian
with Colorado Parks and Wildlife, and Tabetha Lynch and Dan Hernandez with the Division of
Reclamation Mining and Safety. The Division notified the Office of Surface Mining (OSM) and other
land owners (Waste Management of CO and WJW Properties LLC)of the inspection via certified mail on
December 3, 2015.
IL CRITERIA AND SCHEDULE FOR BOND RELEASE
PHASE I and PHASE II
Rule 3.03.1(2)(a) states, "Up to sixty percent of the applicable bond amount shall be released when the
permittee successfully completes backfilling, regrading, and drainage control in accordance with the
approved reclamation plan."
Rule 3.03.1(2)(b) states, "Up to eighty-five percent of the applicable bond amount shall be released upon
the establishment of vegetation which supports the approved post-mining land use and which meets the
approved success standard for cover...based on statistically valid data collected during a single year of the
liability period". In regard to Phase II bond release, Rule 3.03.2(3)(b) also states, " No more than sixty
(60)percent of the bond shall be released so long as the lands to which the release would be applicable are
contributing suspended solids to streamflow or runoff outside the permit area in excess of pre-mining
levels as determined by baseline data or in excess of levels determined on adjacent non-mined areas".
PHASE III
Rule 3.03.1(2)(c) states that the final portion of performance bond, "shall be released when the permittee
has successfully completed all surface coal mining reclamation operations in accordance with this
approved reclamation plan, and the final inspection procedures of 3.03.2 have been satisfied. This shall
not be before the expiration of the period specified for revegetation responsibility in 3.02.3." Rule
3.03.1(4)states, "No bond shall be fully released until all reclamation requirements of these Rules and the
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Act are fully met...". The same rule goes on to state, "No acreage shall be released from the permit area
until all surface coal mining and reclamation operations on that acreage have been completed in
accordance with the approved reclamation plan."
The post-mining land use designated for the SL8 bond release parcels P1 and P2, the main access road
and shop facilities is designated as Industrial/Commercial. The facilities considered in the application are
the Shop/Office building and associated utilities (waste water system and gas utility), the fenced parking
area around the buildings, the storage/fuel tank area and storage yard, the vehicle turn-around area, the
main access road, and the topsoil piles and reference areas along the road. Rules 3.02.3(2)(c),4.15.10(2),
and 4.16.3 apply to the Shop Facilities Area and access road.The approved reclamation plan for the parcels
in SL8 requires no reclamation on the Facilities and Access Road(permit section 2.05.4 page 114a-114b).
III. OBSERVATIONS AND FINDINGS
Technical Revision 45 revised the approved post-mining land use for the office, shop, warehouse,
equipment yard, parking area, and main entrance road, which make up parcels P1 and P2. The Main
Access Road was an extension of County Road 59 to serve the mine and was to be removed at the end of
mining activities. Since that time, other businesses and land owners (Waste Management, Al Organics,
Gusher Oil Field Services, and Guttersen Ranch) are now using the road to access their businesses and
plan to do so long-term. This road is also used by the public to some extent to access these businesses.
Letters were provided to the Division by all land owners in support of the change from rangeland to
industrial/ commercial post-mining land use. The facilities at CEC are currently being leased in part by
Gusher Oil Field Services including part of the building,equipment yard,and parking lot.Gusher Oil Field
Services has provided a letter to the Division that they intend to use the entire facilities area when no longer
needed by CEC. CEC is currently in the process of selling the office, shop, and warehouse buildings,
equipment yard and associated facilities to Gusher Oil Field Services.
The bond release inspection was conducted on December 10, 2015 with the purpose of evaluating the
property proposed for Phase I, II, and III bond release to Industrial/Commercial post-mining land use.
The SL-8 application was submitted to the Division October 30th 2015. Present at the inspection
were Danny Kipp and Ben Moline with Coors Energy Company,Robin Bay with Habitat Management,
Inc., Troy Florian with Colorado Parks and Wildlife, and Tabetha Lynch and Dan Hernandez with the
Division of Reclamation Mining and Safety. The weather was partly cloudy.
Phase I, II, and III bond release was requested for the main access road. The road is currently being
used by other businesses along the road and is in part accessible by the public for access to an area
landfill owned by Waste Management of Colorado. Gusher Oil Field Services/ Guttersen Ranches
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utilize the entire length of the road proposed to be released in association with an oil and gas support
operation.
The area proposed for bond release is currently serving as Industrial/Commercial use, which is the
approved post-mining land use. The facilities on site include the shop and office building,parking lots
and equipment storage lots, the waste treatment area, a shed, and facility associated utilities. These
facilities are currently being leased in part by Gusher Oil/ Guttersen Ranches as well as continued use
of reclamation equipment by Coors Energy.
There are topsoil piles along the road that were to be used to reclaim the road that will be left in place
at the request of the landowners. Letters to support this request were filed with Technical Revision 45,
which changed the post-mining land use of the proposed bond release area to Industrial/Commercial.
Topsoil pile numbers are referenced from permit map Appendix A-3, adjacent property owners within
one mile of Keenesburg mine permit area 2.03.4. The inspection began at the south end of the road
and topsoil pile #5. Topsoil pile areas 3, 4, and 5 are owned by Waste Management of Colorado.
Topsoil piles 1, 2, and 2A are owned by WJW Properties LLC. These areas are noted as topsoil piles
on the permit map, but two (#2 and#2A) are former reference areas established prior to the vegetation
standard being changed to a numeric standard. Erosion control on the facilities area is sufficient to
prevent off-site sedimentation. The facilities area will continue to house and be a storage and office
area for ongoing reclamation of at the site.
Acreage discrepancies were found between the application text and that shown in the application map.
Both the text in the SL8 application and the text in the permit refer to the road and facilities area as
being 48 acres. The acreage presented on the map for the two parcels P1 and P2 totals 56.12 acres.
These acreages have been compared to the 2014 Annual Reclamation Report as well as other maps in
the permit to verify that no additional land was being included and that it was a discrepancy between
historical permit text and the actual acreage. The text in the permit will be corrected to represent correct
acreage values in a future technical revision.
Summary and Conclusions
Based upon a review of the mine permit,the applicant's bond release application, and site inspections,the
Division finds that Coors Energy Company has complied with the approved reclamation plan for parcels
P1 and P2. The Division finds that the reclaimed area subject to this bond release is not contributing
suspended solids to streamflow or runoff outside the permit area in excess of pre-mining levels or in excess
of adjacent non-mined areas.
The post-mining land use for Parcels P1 and P2 of the SL8 application was converted to industrial use
with the approval of TR45. The flat topography and existing vegetation provide erosion control as required
by rule 4.15.10(2).
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Based upon a review of the mine permit,the applicant's bond release application, and site inspections,the
Division finds that Coors Energy Company has successfully completed all surface coal mining reclamation
operations in accordance with the approved reclamation plan and met all requirements of the Act and the
Rules.
IV. PROPOSED DECISION
Based on the observations above, the Division proposes to approve Coors Energy Company's request for
a Partial Phase I,II and III bond release for the Keenesburg Strip Mine. This proposed decision will release
the applicant from liability for 56.12 acres of the main access road and the facilities area. This proposed
decision will release the applicant from liability for all reclamation work on the two applicable parcels(P1
and P2). These areas are depicted as Areas P1 and P2 on the map submitted with the SL8 application.
The last site-wide reclamation cost estimate for the Keenesburg Strip Mine was conducted during the
Midterm Review No. 6 (MT6). This resulted in a bond adjustment, and the Division issued a surety
increase (SI-01) on May 24, 2014. The liability was subsequently reduced with the approval of SL-07,
a partial Phase I bond release on May 9, 2015. In order to estimate the liability eligible for release with
the approval of the SL-08 application, the site-wide cost estimate was updated with the most recent
unit costs and the reclamation tasks associated with the SL-08 bond release parcels were eliminated or
reduced as appropriate. The table below summarizes the Divisions findings.
The current liability amount set for the site is $1,629,326.91. This included liability to demolish the
structures located within the Area P 1,remove the main access road located within P2,and to grade,topsoil
and revegetate these areas. With the approval of SL08, the Division shall release $431,867.06. The
remaining revised required surety at the site will be set at$1,197,459.85.
The remaining revised required surety is sufficient to assure completion of the remaining reclamation work
at the site if the work had to be performed by the Division, including the cost of reestablishing vegetation
on any revegetated areas, should those areas fail.
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Table 1. SL-08 Reclamation Cost Estimate Summary
Task
Task Task Description Hours Direct Cost
A Backfilling and Grading 330.8 $610,991.00
B Highwall Reduction; Blasting Cost 0 $0.00
C Rip and Regrade Haul and Access Roads 9.39 $2,208.00
D Regrade Impoundments and Diversions 0 $0.00
E Topsoil Replacement Cost 208.38 $449,069.00
F Revegetation Costs 182.31 $100,142.00
G Structure Demolition 8 $3,885.03
H Borehole Sealing 16 $6,332.00
I Site Maintenance; Rill and Gully Repair and Pond Cleaning 121.38 $31,421.00
J Mobilization and Demobilization 15.6 $28,271.00
Total Hours and Direct Cost 891.86 $1,232,319.03
Indirect Cost Summary
Overhead and Profit
Liability Insurance 2.02%of Direct Cost 2.02% $24,892.84
Performance Bond 1.05%of Direct Cost 1.05% $12,939.35
Job Superintendent cost/hour time 50% of total task hours; 445.93 $33,516.10
$75.16/hr
Profit 10% of Direct Cost 10% $123,231.90
TOTAL $194,580.20
Legal-Engineering-Project Management
Engineering work and/or contract/bid prep; 4.25% of Contract 4.25% $60,643.22
Reclamation Management and/or Administration; 4.00% of 4.00% $57,075.97
Contract
TOTAL $117,719.19
Total Site Reclamation Cost $1,544,618.41
Parcel 30, 31 and 32;Phase I Liability(SL-07) $347,158.56
Remaining revised required surety $1,197,459.85
Current Required Surety $1,629,326.91
SL-08 Releasable Amount $431,867.06
Any person with a valid legal interest which might be adversely affected by this proposed decision may
request a formal public hearing before the Mined Land Reclamation Board in accordance with Rule
3.03.2(6). Public notice of this proposed decision will be published twice in the Fort Lupton Press as soon
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as possible. Requests for public hearing must be submitted to the Division in writing within thirty days of
the first publication in the Fort Lupton Press. If no hearing is requested within those thirty days, the
Division's decision will become final.
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