Cottonwood Wash Abandoned Mine Reclamation Project: A Partnership in Watershed Reclamation

1
Cottonwood Wash Abandoned Mine Reclamation
Project A Partnership in Watershed Reclamation
2
Funding

• Federal Agencies Interdepartmental Abandoned
  Mine Land Watershed Initiative Funds (Clean Water
  Action Plan)
• State Surface Mining Control and Reclamation
  Act, Abandoned Mine Land Funds
• Total funds expended approx. 1.5

3
Clean Water Action Plan

• Watershed Restoration National Program
• Described in the Presidents Clean Water Action
  Plan of 1998
• Funded by the Interdepartmental Abandoned Mine
  Land Watershed Initiative
• Purpose is for Federal land managers to work in
  partnership with State and Local agencies,
  tribes, and private parties to develop strategies
  for the restoration of watersheds affected by
  abandoned mines.

4
Agency Partners

• USDA Forest Service
• Bureau of Land Management
• Utah Department of Natural Resources, Division of
  Oil, Gas and Mining, Abandoned Mine Reclamation
  Program
• Utah Department of Environmental
• Quality, Division of Water Quality

5
Project Organization

• Steering Committee
• Agency Directors
• Ensure project priority and availability of
  resources
• Provided dispute resolution
• Technical Committee
• Resource Specialist and appropriate Decision
  Makers from each agency
• Conducted project level work

6
Agency Contributions

• BLM contributed AML inventory, exploration road
  inventory, water quality testing, biological
  assessment, project archaeologist and
  radiological studies
• FS contributed biological evaluation and waste
  dump characterization study
• State contributed contract procurement and
  administration, construction over-site, bat
  surveys, and assisted in AML inventory

7
Authorities

• Clean Water Act/Clean Water Action Plan
• General Mining Law of 1872, as amended
• 43 CFR 3809 (BLM)
• 36 CFR 228 (FS)
• Organic Act (FS)
• Federal Land Policy Management Act (BLM)
• Surface Resources Act of 1955
• Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977

8
Site Selection Why Cottonwood Wash?

• Mixed ownership BLM, FS, State
• Water
• State priority watershed
• Mining impacts

9
Cottonwood Wash Background

• Description of the watershed - 143,000 acres,
  ranging from 4,500 feet to 9,500 feet in
  elevation
• BLM lands comprise 33 USDA-FS, 60 State, 4
  Tribal, 3.
• Mined for nearly 9 decades for vanadium and
  uranium
• Water sampling showed elevated gross alpha
  radiation

10
What Are The Problems?

• Dangerous mine openings
• Radon
• Mined waste dumps/piles contributing sediment and
  uranium to the stream
• Exploration roads contributing sediment

11
What Are The Solutions?

• Close mines that present a risk to human health
  and welfare
• Stabilize mine waste dumps that are eroding into
  the streams and affecting water quality
• Reclaim unneeded access roads, mineral
  exploration roads and trails
• Stabilize the primary road in Cottonwood Wash

12
What Are The Reclamation Goals?

• Close the mine openings to protect the public
  from radon emissions and accidents
• Remove and/or reclaim waste piles and roads
• Plug drill holes
• Seed disturbed areas with native vegetation to
  create habitat and reduce erosion

13
Project Approach Needed Studies/Surveys

• AML inventories
• Water quality studies
• Radiological surveys EPA and Oakridge National
  Laboratory
• Bat surveys
• Cultural resource inventories
• Exploration road surveys
• Biological assessments and evaluations

14
Preparation Plan for the Environmental Assessment

• Writing Proposed Action
• Identifying the purpose and need
• Conformance with Land Use Plans
• Scope of the EA (i.e. alternatives)
• Scoping and public involvement
• Authorizing decisions

15
Preparation Plan for the Environmental Assessment
Continued

• Strategy for preparation and contracting of the
  EA
• Contractor selection process
• Contract Administration
• Data and information needs
• Statement of work

16
Environmental Analysis

• Scoping
• Internal
• External (Public Meetings)
• Environmental Analysis (written by 3rd party
  contractor)
• Decision Record/FONSI (BLM)
• Decision Notice/FONSI (FS)
• FONSI DOGM (Office of Surface Mining)

17
Cottonwood Wash Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL)

• Elevated levels of gross alpha radiation in
  surface water
• Source identification and assessment
• Discusses pollutant loading and required load
  reduction
• Control and Best Management Strategies
• Monitoring plan

18
T E SpeciesSection 7 Consultation
19
Cultural Resources

• Full-time project archaeologist
• 106 Compliance through Programmatic Agreement
  involving 7 signatories, addressed the following
• Prehistoric Cultural
  Resources
• Discovery Plan
• Eligibility
• Treatment
• NAGPRA
• Historic Mining Resources
• Interpretative Plan
• Research
  
• Avoidance
• Preservation
• Mitigation

20
Key Points of the Decision Record

• A Ute Mountain Ute right-of-way required before
  construction of hardened stream crossings 1-11
  and graveling of the Cottonwood Wash Road.
• Abandoned mine sites will be reclaimed even if
  the State AMRP cannot obtain a right-of-entry.
  Reclamation will not endanger or materially
  interfere with prospecting, mining, or processing
  operations or uses reasonably incident thereto.
• Construction work will not proceed until
  programmatic Agreement filed with Advisory
  Council on Historic Preservation

21
Key Points of the Decision Record continued

• Certificate of Registration required for
  appropriate State personnel
• A vegetation avoidance strategy-penalty payment
  by the contractor for unnecessary disturbances.
• A monitoring plan would be developed and
  implemented upon completion of reclamation
• Construction activities will be monitored by the
  UDOGM, AMRP
• Construction noise and activity timed to reduce
  impacts on wildlife

22
Construction

• Reclamation Groups (geographical)
• Reclamation Phases (sequencing)
• Specifications written by DOGM with
  modifications from partners
• Project archaeologist played major role in design
  development to avoid adverse impacts
• DOGM issued construction contract and provided
  management and oversight

23
Products

• Compact Disc with all relevant GIS layers for all
  partners
• Preparation Plan
• EA
• TMDL Analysis
• Cultural Survey Report
• Radiological Interpretation Report of waste
  dumps, water, openings, and millsite

24
Products and Milestones (continued)

• Radiological interpretation of water quality data
• Bat survey report
• 3 issues of Blue Mountain Shadows (publication of
  San Juan County Historical Commission)
• Mining History of Cottonwood Wash
• Pre-history of Cottonwood Wash
• Specifications for reclamation construction
• Utah Geologic Assoc. newsletter

25
Media Coverage

• Salt Lake Tribune
• San Juan County Record (Monticello)
• Times Independent (Moab)
• Radio and TV news coverage

26
Unique Challenges

• Cultural Resources (pre-pueblo ruins)
• Active mining claimants and rights-of-entry
• Historic mining districts
• Wildlife (survey and construction guidelines)
• Land ownership

27
Unique Challenges (continued)

• Determining appropriate players (representative
  from each organization and organizational level
  appropriate for your project)
• Communication and Agency Culture
• Decision making

28
On the Ground Results

• North Black Mesa Butte
• 6 BLM sites
• South Black Mesa Butte
• 10 BLM sites
• East Black Mesa Butte
• 5 BLM sites

29
(No Transcript)
30
(No Transcript)
31
(No Transcript)
32
(No Transcript)
33
(No Transcript)
34
(No Transcript)
35
(No Transcript)
36
(No Transcript)
37
Remaining Segments

• West Black Mesa Butte
• 36 BLM sites
• Mancos Jim Butte
• 3 FS sites and 2 BLM sites
• Poison Canyon
• 9 FS sites
• Chippean Rocks
• 7 FS sites