For Evaluation Year 2015 July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2015 · 2019-04-08 · For Evaluation Year 2015 July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2015 . Prepared by Western Region, Program Support Division

OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT

U.S. Department of the Interior

For Evaluation Year 2015 July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2015 Prepared by Western Region, Program Support Division October 2015

Annual Evaluation Report for the

Coal Regulatory Program

Administered by the Mining and Minerals Division

of the State of New Mexico



1 | P a g e

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The following summary captures the highlights of the Evaluation Year 2015 Annual Evaluation Report for the New Mexico Regulatory Program. The report covers the period of July 1, 2014, to June 30, 2015.

The New Mexico Program

The New Mexico Mining and Minerals Division (MMD) coal mine reclamation program is responsible for regulating all federal, state and private lands within New Mexico, with the exception of Indian lands. The program oversees more than 85,000 acres of permitted mine lands and nearly $500 million in financial assurance. MMD continues to excel at achieving the regulatory and reclamation goals of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act, including the protection of the public and of the environment from the adverse effects of coal mining.

Accomplishments and Innovations

The Small Watershed Erosion Study at La Plata Mine has evolved into a cooperative study between San Juan Coal Company, Geofluv, and the University of NM, as funded by OSM as an Applied Science Project. The MMD continues to cooperate and provide assistance in this study as needed, although MMD is not involved in the funding of the study.

Customer Service

The New Mexico Mining and Minerals Division continues to increase and seek public awareness and involvement in the implementation of its coal regulatory program. MMD has continued making progress towards electronic permitting and record keeping by scanning records into digital formats for dissemination to the public via web portal.

Topic-Specific Oversight Reviews

OSMRE in coordination with MMD conducted topic-specific reviews to evaluate the prevention of off-site impacts, reclamation success and customer service. The MMD and OSMRE Team evaluated the prevention of off-site impacts by ensuring that small area exemption sites, which are under 1.0 acre and cannot convey drainage to sediments ponds, had been designed, constructed, and maintained in accordance with the applicable New Mexico Rules. The Team identified no off-site impacts.

MMD and the US Geological Survey have been studying groundwater flow pathways away from the San Juan Mine that could allow metals that may be leached from the coal combustion byproducts stored in reclaimed mine pits to be directed to wells or streams. The modeling for this project has been completed, and the final report is undergoing the USGS internal review process. MMD anticipates delivery of the report by the end of 2015. The USGS study will be used by the USGS and MMD to produce a predictive model and guide long term water monitoring efforts. The studies were necessary to ensure that long term groundwater quality on federal lands is protected and offsite impacts are prevented.



2 | P a g e

Federal Assistance

OSMRE provides technical assistance and technology support to the MMD coal regulatory program in the form of technical assistance as well as training and oversight support. OSMRE provided MMD with access to various software licenses from the National Technology Transfer Team. OSMRE also provided opportunities for MMD employees to attend NTTP and TIPS training courses.



3 | P a g e

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................................................4

II. OVERVIEW OF COAL MINING INDUSTRY IN NEW MEXICO .............................................5

III. OVERVIEW OF THE PUBLIC PARTICIPATION AND OUTREACH EFFORTS ....................7

IV. MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND INNOVATIONS .............................................................7

V. SUCCESS IN ACHIEVING THE PURPOSES OF SMCRA .........................................................9

A. Off-site Impacts ......................................................................................................................9

B. Reclamation Success ..............................................................................................................9

C. Customer Service .................................................................................................................11

VI. NATIONAL PRIORITY AND GENERAL OVERSIGHT ..........................................................11

A. National Priority Reviews ....................................................................................................11

B. General Oversight Topic Reviews .......................................................................................11

C. State Inspection Frequency ..................................................................................................12

D. Oversight Inspection Activity ..............................................................................................13

VII. PROGRAM PROBLEMS AND ISSUES ......................................................................................13

VIII. OSMRE ASSISTANCE.................................................................................................................13

IX. TABLE FOOTNOTES ..................................................................................................................14

APPENDIX 1 ..........................................................................................................................................15

APPENDIX 2 ..........................................................................................................................................38

Cover Page Photograph: Phase III Bond Release area, San Juan Mine, Permit 2014-01; Photograph taken July 2014



4 | P a g e

I. INTRODUCTION

The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) created the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) in the Department of the Interior. SMCRA provides authority to OSMRE to oversee the implementation of and provide federal funding for the state regulatory programs and abandoned mine land programs that have been approved by the Secretary of the Interior as meeting the minimum standards specified by SMCRA. In addition to conducting oversight of approved state programs, OSMRE provides technical assistance, staff training, financial grants and assistance, as well as management assistance to each state program. This report contains summary information regarding the New Mexico program and the effectiveness of the New Mexico program in meeting the applicable purposes of SMCRA as specified in Section 102. This report covers the Evaluation Year (EY) July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2015.

Detailed background information and comprehensive reports for the program elements evaluated during the EY are available for review and copying at OSMRE’s Program Support Division, 1999 Broadway, Suite 3320, Denver, CO 80202. To arrange an appointment time, contact Bob Postle via telephone 303-293-5041 or email [email protected].

The reports are also available at the OSMRE Oversight Documents website at http://odocs.osmre.gov/. Adobe Acrobat Reader® is needed to view these documents. Acrobat Reader® is free and can be downloaded at http://get.adobe.com/reader/. Follow these steps to gain access to the document of interest:

1. Select New Mexico from the drop down box labeled “State”. Also select EY 2015 as the “Evaluation Year”, and then click “Submit”. The search can be narrowed by choosing selections under the “Keyword” or “Category” headings.

2. The oversight documents and reports matching the selected state and evaluation year will appear at the bottom of the page.

3. Select “View” for the document that is of interest and the report will appear for viewing, saving, and/or printing.

The following acronyms are used in this report:

AER Annual Evaluation Report

CCB Coal Combustion Byproduct

EY Evaluation Year

FY Fiscal Year

MMD [New Mexico] Mining and Minerals Division

NTTP National Technical Training Program

OSMRE Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

http://odocs.osmre.gov/

http://get.adobe.com/reader/



5 | P a g e

PSD [OSMRE] Program Support Division

SJM San Juan Mine

SMCRA Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977

TIPS Technical Innovation and Professional Services

UNM University of New Mexico

USGS U.S Geological Survey

II. OVERVIEW OF COAL MINING INDUSTRY IN NEW MEXICO

Coal is the most abundant fossil fuel in the world. The United States holds the world’s largest estimated recoverable reserves of coal at approximately 27%. Based on current production levels, the United States has enough estimated recoverable reserves of coal to last more than 200 years. Coal is classified into four main types or ranks (anthracite, bituminous, subbituminous, and lignite), depending on the amounts and types of carbon it contains and on the amount of heat energy it can produce. New Mexico has approximately 497 million short tons of recoverable coal reserves consisting of bituminous and sub-bituminous varieties.

Coal production has played a significant role in the economic development of New Mexico beginning in the 1850s and continuing to the present. It is one of the four mineral fuels produced in New Mexico, ranking third in value behind natural gas (including coal-bed methane) and crude oil. Electricity generation from coal-fired power plants produces 63 percent of all energy production within the state – more than natural gas (25%) and renewable sources (11%) combined. New Mexico’s 497 million short tons of recoverable coal reserves make up about 2.7 percent of the national recoverable reserves.

Most of the coal is in northern New Mexico, primarily in the San Juan and Raton basins. Several minor coal fields outside these basins have had significant production in the past, and some may become important in the future, in particular for coal-bed methane production.

The main coal-bearing strata are the Mesa Verde and Fruitland formations in the San Juan Basin and the Raton and Vermejo formations in the Raton area. San Juan Basin coal generally ranges from sub-bituminous A to high volatile bituminous C. Bituminous coal burns hotter (11,500 to 13,000 BTU) than the sub-bituminous varieties (8,300 to 11,500 BTU).

There are nine permitted coal mines in New Mexico. Four mines, Lee Ranch, Navajo, San Juan Underground, and El Segundo were producing coal at the end of 2014. The Navajo Mine is located on the Navajo Indian Reservation. OSMRE, not the State of New Mexico, regulates this mine. The other five mines are in reclamation and are awaiting final bond release; they are Ancho, York Canyon Surface, York Canyon Underground, McKinley, and La Plata. Figure 1 displays an overview of the permit boundaries for these mines as well as the location of the major coal fields in New Mexico.



6 | P a g e

The mines mentioned above are in an arid and dry climate with an average annual precipitation ranging from 7.72 to 9.80 inches. Most of the precipitation is in the form of thundershowers from July to September. Re-vegetation in parts of the San Juan Basin is extremely difficult because of low rainfall amounts and highly erodible soil types.

Figure 1: Coal Mine Permit Boundaries and Coal Fields for New Mexico



7 | P a g e

III. OVERVIEW OF THE PUBLIC PARTICIPATION AND OUTREACH EFFORTS

The term “public” includes all stakeholders (i.e., citizenry at large, industry, other federal, state or local agencies, and environmental groups). Opportunities for public participation occur at significant points in the New Mexico Regulatory Program and involve the ability of the public to:

• Request that areas be designated as unsuitable for mining;

• Receive notification by advertisement of permit application receipt;

• Review permit and revision applications;

• Contest the decisions of MMD on permit applications and revisions;

• Request an inspection of a mine site;

• Submit blasting, groundwater well, and/or general permit complaints if public believes a violation of regulations is taking place;

• Object to proposed bond releases;

• Initiate civil suits; and

• Petition to initiate rulemaking.

The public can also access OSMRE Annual Evaluation Reports (AER) and Performance Agreements (PA) via the internet at the OSMRE Oversight Documents website at http://odocs.osmre.gov/. The Introduction section of this report (page 4) details how to access information using this website.

Public participation for this year includes:

• The EY 2014 AER was posted to oDocs for public review

• No public meetings were requested or required during EY 2015.

• MMD notified the public of one Phase I bond releases, a Phase II bond release, and two Phase III bond releases.

• Outreach to mine operators and the public regarding current and proposed mining operations has continued by making more information available on MMD’s webpages - projects can now be tracked by status or county, and project documents are downloadable.

IV. MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND INNOVATIONS

This year marks the 35th anniversary of the primacy program in the State of New Mexico. The maturation of the program has helped protect the public and minimize environmental impacts within the New Mexico coalfields.




8 | P a g e

Over the past year, OSMRE monitored New Mexico’s performance in meeting the goals and objectives of the approved state program. Once again, OSMRE finds that the MMD is successful in implementing its regulatory program. A list of the oversight reviews used to reach this conclusion is included in Section VII of this report. OSMRE looks forward to working cooperatively with the MMD during the next year.

Major accomplishments and innovations for this year include:

• Approval of a Phase I bond release application for Lee Ranch Mine. A Phase II bond release application is being processed for portions of La Plata Mine. Two applications for Phase III bond release were received for San Juan Mine and the mines are responding to deficiencies identified (Cottonwood Pit and the Industrial PMLU area overlying a portion of the underground mine). Processing of a Phase I bond release application for portions of McKinley Mine is on-going.

• MMD initiated a four-year program to better characterize Coal Combustion Byproduct (CCB) disposal at the San Juan Mine (SJM). SJM is primarily located on federal lands. The CCB disposal has been ongoing for the past thirty-six years. CCB is a high profile issue throughout the US and the SJM case was the subject of a lawsuit brought by the Sierra Club, which has since been settled. MMD developed two contracts associated with long term management of the CCBs. The first contract is with the USGS to model recharge, the potential for the CCB to become saturated and form a leachate, and the potential for leachate to move out of the pit to the adjacent groundwater systems or the San Juan River. The modeling for this project has been completed, and the final report is undergoing the USGS internal review process. MMD anticipates delivery of the report by the end of 2015. No further funding for the USGS study was required past June 30, 2014.

The second contract was with the Department of Engineering at the University of New Mexico to characterize the leachate produced from SJM CCBs and identify elemental isotopes unique to the waste stream leachate. The UNM contract has been completed, and the final report was delivered to MMD, and shared with interested parties, in the fall of 2012.

These studies will be used by the USGS and MMD to produce a predictive model and guide long term water monitoring efforts. The studies were necessary to ensure that long term groundwater quality on federal lands is protected and offsite impacts are prevented.

• The Small Watershed Erosion Study at La Plata Mine has evolved into a cooperative study between San Juan Coal Company, Geofluv, and the University of New Mexico, as funded by OSMRE as an Applied Science Project. The MMD continues to cooperate and provide assistance in this study as needed, although MMD is not involved in the funding of the study.

• Continued progress on long range GIS integration with MMD’s database. Internet



9 | P a g e

geospatial applications are being migrated from Map Guide to Arc Map for general public use.

• An initiative to allow for the creation of ESRI Story Map articles that describe mine reclamation projects on the MMD website was begun; this required coordination with and approval from several state agencies. The first Story Map publication is anticipated to appear in EY 2016.

• There are no pending or proposed State Program Amendments for New Mexico.

V. SUCCESS IN ACHIEVING THE PURPOSES OF SMCRA

To further the concept of reporting end-results and on-the-ground success, the findings from performance reviews and public participation evaluations are collected by the OSMRE for a national perspective on the number and extent of observed off-site impacts, the number of acres that have been mined and reclaimed to meet bond release requirements for the various phases of reclamation, and the effectiveness of customer service provided by the state. Individual topic-specific reports that provide additional details on how the following evaluations and measurements were conducted are available online at http://odocs.osmre.gov/. The Introduction section of this report (page 4) details how to access information using this website. Topic-specific reports can also be viewed at the OSMRE Western Region PSD office.

A. Off-site Impacts

An “off-site impact” is anything resulting from a surface coal mining and reclamation activity or operation that causes a negative effect on resources (people, land, water, structures) outside the area authorized by the permit for conducting mining and reclamation activities.

New Mexico has eight inspectable units under the jurisdiction of the approved regulatory program. Figure 2 shows the percentage of inspectable units, or sites, in New Mexico that were free of off-site impacts each year, over the last seven years. Appendix 1, Table 5 shows the number and types of off-site impacts that were observed and documented as having occurred during EY 2015, both for permitted sites and bond forfeiture sites. No off-site impacts were observed at any New Mexico mine site this year.

B. Reclamation Success

Figure 2: Percent of Sites free of off-site impacts

0102030405060708090

100

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

% of Sites free of Off-Site Impacts

% of Sites free of Off-Site Impacts




10 | P a g e

OSMRE and MMD use two different measures for evaluating reclamation success at sites whose reclamation performance bonds have not been forfeited. The first is bond release acreage and the second, contemporaneous reclamation.

Bond release is used as a measure of determining reclamation success since it specifically reports the acres which have been returned to land form: approximate original contour, land capability (post-mine land use) and hydrologic reclamation. According to the New Mexico Coal Rules and Regulations, phased bond release is defined as:

Phase I – When the permittee completes the backfilling, regrading (which may include the replacement of topsoil) and drainage control of a bonded area in accordance with the approved reclamation plan, 60 percent of the bond or collateral for the applicable area.

Phase II – When the permittee has established vegetation on the regraded mined lands in accordance with the approved reclamation plan.

Phase III – The remaining portion of the bond may be released after the permittee has successfully completed all surface coal mining and reclamation activities.

MMD released 670 acres for a Phase I bond release during EY 2015; Figure 3 shows acres released of each phase of bond release per year for the last seven years. Appendix 1, Table 6 summarizes all reclamation activity for EY 2015.

The second measure in determining reclamation success is contemporaneous reclamation. Currently in New Mexico, a total of 80,253 acres have been permitted, with approximately 32,658 acres (40.7 %), disturbed by mining activity to date. Of these disturbed acres, approximately 22,994 acres have been backfilled, graded, topsoiled and seeded; or 70.3 percent of the lands disturbed have been reclaimed to the point of establishing vegetation. This ratio of disturbed vs. seeded acres is a measure of how contemporaneous (timely) the State’s mines are reclaiming disturbed acres to the point of establishing vegetation. Once the revegetated acres have fulfilled their 10 year liability period and met other requirements, they may be available for Phase III or final bond release. Approximately 7.8 percent of the cumulative disturbed lands on New Mexico coal mines consist of facilities (buildings, ponds, haul roads, soil and overburden stockpiles, and other long-term disturbances). These disturbances are necessary in the operation of the mine until mining operations are completed. The total current size of all New Mexico coal facilities is reported as 2,549 acres. When subtracting the acreage of the facilities from the cumulative disturbance, the ratio of reclamation to net disturbance is 0.76, or 76 percent of the

Figure 3: Bond release acres by type, per year

Year Phase I Phase II Phase III2007 672 872 5122008 0 0 02009 0 0 02010 1395 1395 13952011 1371 624 2702012 0 0 9672013 0 0 02014 1051 0 02015 670 0 0Total 5159 2891 3144

All Phases of Bond Release (acres per year)



11 | P a g e

cumulative acres disturbed in New Mexico. Thus, 76 percent of the disturbance that is available to be reclaimed has been reclaimed to the point of being backfilled, graded and seeded.

OSMRE approved the New Mexico permanent regulatory program in 1980. MMD has processed only one bond forfeiture. The bond forfeiture site, Arroyo No. 1, was promptly reclaimed. During EY 2015, there was no bond forfeiture activity in New Mexico; see Appendix 1, Table 7.

C. Customer Service

To evaluate effectiveness of customer service provided by the state or tribe, OSMRE monitors the states’ and tribes’ responses to complaints, requests for inspections, and requests for assistance and services by permittees as well as the public or other agencies. A customer service oversight report is prepared for each customer service review conducted. Reports include detailed information on the collection and analysis of data, as well as a description of the steps taken to verify the data, and conclusions on the effectiveness of the state or tribal program in providing customer service.

In June 2011, MMD commenced scanning all its paper records and placed all of this information into an electronic records management system. This system now enables MMD to provide electronic formatted copies of all historic and current permit information to mine operators, OSMRE and the public. Over EY 2015, MMD has continued to scan coal records into PDF or JPG format, as appropriate.

VI. NATIONAL PRIORITY AND GENERAL OVERSIGHT

OSMRE’s PSD and MMD formed an Evaluation Team (the Team) to conduct annual evaluations of New Mexico’s Coal Regulatory Program. The Team evaluated how effective MMD was in ensuring successful coal mining reclamation, preventing offsite impacts, and providing service to its customers. The Team made recommendations for improving the administration, implementation, and maintenance of the Program as a result of the evaluations. This evaluation method fosters a shared commitment to the implementation of SMCRA and the preservation of this Team is essential for a complete and successful program review. National priority reviews and the general oversight topic reviews can be located and reviewed at OSMRE’s website as listed at the Introduction (page 4) of this report. The individual general oversight reports are prepared by OSMRE as part of the oversight process for each state and contain findings and details regarding the evaluation of specific elements of the state program.

A. National Priority Reviews

National Priority Reviews are oversight topic reviews selected by OSMRE to review nationwide. The team members for the National Priority reviews are not necessarily the same as the team members for the general oversight Topic Reviews. During this Evaluation Year, no National Priority Reviews were conducted.

B. General Oversight Topic Reviews



12 | P a g e

General Oversight Topic Reviews are conducted as specified in the New Mexico Performance Agreement/Evaluation Plan.

1. Ash Disposal Studies at San Juan Mine

The objective of the US Geological Survey (USGS) study is to determine the potential groundwater flow paths away from the San Juan Mine that could allow metals that may be leached from coal combustion byproducts stored in reclaimed mine pits to be directed to wells or streams. This objective is to be achieved during a 4-year study with 1) a literature review to be completed during the first year; 2) regional groundwater-level monitoring using existing wells, to be performed during the first 3 years; and 3) numerical modeling of groundwater -flow paths using data collected with the literature review and the groundwater-level monitoring program.

MMD has granted the USGS an additional 6 months (to December 31, 2014) to complete the review and publication process. No additional funding from MMD past EY 2014 is included in the extension. The groundwater model has been completed. Writing of a USGS Scientific Investigations Report is underway, following the annotated outline. Compilation of a USGS Data Series report is underway. USGS will provide draft versions of reports to MMD as they enter the colleague review process.

2. Prevention of Off-site Impacts & Reclamation Success – Design, Construction, Maintenance and Reclamation of Small Area Exemption (SAE) Sites

The Team evaluated MMD’s effectiveness in ensuring that existing small area exemptions (SAE’s) utilized siltation structures or alternate sediment control measures to prevent an off-site impact from occurring. The Team also evaluated MMD’s effectiveness in ensuring that SAE’s which were no longer needed for mining or reclamation, demonstrated successful reclamation practices.

Of the sixteen sites evaluated, no off-site impacts existed. Two of the sites evaluated required maintenance; one reclaimed site requires treatment of weeds and re-seeding, one active site requires additional gravel placement ensure no off-site impact forms. Three of the inactive sites were only partially reclaimed. Three sites identified as SAE’s no longer met the requirements for SAE status; all three were initially SAE’s but now report to adjacent, newer, sediment control systems within the permit boundary.

C. State Inspection Frequency

There are currently 8 permanent program permits (inspectable units) in New Mexico. These permits must be inspected 12 times per evaluation year (8 partial inspections, 4 complete inspections) unless they are placed in Temporary Cessation or approved for Phase II bond release. MMD has not approved any site for Temporary Cessation. MMD has three permits which have been approved for a reduced inspection frequency and only conducts the quarterly inspections on these permits. During EY 2015, MMD conducted 66 partial inspections and 32



13 | P a g e

complete inspections thus exceeding the requirements for partial inspections and meeting the requirements for complete inspections.

D. Oversight Inspection Activity

Inspections and site visits are an integral part of OSMRE’s oversight activities. The purpose of oversight inspections and field site evaluations, as specified in OSMRE Directive REG-8, is to evaluate the State’s effectiveness in implementing its Inspection and Enforcements program, identify any off-site impacts, and evaluate reclamation success. Evaluation of the MMD’s effectiveness was accomplished during OSMRE’s oversight inspections, as well as reviewing all MMD inspection reports and enforcement actions. During EY 2015, OSMRE conducted six oversight inspections; consisting of three partial oversights, two bond releases, and one complete inspection. This inspection activity is summarized in Appendix 1, Table 13.

VII. PROGRAM PROBLEMS AND ISSUES

OSMRE has initiated a corrective action process that applies when problems are identified with a state’s approved regulatory program, or the state’s actions under that program, that could, if left unaddressed, result in a failure by the state to effectively implement, administer, enforce, or maintain its approved regulatory program. Site-specific issues identified by PSD during inspections were addressed by the MMD when they were identified. No regulatory program problems or issues were identified during EY 2015.

VIII. OSMRE ASSISTANCE

OSMRE provides technical assistance and technology support to state Regulatory and AML Programs at the individual state level on project specific efforts, and at the national level in the form of national meetings, forums, and national initiatives. The OSMRE provides direct technical assistance in project and problem investigation, design and analysis, permitting assistance, developing technical guidelines, training and support. OSMRE initiated a regional Technology Transfer Team in 2004 to support and enhance the technical skills needed to operate regulatory and reclamation programs which each state, including New Mexico, has a representative.

Annual Grant Award

In accordance with section 705(a) of SMCRA, the Secretary of the Interior is authorized to make annual grants to any state for the purpose of assisting such state in developing, administering, and enforcing state programs under SMCRA. MMD received a grant from OSMRE for $819,836 for the operation of the Coal Mine Reclamation Bureau which is the organizational subdivision of MMD responsible for administering the state regulatory program. The grant award represents 73 percent of the total program cost.



14 | P a g e

TIPS, Technology Transfer, NTTP, and Technical and Librarian Assistance

Each year OSMRE provides services to MMD through its TIPS program, transfer of technology equipment and software, and technical and librarian assistance. MMD Regulatory and AML staff participated in four instructor lead TIPS training courses and three TIPS Virtual Campus courses during EY 2015. Two MMD employees took one NTTP course during EY 2015. Also, the State was provided the following software and licenses: ArcGIS 10.1, ArcPAD, SEDCAD, Global Mapper 14, AutoCAD 2013, Carlson 2013, and Groundwater Vistas 5.0. OSMRE’s librarian filled seven reference request from MMD.

IX. TABLE FOOTNOTES

The table data is provided as an attachment to the Annual Evaluation Report. There are some data sets that were not available this EY and were recorded as a null value or other data sets might require additional description. The following are explanations for the null data sets or other data provided:

Table 6: This table does not report reclamation areas for which Phase III bond release has been previously approved, once phase III has been approved, the acreages are removed from this table. For total acres disturbed by mining, see the New Mexico Reclamation Status Table in Appendix I, page 36.



15 | P a g e

APPENDIX 1

Summary of Core Data to Characterize the Regulatory Program

New Mexico Annual Evaluation Report

Evaluation Year 2015

The following tables present summary data pertinent to mining operations and regulatory activities under the New Mexico regulatory program. Unless otherwise specified, the reporting period for the data contained in the tables is the Evaluation Year. Other data and information used by OSMRE in its evaluation of New Mexico performance are available for review in the evaluation file maintained by OSMRE-PSD.

Because of the enormous variations from state to state in the number, size, and type of coal mining operations and the differences between state programs, the summary data should not be used to compare one state to another.

List of Tables

Table 1 Coal Produced for Sale, Transfer, or Use Page 16

Table 2 Permanent Program Permits, Initial Program Sites,

Inspectable Units, and Exploration Pages 17 & 18

Table 3 Permits Allowing Special Categories of Mining Page 19

Table 4 Permitting Activity Pages 20 & 21

Table 5 Off-site Impacts Pages 22 & 23

Table 6 Surface Coal Mining and Reclamation Activity Page 24

Table 7 Bond Forfeiture Activity Page 25

Table 8 Regulatory and AML Programs Staffing Page 26

Table 9 Funds Granted to State by OSMRE Page 27

Table 10 State Inspection Activity Pages 28 & 29

Table 11 State Enforcement Activity Page 30

Table 12 Lands Unsuitable Activity Page 31

Table 13 OSMRE Oversight Activity Pages 32 & 33

Table 15 Post-Mining Land Use Acreage of Sites

Fully Released Pages 34 & 35

MMD Cumulative Reclamation Status Table Pages 36 & 37



16 | P a g e



17 | P a g e



18 | P a g e



19 | P a g e



20 | P a g e



21 | P a g e



22 | P a g e



23 | P a g e



24 | P a g e

**Th

is ta

ble

does

not

repo

rt re

clam

atio

n ar

eas f

or w

hich

Pha

se II

I bon

d re

leas

e ha

s bee

n pr

evio

usly

app

rove

d, o

nce

phas

e II

I has

bee

n ap

prov

ed, t

he

acre

ages

are

rem

oved

from

this

tabl

e. F

or to

tal a

cres

dis

turb

ed b

y m

inin

g, se

e th

e N

ew M

exic

o Re

clam

atio

n St

atus

Tab

le in

App

endi

x I,

page

36.



25 | P a g e



26 | P a g e



27 | P a g e



28 | P a g e



29 | P a g e



30 | P a g e



31 | P a g e



32 | P a g e



33 | P a g e



34 | P a g e



35 | P a g e



36 | P a g e

12

34

56

78

910

1112

1314

1516

EY

To

tal

(all

year

s)E

Y

Tota

l (a

ll ye

ars)

EY

To

tal

(all

year

s)E

Y

Tota

l (a

ll ye

ars)

EY

To

tal

(all

year

s)E

Y

Tota

l (a

ll ye

ars)

EY

To

tal

(all

year

s)

1999

1540

1750

736

6046

9591

698

0039

538

1899

791

9799

611

8565

834

6239

558

4

2000

1119

1855

122

7072

3862

612

922

034

2329

311

412

079

081

138

170

1935

2001

1087

2366

122

7073

1110

4913

938

1243

4666

811

1222

314

8022

7066

343

6423

721

72

2002

907

2456

822

5371

2411

9515

133

046

6614

1713

640

022

7066

448

2654

524

80

2003

773

2534

121

7365

4315

4316

373

1557

5534

1355

1481

115

5736

3886

555

3938

627

45

2004

566

2539

021

7359

1779

617

424

2445

7979

1465

1624

511

639

4357

059

7118

1744

46

2005

366

2570

512

1659

2894

618

270

847

8826

1708

1795

424

341

8645

164

0018

0047

79

2006

344

2616

811

3555

2373

618

674

1040

9866

232

1818

631

5873

4459

469

7223

1455

36

2007

282

2624

511

3547

0189

919

573

098

6628

718

468

2373

6758

275

5423

5557

2008

1538

2778

325

5342

0910

8020

654

098

6618

6120

194

073

6739

379

470

5557

2009

1346

2912

925

2348

4174

621

400

098

6614

1021

579

073

6677

087

250

5557

2010

831

2996

024

6847

5247

721

875

2496

1236

239

021

967

2122

9489

1112

1583

716

6572

21

2011

597

3061

725

8657

4513

322

286

012

919

114

2199

527

091

9511

9410

982

270

5552

2012

1068

3099

924

5761

9849

622

810

308

1335

833

422

221

308

9422

1638

1189

712

7568

31

2013

1068

3099

924

5761

9849

622

810

308

1335

833

422

221

308

9422

1638

1189

712

7568

31

2014

831

3213

325

4970

4348

123

264

1359

1440

937

522

453

308

9654

2354

1434

712

7568

31

2015

495

3265

825

4975

3164

123

905

670

1507

949

122

944

096

5415

6615

696

068

31

Cum

ulat

ive

New

Mex

ico

Rec

lam

atio

n St

atus

Tab

le E

Y-19

99 to

Pre

sent

RECL

AMAT

ION

STAT

US O

F AL

L AR

EAS

DIST

URBE

D UN

DER

THE

PERM

ANEN

T RE

GUL

ATO

RY P

ROG

RAM

E

VA

LUA

TIO

N Y

EA

R

Dis

turb

ed a

rea

Long

-term

m

inin

g or

re

clam

atio

n fa

cilit

ies

Act

ive

min

ing

area

s

Are

as b

ackf

illed

an

d gr

aded

Are

as re

leas

ed

phas

e I b

ond

Are

as s

oile

d an

d se

eded

/ pl

ante

dA

reas

rele

ased

ph

ase

II bo

ndA

reas

fina

l see

ded

/ pl

ante

d fo

r 10

year

s

Are

as re

leas

ed

phas

e III

bon

d



37 | P a g e

Cumulative New Mexico Reclamation Status Table EY-1999 to Present



38 | P a g e

APPENDIX 2

Comments of State of New Mexico on the Report

New Mexico Annual Evaluation Report

Evaluation Year 2015

New Mexico only had editorial comments on the Annual Evaluation Report.