Community Relations Plan
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Community Relations Plan Rainy, Sunset, and Kromona Mine and Mill Sites Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) Clean-Up Project Prepared by: Curtis Spalding Environmental Coordinator Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest and Rod Lentz On-Scene Coordinator Okanogan and Wenatchee National Forests Approved By: _____________________________ Date: _____________ Y. ROBERT IWAMOTO Forest Supervisor Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS OVERVIEW ...............................................................................................................................3 BACKGROUND ............................................................................................................................4 Rainy Mine and Mill ...............................................................................................................4 Sunset Mine and Mill .............................................................................................................5 Kromona Mine and Mill ........................................................................................................6 SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES ............................................................................................8 COMMUNICATION STRATEGY ..............................................................................................8 History of Community Involvement and Project Awareness .................................................8 Key Community Concerns .....................................................................................................9 TACTICS .............................................................................................................................10 ACTION PLAN ............................................................................................................................12 APPENDICES A. Project Location Maps B. Interview Questions/Responses C. Key Contacts D. Tribal Consultation E. News Releases/Updates F. Comments/Responses/Meeting Notes G. Legal Notices 2 Rainy, Sunset, and Kromona Mine and Mill Sites Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) Clean-Up Project Community Relations Plan OVERVIEW The Rainy, Sunset, and Kromona Mine and Mill Sites are specifically located: Rainy Site. King County, Washington, on Quartz Creek about 12 miles northeast of North Bend; T24N, R10E, Sections 9, SE/4 Sunset Site. Snohomish County, Washington, on Trout Creek about 5 miles northeast of Index; T27N, R10E, Section 1, SW/4NE/4 Kromona Site. Snohomish County, Washington, on Middle Fork of the South Fork Sultan River, about 10 miles northeast of Sultan; T28N, R9E, Section 13, N/2 Location maps of the Sites are in Appendix A. All the Sites include the remnants of abandoned or inactive mine and ore beneficiation facilities. Building foundations are typically all that remain of once substantial mine and mill-related structures. In some cases portions of the collapsed structures are present along with the scattered pieces of equipment or debris. All of the mines were developed using underground techniques. Consequently, mine openings such as adits (mine entrances), stopes (mined-out ore bodies), shafts, and pits are present, and they represent substantial safety hazards to the public and wildlife. Mine waste in the form of waste rock removed from underground or surface cuts or milling tails are present and contain elevated concentrations of hazardous substances (metals). The Forest Service has prepared Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analyses (EE/CAs) for each of the Rainy, Sunset, and Kromona Sites to evaluate alternatives for completing non-time- critical removal actions related to metal contamination therein. The EE/CA reports were prepared in accordance with the provisions of National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), 40 CFR 300.415(b)(4)(i). These regulations are authorized by and execute the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980. The EE/CA reports document risks to human health and the environment, evaluate alternatives, and identify a preferred alternative to minimize or eliminate the risks associated with the release of a hazardous substance into the environment or impact on public health and welfare, as outlined in 40 CFR 300.415(b)(2)(i)-(viii). Copies of the EE/CA reports are posted on Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest website: http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/mbs/projects/cercla-hazmat-projects.shtml. Site cleanup will be performed by the Forest Service under CERCLA cleanup authorities [42 USC 9604(a) and 7 CFR 2.60(m)] and Federal Executive Order 12580. 3 BACKGROUND This section gives further information about the location, history, and character of the subject Sites. Rainy Mine and Mill Site The Rainy Mine Site is located on a steep, heavily forested slope adjacent to Quartz Creek, which discharges to the Taylor River and ultimately to the Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie River (MFSR) near North Bend. Access is currently limited due to winter 2008-9 bridge and road wash-outs. According to the USGS 7 ½ Minute Quadrangle Map – Lake Philippa (USGS, 1989), the Site location is: Township 24 North, Range 10 East of the Willamette Meridian, Section 9 and 16 West Zone Adit Latitude: North 47° 34’ 13.3” Longitude: West 121° 33’ 20.5” East Zone Workings Latitude: North 47° 34’ 10.0” Longitude: West 121° 33’ 08.8” Elevation West Zone: 1,870 feet above mean seal level (amsl) East Zone: 1,790 feet amsl The Rainy Site includes two areas of development: the east and west zones. The east zone consists of a double compartment shaft and winze, a mill foundation, miscellaneous debris, and a large waste rock pile (WR-1). Small exploration workings and prospects are also located east of WR-1. The volume of WR-1 is approximately 2,000 cubic yards (cy) and consists mainly of brown to yellow silty sand and gravel, with ubiquitous angular cobble and larger size rocks. Two seeps emanate from the base of the WR-1, creating a marshy area that eventually drains into Quartz Creek. In addition, iron precipitates were observed in the marsh area near the seeps and Quartz Creek. Tailings were not observed and were most likely discharged directly to Quartz Creek, a common practice prior to 1965, and carried away by the creek. The west zone contains one adit (Adit 1) and a small waste rock pile (WR-2). The volume of WR-2 is approximately 25 cy and consists of yellow to brown silt, sand, and angular cobbles. This summarizes the ownership and operational history of the Site and the estimated ore production, gleaned from various publications (Rainy Site Inspection, CES, 2005). 1946 -- M.F. Gilbreath relocated the original claims and staked additional ground. 1951 -- A 50 ton-per-day floatation mill, bunkhouse, and assayer shed were constructed on the property (Grant, 1965), although processing information was not available. The mill was utilized until 1954 to process test shipments of ore. 1952 -- Property was leased to the Western States Copper Company. 1957 -- Anaconda Copper Company explored the property and drilled 2,128 feet of borings. 1967-- Inland Copper Ltd. advanced 6 holes covering 1,900 feet with an estimated reserve of 5,200,000 tons ore at 0.5 to 0.6% copper. 4 The mine reportedly produced 2,000 tons of ore from 1951 to 1957, yielding values in copper, silver, and gold. The unpatented Rainy lode claim group currently includes the mine and mill area, but no significant activity on the claims is evident. Risks to human and ecological receptors at Rainy are associated primarily with high metals concentrations, particularly arsenic, lead, and copper in waste rockunprocessed ore, mill tailings, seep and steam sediment, and some local soils, as well as elevated metals in the adit and seep water. Some impacts to benthic macro invertebrate populations are evident downstream from the Site in Quartz Creek, which provides habitat for cutthroat, a Federal species of concern. Sunset Mine and Mill Site The Sunset Site lies adjacent to Trout Creek, a tributary of the North Fork of the Skykomish River (NFSR), and is located within the Index Mining District. According to the USGS 7 ½ Minute Quadrangle Map - Baring (USGS, 1982), the Site location is: Township 27 North, Range 10 East of the Willamette Meridian, Section 1 Latitude - North 47° 51’ 26.8” Longitude - West 121° 27’ 43.6” Elevation: Mill Foundation - 1,370 feet above mean seal level (amsl) Caved East Stope – 1,714 feet amsl The Site consists of the concrete foundation of the former mill, one open adit (Adit 1), two collapsed adits (Adits 2 and 3) with associated waste rock piles, two large caved stopes (east and west), and one open ventilation raise. The two open stopes (collapsed) and the ventilation raise are extreme physical hazards at the Site. Although warning signs are posted, there are no physical barriers to prevent access to the open caverns and vertical highwalls (50 to 100 feet) created by these features. Mine workings are scattered upslope from the mill and can be reached by following the former road, which is now a hiking trail through thick vegetation. Six waste rock piles are present and represent a total of about 2,000 cy of soil and gravel-sized material. No tailings were found at the Site; based on historic photos and records, it appears that the tailings were deposited in and adjacent to Trout Creek and were carried away by the creek. Water discharges from Adits 1 and 2. The Adit