Opening a Coal Mine in Colorado: The State Permits and Permit-Review Procedures

摘要

The purpose of this study is to identify every permit, license, filing, certification, and approval which might be required by the state of Colorado to open a surface or underground coal mine. In addition, this study outlines the basic review procedures of each agency for each approval and includes the normal time period required to obtain each approval. With this information, a mine operator, or any concerned party, may become more fully aware of all the permits necessary to open a coal mine, all the state agencies involved, what each review procedure entails, and how long each review procedure takes. The permit application process can thus be managed to include all permits, to submit concurrent rather than sequential applications, and to obtain all approvals in the shortest time possible. This study includes a summary overview, flow charts, and summary tables. A fourth component, not included in this report, is a computer program synthesizing the flow charts into the shortest time path or schedule possible. The advantage of this computer program is that it can be easily revised when regulations are changed or added, that it can be run at different stages of the review processes in case of delays or changes with one permit, and that it can easily be programmed for different management objectives. For additional information on this tool, please contact the Colorado Energy Research Institute or Fred C. Hart Associates. (ERA citation 07:045632)