Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Roca Honda Mine

Chapter 3. Affected Environment and Environmental Consequences
location where the Section 10 production shaft described in the proposed action would have been
constructed.
The resulting differences in land use effects from implementing alternative 3 arise from
elimination of the second shaft along with a considerable amount of surface facilities and
infrastructure. There is a reduction of area disturbed by the project, or its footprint, of 63 acres,
mostly in Section 10. This includes a reduction from three to two ventilation shafts in Section 9.
Access roads in Sections 9 and 10 service ventilation shafts and monitoring wells only and are
reduced somewhat in overall length and number of locations serviced. Utility corridors and access
roads across private lands in Sections 11, 15, 17, and 20 are still required.
The effects of alternative 3, the one shaft alternative identified above, are relatively similar in
scale to those of alternative 2, the two shaft alternative, but on a somewhat smaller scale. In the
following discussion of differing changes to the land management issues and opportunities from
the forest plan, the effects are determined to be the same as for alternative 2 except as specifically
noted.
Range Management
In alternative 3, 63 fewer acres are required for mine development, operations, and reclamation
that are potentially available to other uses, presumably the current land uses of grazing
management, firewood gathering, and hunting, subject again to maintaining a safe buffer with
mine site activities as provided in alternative 2.
Soil and Water
There would be a reduced requirement to disturb native ground and less impermeable area with
alternative 2 because of the fewer surface facilities and slightly reduced road lengths. This will
mean there are reduced instances of BMPs employed to maintain higher levels of water quality
and soil retention. The net outcome is that fewer acres are disturbed and a smaller amount of soil
and water resources is affected.
Recreation
Some current recreational activities such as firewood gathering, hunting, and hiking could be
allowed at a slightly increased level than that of alternative 2 because of the fact that fewer
facilities will be built and less area fenced. It is possible that the addition of 63 acres of land not
developed by the mine would not influence a decision about higher levels of hunting activity
because of the extended range of possible unsafe effects for hunting.
Minerals Management
There are no meaningful differences between alternatives 2 and 3 perceived for minerals
management, as the mineral resource will be extracted to the same extent through a more
extensive range of subsurface activity.
256 DEIS for Roca Honda Mine, Cibola National Forest