20221128_ADI_Response_NCG02-description

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balance through proper planning
November 28,2022
NCG02 General Stormwater Permit—Bart's Place Mine(Haywood County,NC)
Pictorial Narrative of Existing Site Conditions& Operations
Mountain Hauling& Stone Company("MHS") is a North Carolina-based company owned and operated
by Regina P. Hunter and Christopher Hunter. Since late 2021,MHS has operated a small surface mining
operation on a tract of land owned by William B. Campbell located southwest of Maggie Valley in
Haywood County,NC. The larger tract containing the operation is approximately 753 acres; timber
harvests (selective cut)have occurred on parts of the tract as recently as 1990 and as far back as the
1800s.Mr. Campbell allows a herd of cattle to roam free-range around the tract and adjacent tracts,which
are also owned by Mr. Campbell and his family. The tract is bounded on its southern end by East Fork
Campbell Creek,which merges with the west fork to form Campbell Creek proper,which flows along the
western extent of the containing tract.
The mining operation run by MHS is a non-traditional,cottage-type operation, consisting of the
mechanical harvesting of naturally occurring cobbles and boulders, found both at the ground's surface
and shallowly buried below it. Approximately 65.50 acres are contained within the Mine Area; about 34
acres are currently variably accessed for harvesting purposes,with another 11 acres that have been
identified as a future harvest area,while approximately 12 acres will remain unaffected over the life of
the operation due to unsuitable harvesting conditions. MHS' operation is functionally limited by the
presence of rock at the surface;they are not conducting subsurface mining,nor are they blasting bedrock
to create smaller boulders. Rock material is harvested from upland slopes beside pre-existing logging
roads using one of two small, single cab tracked excavators(Takeuchi TB 145 2007)with a maximum
reach of 24 feet. Disturbed areas are reseeded with rye after harvesting is complete. Rock is loaded by the
excavator onto two small,tracked trucks(Yanmar C50R-5A),which then haul them to discrete stockpiles
at the bottom of the mountain where they are graded,moved& stacked(using a Takeuchi T13290),and
staged to be trucked off to buyers. Equipment is refueled with diesel fuel using an in-bed tank in a pickup
truck that is not housed onsite.
There is one main haul road that provides access through the containing parcel,past the stockpiles, and
up the mountain to the apex of the harvesting area. This haul road follows the paths of numerous historic
logging roads,many of which extend well outside the active Mine Area. There are numerous stormwater
control measures that have been implemented along the haul road to reduce the chance of sediment-laden
water reaching jurisdictional water features. These include right-of-way diversions armored with stone
and haybales; in-sloping of the roadbed,which feeds stormwater into roadside swales with a series of
check-dams; settling basins at the end of the check dams; and staged risers to allow for settling basin
overflows into adjacent forested slopes. There is no evidence of failure of any existing stormwater control
measures,nor is there evidence of unnatural sedimentation in the waterbodies that are downgradient of
the mine area.
There are no jurisdictional aquatic resources located within the excavation area,but the haul road and
transport road both cross perennial resources as they lead away from the excavation area and towards the
property boundary. The closest aquatic resource to the excavation area is represented by a small hillside
seep(draining to Campbell Creek)that is approximately 98 linear feet from the western edge of the
active mine area; furthermore,the haul road acts as a divide and stormwater catchment between the mine
area and the seep, and the 98 linear feet between are fully forested with diverse,native vegetation. East
Fork Campbell Creek and Campbell Creek are located more than 400 linear feet and as much as 3,000
linear feet from the active mine area. There are no direct routes for stormwater to enter the creeks from
the mine site.Furthermore,the aforementioned cattle have direct access to the creek throughout much of
its length above and below the mine operation,which has led to legacy inputs of fine sediment and fecal
coliform bacteria. It should also be noted that while traversing the transport road to access the site,
Equinox observed unauthorized grading on downstream adjacent private residential properties, including
open ground with no ESC and pipes to the creek.

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Mining Equipment Used Typical Haul Road Conditions
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Tracked truck used to ferry harvested materials between stockpiles.. Lower haul road between stockpile areas.
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Tracked truck used to move harvests downgradient to sotckpiles. Typical track truck interactions on to soil roads.
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Excavator used to harvest rock material;. Typical conditions;stone stabilized roads in places.
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Pickup truck with in-bed tank used for refueling equipment. Typical conditions on logging roads in future mine areas.

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Hvdrolot!ic Resources Stockpile Areas
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Confluence East Fork Campbell Creek/Campbell Creek Smaller stockpile area alongside haul road.
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Undisturbed conditions on upper East Fork Campbell Creek Open-air outbuilding at smaller stockpile area.
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Unnamed tributary to E.Fork Campbell Creek flows across Example of lithic material found at harvest area stockpiles..
the haul road.

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Stockpile Areas(cont...)
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Larger lithic material at primary stockpile.
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Scene showing excavator in relation to primary stockpile.
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Silt fencing alongside primary Stockpile Area preventing sediment from
moving downgradient toward adjacent wetland seep.