The Coalspur Formation at the Vista Coal Project is exposed in subcrop along the erosional eastern margin of the Prairie Creek Anticline. This margin area is bounded to the west by the Pedley Fault, a major reverse fault, which separates the folded and deformed strata of the Foothills Belt from the undeformed Alberta Syncline strata.

The structure is a simple monocline, trending 300° northwest/southeast. The beds dip gently northeast from 6° in the western part of the property up to 15° at the McLeod River on the eastern boundary.

No significant faulting has been identified on the property. Glacial ice deformation has been observed locally along the subcrop margins of the coal zones.

The property is overlain entirely by a mantle of glacial till and alluvium which varies from 5 m to 30 m in thickness. Consequently, all stratigraphic correlation and structural interpretation is based entirely on the geological modelling of drill hole data.

The coal deposits associated with the Coalspur Coal Projects (Vista Coal Project, Vista Extension and Vista South) are considered to be surface mineable, as defined in the Geological Survey of Canada Paper 88-21 (“GSC 88-21”).

In the Coalspur lease areas, the coal zones occur at depths from sub-outcrop (below the base of the overlying till material) extending down dip to over 250 m deep. The targeted Coal Resources, in terms of deposit type, are therefore defined as surface mineable.

The production process for Phase I’s open pit operations is as follows:

(a) merchantable timber is harvested within the mine disturbance area;

(b) topsoil within the mine disturbance area is salvaged and placed in stockpiles for future placement, or placed directly, on reclaimed areas;

(c) ponds and ditches are created to control water flow in respect of the disturbance area and to carefully control, and allow for treating of, water discharged from mine and plant operations in order to maintain water quality and protect against any pollution of neighboring water sources;

(d) till above the bedrock is removed with hydraulic shovels and placed in haul trucks where it is transported to designated stockpile locations;

(e) rock (overburden) above the coal seams is drilled and blasted using explosives;

(f) blasted rock is both pushed into previously mined pit void space with bulldozers and removed with hydraulic shovels, excavators, and/or loaders and placed in haul trucks, which then transport the rock to designated stockpile or pit backfill areas;

(g) the uncovered raw coal is mined by:
(i) hydraulic excavator and/or loader and hauled to the truck dump to be sized and belted to the raw coal stockpile area, located near the coal preparation plant; and
(ii) highwall mining method, which is used to recover additional coal reserves by means of advancing a machine (known as a continuous miner) and a ........

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