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Location: 143 km SE from Billings, Montana, United States
Lakeshore DriveP.O. Box 67DeckerMontana, United States59025
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The mine extracts thermal coal from the Anderson-Dietz Seam, which averages approximately 80 feet in thickness.Strata exposed at the Spring Creek Mine belong to the Tongue River Member of the Fort Union Formation of Paleocene age. The uppermost stratum consists of reddish, clinkered sediments overlying the burned 7 to 15 foot thick Smith coal seam which caps portions of the Central Bluffs and higher topographic areas of the site. The bluffs directly south of the South Fork Spring Creek either have outcrops of the Smith seam or show clinker resulting from Smith seam burn, depending on location. The 80-foot Anderson-Dietz (A/D) seam is the only presently economic coal seam at SCM. Within the Pits 1, 2 and 3 portions of the mine permit area the A/D seam lies approximately 140 feet below the Smith seam. Within Pit 4 the A/D seam lies approximately 220 feet below the Smith seam. Clinker zones are evident along the outcrop of the Smith seam within the Pit 4 area where natural burning of Smith coal has occurred. A bedrock clinker and partial burn zone for the A/D seam exists near the northeastern and eastern boundaries of the Pit 4 area. Rock units between the Smith and A/D coal seams consist principally of interbeds of gray to dark gray shale/claystone, gray to yellowish gray sandstone and siltstone, and carbonaceous shale. With the exception of the coal seams, the lithologic units are typically lenticular with limited areal extent and change character over short distances. Two coal seams (Roland and Smith) lie above the Anderson/Dietz (A/D) seam but are limited to areas of higher topography. The upper most seam, the Roland, is very discontinuous and largely oxidized due to its position in the stratigraphy. Where it is present, the seam is thin with ash banding. No quality has been obtained for the Roland. Due to overall thickness and very limited areas where it is found in the current leases, it is not an economic resource. The Smith seam, though a bit lower in the stratigraphic column is also discontinuous and largely oxidized. The Smith seam is not an economically recoverable resource. There are also three other coal seams (Canyon, Wall, and Carney) below the Anderson/Dietz (A/D) seam. These coal seams are considered to be uneconomical for mining due to their high stripping ratios.
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