Colorado to start mitigating underground coal mine fire near Marshall Fire ignition point in Boulder County
The state will start mitigating the Lewis Coal Mine Fire in Boulder County no later than Oct. 1, according to an Emergency Declaration issued by the county Monday. Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety (DRMS) officials say they've seen increased activity from the fire. It has burned for more than 50 years.
The Lewis Mine site lies less than a half mile from the presumed ignition points of the 2021 Marshall Fire which destroyed more than 1,000 homes and killed two people.
A separate site of underground coal mine fires, from the Marshall Mines which operated from 1863 to 1939, are in the immediate vicinity of the Marshall Fire ignition point.
Heat from underground coal mine fires, possibly drawn to the surface by 100 mph winds, has not been ruled out as a possible cause of the Marshall Fire.
RELATED Investigators: Burning remnants of underground coal mines are possible cause of Marshall Fire (2022)
The state will work with two private property owners to complete the project by spring of 2024. The Lewis Mine site sits partially underneath Davidson Ditch, a water supply ditch. The county wants to start work as soon as possible to prevent flooding as the ditch fills next spring. Boulder County gave Oct. 1 as the latest start date for the project.
"The work will help protect the water supply ditch on site," said Jeff Graves, Director, Inactive Mine Reclamation Program at DRMS.
The U.S. Department of the Interior dumped 275 tons of aggregate on the Marshall Mine site in 2006. A brush fire then was blamed on heat issuing from the coal mine fire via a vent to the surface.
As for the Lewis Coal Mine Fire, DRMS "has observed increased surface subsidence, surface fracturing and cracking, higher surface temperatures (>120 F), increased venting and gas emissions, and stressed vegetation," according to a news release.
The mitigation of the Lewis Coal Site will not impact the county or city's open space.
An online town hall meeting is scheduled to take place Aug. 28. A recording of the informational meeting will posted on YouTube for those unable to attend it in progress. For more information click here.
In a 2018 DRMS study, there are 1,736 know abandoned coal mines in Colorado. A contractor hired by the state to examine them found 38 were actively burning or were dormant and extinguished after previously burning.