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Rancher urges Colfax County to revoke or postpone Yankee Canyon mine-subsidence work over fire and methane concerns
Summary
A landowner told the commission he and neighbors received minimal notice about County Road 825 mining-subsidence work, argued emergency-access plans are inadequate given cell/landline gaps and recent fires, raised the absence of a methane study, and asked the commission to revoke the permit or delay work until conditions are safer.
Warren Walton, a landowner in Yankee Canyon, urged the Colfax County Commission to revoke or postpone permit activity tied to a state mining commission mine-subsidence project on County Road 825. Walton said he and his brother met engineers about the project only a month earlier and were offered a narrow, 10-foot emergency access area they would have to call to use — an impractical plan for several ranch residents who lack reliable cell or landline service.
Walton said the emergency-access arrangement, short notice (he was given about 10–12 days to respond), and several recent fires nearby raise unacceptable risk. "Fire danger is way too high right now for a project like this," he said, noting that a local blaze grew to more than 1,200 acres in under two hours and that three fires occurred in the previous two weeks in the area. He also told the commission the engineering materials he received did not include a methane study and said the project managers acknowledged no one had raised methane concerns.
Walton asked the commission to consider revoking the permit because of the high fire danger and the potential expense and hazard of another fire in Yankee Canyon. Commissioners and staff acknowledged the concerns on the record; staff noted the county’s authority over the road permit and said revocation or rescheduling could be discussed with the project manager and the funding agency. No immediate revocation vote was recorded at the meeting.
