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f <br /> 4 . ROCKY MOUNTAIN FEN SEARCH PROJECT <br /> • : - . -, CALL FOR PARTNERS <br /> J % ‘'s <br /> P . - <br /> �y The Rocky Mountain Fen Research Project is seeking partners <br /> Jin a project designed to explore the extent to which the harvest <br /> 'Pk � ` and transplantation of slow forming organic peat soils, from an <br /> _� � �� area of potential impact to a specifically prepared receiver site, <br /> +. ' . . can serve as mitigation of fen impacts. <br /> ` � <br /> ., By definition, fens are unique wetlands that form at high <br /> %_ . • V elevations (above 8,000 feet) in Colorado through the <br /> ih accumulation of decayed plant material in low points in the <br /> landscape, or near slopes where groundwater is intercepted by <br /> t k - I ; %b the soil surface. <br /> ..; The implication for land use and water resource managers is <br /> *''.14;.). that fens tend to exist in the same high altitude locations as <br /> potential water collection, transmission, and storage facilities, <br /> ,- 1 ' • f '! . : and are currently considered to be"unmitigatable"resources. <br /> Springs and seeps provide groundwater recharge <br /> Category 1 Habitats <br /> In a 1999 policy document, the USFWS classified fen wetlands as Resource Category I Habitats, or essentially <br /> irreplaceable habitats for which the mitigation goal is "no net loss of existing habitat value." Currently, no <br /> acceptable form of mitigation for damage to, or elimination of a fen is recognized by the jurisdictional agencies. <br /> The implications of encountering an "unmitigatable" resource within a project area can be severe, and have <br /> resulted in the abandonment or relocation of critical projects for drought protection, flood control, water storage, <br /> and the transmission of run-off from the Rocky Mountains to the State's population centers. <br /> The main reason that fens are considered unmitigatable habitat is r <br /> because it takes thousands of years of accumulation of partially �r# `' <br /> decomposed plant matter, subjected to constant saturation by a <br /> groundwater flow regime, to form the organic peat soils that influence <br /> every aspect of their form, function, and ecology. 1r. :;n ' <br /> t m <br /> The forcing factors in fen formation and function are hydrology, soils, 20.. 1 <br /> and vegetation. By transporting intact blocks of slow forming organic 4; <br /> peat soils, with the vegetative mantle intact, and reassembling them in . <br /> a specially modified basin that mimics the elements of groundwater <br /> recharge, flow rate, and saturation of a natural fen, it is believed that <br /> an effective, reproducible method of fen mitigation can be l " <br /> demonstrated. <br /> Professional Wetland Scientist Brad Johnson, Ph.D., refers to the <br /> Rocky Mountain Fen Research project as, "a rare opportunity to both i <br /> systematically develop and test innovative methods of fen `creation' q <br /> and impact rehabilitation." ` <br /> Slow forming organic peat soils of a typical fen <br />