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<br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br /> <br />site. Waterfowl are hunted on the property from September through January. Commercial <br />barges pass by the project site on the Missouri River most months of the year, except in winter <br />when the river freezes. Recreational boating primarily occurs during the summer months. <br />Background noise levels are generally low. <br /> <br />e. Prime Farmland: There is no prime farmland within the project site according to <br />the U. S. Department of Agriculture Soil Conservation Service of Harrison County, Iowa. <br />Harrison County soils are categorized based on a com suitability rating (CSR). The CSR is an <br />index used to rate the potential yield production of a soil over time. Ratings range from 100 for <br />soils that have no physical limitations, occur on minimal slopes, and can be continuously <br />cropped, to as low as 5 for soils with severe limitations for row crops. The Sarpy soils have <br />a rating of 5 to 10, and the Albaton soils have a rating of 55 to 58. The Sarpy soils comprise <br />approximately 230 acres (approximately 56 percent) of the project site and the Albaton soils <br />comprise approximately 126 acres (approximately 31 percent). <br /> <br />f. Aquatic Resources: Most of the aquatic resources associated with the California Bend <br />site inhabit the Missouri River. Approximately 75 acres of the project site may be comprised <br />of water during the wet period of the year in late spring and early summer. Some of these water <br />bodies are ponded and may recede during dry weather to form mudflats. <br /> <br />A diverse assemblage of fish exists within the Missouri River in the vicinity of the site. <br />Adult fishery studies have indicated that carp, goldeye, river carpsucker and gizzard shad <br />represented the dominant catch in the main Missouri River channel based on mass. Silvery <br />minnows, plains minnows, river shiners, emerald shiners and red shiners were the most <br />abundant species collected (OPPD 1982). A list of common and scientific names of all species <br />are included in Appendix A. <br /> <br />Larval fishes in the Missouri River are dominated by freshwater drum, catostomids, <br />cyprinids, and carp (Hergenrader, et al. 1982). Larval fish were found to be common in the <br />drift from early May through July. Spawning areas used are along the shoreline, in backwaters, <br />and behind channel control structures. Only limited suitable nursery areas exist in the <br />channelized Missouri River because of high current velocity, turbulent flows, and silt and sand <br />loads. Hergenrader, et al. (1982) found evidence that backwater areas function as nursery <br />zones. <br /> <br />The relative abundance of fish species in the Missouri River has changed dramatically <br />since the channelization of the river (Hesse, et al. 1982). This is believed to be due to the <br />changing availability of aquatic insects. Hesse, et al. (1982) contend that midchannel sandbar <br />production has assumed a larger proportion of the total system production following a reduction <br />in overhanging trees, snag production, and off-channel backwater production as a result of <br />channelization. Species such as flathead chubs and plains minnows have been replaced by those <br />species, such as emerald shiners, which rely more on zooplankton availabilities in swifter <br />currents. <br /> <br />11 <br />