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<br />production of forage and grain crops for livestock feed are the principal <br />types of agricultural cropping. The irrigated lands at higher elevations <br />are limited by a short growing season to the production of legume-grass <br />hay or pasture. Private and publicly owned nonirrigated land furnishes <br />summer grazing for the livestock enterprises. <br /> <br />Timber resources of the Basin are plentiful and harvesting of timber pro- <br />ducts is expected to increase. Most of the tiQber is produced on the national <br />forests where approximately one million acres are producing commercial forest <br />products. The proposed allowable annual cut on sustained yield basis on the <br />national forest lands is approximately 76 million board-feet. Timber pro- <br />ducing areas in lesser amounts are on the national land reserves and privately <br />owned lands within the Basin. <br /> <br />Cover conditions in the Alpine No. 5 (see r..ap) and spruce-fir No. 4 zones <br />vary from poor to good. These zo~es have alpine meadows, timber, oakbrush <br />and sagebrush-grass vegetation. Most 0f the water yield comes from these <br />zones but very little sediment is produced. Most of the runoff is snowmelt, <br />which, in the Alpine zone, carries throutih most of the year. Some sediment <br />reaches the streams during spring runoff time from brush and grasslands, but <br />usually it is minor. <br /> <br />The lower zones, which are ponderosa pine-oakbrush No.3, pin;'on- juniper No. 2 <br />and desert shrub No.1, have poor to fair cover. These areas are predominantly <br />oakbrush-grass, sagebrush-grass and desert shrubgrass COT,lbinations of vegeta- <br />tion. Overuse in the past years has reduced vegetative cover and the desert <br />climate naturally slows the rate of recovery, so sediment yield is high. <br />These zones are subject to erosion during spring snowmelt runoff and summer <br />rainstorms. Sediment is produced by sheet and gully erosion. <br /> <br />Very little sediment reaches the main river above the confluence with the <br />North Fork River. The Smith Fork produces some sediment, as do so~e raw <br />shale slide areas hi~h on the North Fork drainage. Most sediment from these <br />areas will be deposited in the Crawford and Paonia Reservoirs. ~[ost of the <br />sediment that reaches the main stream will be fror.: the runoff of summer <br />showers on Desert Sierozem areas belo\.] these reservoi.rs. <br /> <br />The largest sedimeilt load is delivered to the Qain strea~ oy the Uncompahgre <br />River. This river drains lar~e areas of BrOyffi Chestnut and Desert Sieroz€Q <br />zones with sparse cover. Along the east slope of the Ul1colLipah~re Plateau <br />are many draina~es that flood across ca~als a~d irri~ated lands. <br /> <br />Below the confluence of tile Uncompah:;re and the Gunnison Ri vei:"S many s trearliS <br />such as Kahnah Creek, Dor.li~guez Creek and Escala:1te Creek drain from high <br />sediment produci:1':; a:..cas :lut yield lit;:lc scdir.le.r:.l: due to low rainfall. <br /> <br />Recreation <br /> <br />The Basin is outstanding in many respects in recreational attractions. <br />Mountain scenery, together with fishing. hunting and other recreational <br />pursuits, have caused tourist trade to increase rapidly. A substantial <br />portion of the income in certain sections of the Basin is derived froQ <br /> <br />~ 10,- <br />