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considered successful, it must meet or exceed 100% of the production of the reference area <br />production within the 90% confidence interval. It must meet this standard over a three year <br />average. Considering that the Irrigated Cropland reference area is undisturbed prime farmland soils <br />on the same property (part of the same post mine fields), this should be more than sufficient to <br />demonstrate the return of prime farmland soil productivity. <br />9.1 Revegetation Success Determination Procedures for Prime Farmland <br />Starting at least three years prior to bond release, data will be gathered on an annual basis to <br />determine average crop production for the prime farmland areas. An average of the 3 years total <br />production will be calculated and compared to the 3 year average reference area production. <br />Production success for the reclaimed prime farmland will be achieved if direct comparison of the <br />3 year average production equals or exceeds 100% of the reference area 3 year average <br />production. This complies with Rule 4.25.5(3)(d) for prime farmland, which takes precedence over <br />Rule 4.15.9 when prime farmland is involved. <br />If the 3 year average of the reclaimed area does not meet or exceed the 3 year average reference <br />area production, the field will be managed in the 4th year using the same procedures described in <br />the management plan of Subsection 5.7.1 for the final three years of bond liability period. <br />Production data will be collected as described above for that year. The new average will be <br />calculated from the crop production values determined for the three cropping years immediately <br />prior to the bond release application. If this 3 year average is equal to or exceeds (within the <br />confidence interval) the same 3 year average of the reference area production, then production <br />success is met. If this 3 year average does not meet the production of the reference area, the 5th <br />year is managed in the same way and the average production from at least three of the five years, <br />including the last three years immediately prior to bond release application is calculated and <br />compared to the reference area. This process would continue until the minimum 3 year average <br />of production data met the 3 year production average on the reference area for the same period. <br />More than 3 years of production data may be used to calculate these averages on both the <br />reference area and the reclaimed area, provided that the 3 years preceding bond release <br />application are always included in the average calculations. Like all other reference area <br />comparisons at the New Horizon 2 Mine, the comparisons for prime farmland will be made within <br />the accepted statistical confidence interval. Statistical production data will be used in the <br />August 2013 (PR -08) 2.06.6 -6 <br />