Laserfiche WebLink
upgrading 6300 feet of existing road for access to the site, constructing an additional 2500 feet of access road, <br />construction of an impoundment (settling ponds), and placement of associated diversion ditches. Expected acreage <br />of disturbance is approximately 4.6 acres for both the access road and the settling pond. The location of the <br />• disturbance is shown on Map 26, Fish Creek Borehole Area Facilities and Access Road. <br />Disturbance to the sagebrush vegetation within the first five years of mining will be restricted to the installation of <br />the rockdust tank. The area of disturbance will be restricted to approximately .5 acres, as shown on Map 24, <br />Surface Facilities. As described under Rule 2.05.3(4)(b), a small exemption area for sedimentation control has <br />been granted for the rockdust tank access/unloading area. <br />Evidence that revegetation goals are attainable is found in previous revegetation efforts in the area by CYCC. <br />Herbage production on its nearby Energy Mine No. 2 bond release area, seeded in May 1974, is indicative of the <br />productivity that can be expected on reclaimed sites within the proposed Foidel Creek Mine permit boundary, since <br />the seed mixture used on the Energy Mine No. 2 reclamation tract contained many of the same herbaceous species <br />proposed in this permit application. Forage production on the bond release site was described by the Soil <br />Conservation Service as 1,500 pounds of air dry forage per acre in unfavorable years, 2,000 pounds during median <br />years and 2,500 pounds in favorable years. After two growing seasons, seeded grasses on the reclaimed tract were <br />producing 244 pounds of air dry forage per acre. The third year after planting (August 1977) was the driest ever <br />recorded in northwestern Colorado and the production of seeded species increased to an average of 705 pounds per <br />acre. In 1978, a median year, production averaged 2,212 pounds per acre. In 1979, a favorable year, forage <br />production climbed to an average of 2,626 pounds of air dry forage per acre. In 1983 and 1984, years of high <br />precipitation, production on the grazing study being conducted on nearby reclaimed land was 4,400 lbs/acre and <br />5,600 lbs/acre, respectively. Based upon the results obtained from the Energy Mine No. 2 reclamation tract, <br />premine productivity should be reinstated on all revegetated areas within 3 to 4 years after seeding. <br />The ability of the proposed seed mixtures to control erosion is directly related to the vegetative cover produced by <br />the planted species. Data collected on the Energy Mine No. 2 bond release site in 1977 indicated that the total <br />•cover averaged 60 percent. Plant cover data compiled in 1979 documented that the total cover on the site averaged <br />86.9 percent. Comparison of ground cover and production data indicates that for the voluntary reclamation done in <br />1974, approximately five years were needed before total ground cover values approached the premine status. <br />On the more recent reclamation performed on the CYCC mine, Area 10, forage production the first growing season <br />was equal to that found on the two and one half year old 1974 Energy Mine No. 2 seeding. Cover is expected to <br />reach premining levels after approximately three years. The plant species proposed for the revegetation seed <br />mixtures are capable of providing the soil stabilization needed to control erosion. From the standpoint of ground <br />cover, the erosion potential of successfully revegetated mined land should not exceed the rate of geological erosion <br />found on adjacent natural areas. <br />Introduced Species <br />In accordance with Rule 4.15.2, Use of Introduced Species, TCC requests approval for the following introduced <br />species within the three perennial seed mixtures. <br />Pastureland Seed Mixture <br />The pastureland mixture consists primarily of introduced plant species, as shown in Table 53, Pastureland Seed <br />Mixture. These species are of the same seasonal variety as were found on the site prior to mining and are the <br />species utilized locally for intensively managed pastureland. If all native species were established on this site, there <br />would be a significant reduction in the productivity and utility of the pastureland; thereby, reducing the potential for <br />meeting the postmine land use of pastureland. <br />.The pastureland species to be used by TCC are those recommended by Tucker and Hervey (1957) and Steward <br />(1973). The introduced species are documented in these records as being of superior utility for forage production. <br />These recommended species are compatible with post -mining land uses and are not noxious. <br />RN08-05 2.05-110 03/12/10 <br />