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The undisturbed lands in the area of the Permit are moderately to well stabilized by a sandsage- <br />prairie sandreed plant association that is used primarily for grazing by cattle in summer months. <br />Using the United State Fish and Wildlife Service's (USFWS) IPaC program on their website, <br />there are three endangered plant species that have the potential to be found within the permit <br />area. These species include Colorado Butterfly Plant, Ute Ladies' Tresses Orchid, and Western <br />Prairie Fringed Orchid. Based on the RN7 application, the permittee is not requesting to disturb <br />additional land within the permit boundary. If the permittee were to change their operation and <br />that change resulted in additional disturbance area, section 2.04.10(5) and 2.05.6(2) of the permit <br />would require updating to address the requirements of the corresponding rules. <br />Wildlife is limited to small rodents, primarily field mice, and birds with an occasional spotting of <br />raptors such as hawks or eagles. Deer and pronghorn are rare as are most higher order <br />vertebrates. There are no known threatened or endangered plants or animal species, nor habitats <br />for these species, in the area. The Threatened and Endangered species discussed in the permit <br />are accurate and up to date. <br />The premining land use classification of the area was rangeland, as shown on the general soil <br />map of Weld County (from the Soil Conservation Service and included in the Permit as page 37). <br />The postmining land use of the permit area is also rangeland. The land cannot support a variety <br />of uses under existing technologies and local resources. All attempts at dryland farming on the <br />area have been abandoned, and the damage caused by those attempts will remain evident for <br />many decades. <br />The premining soil capability class is VIe for irrigated and non -irrigated Valent soils. Osgood <br />soils have capability classes of 1Ve for irrigated crops and VIe for non -irrigated conditions. <br />3.3 Description of the Operation and Reclamation Plans <br />The Operation and Reclamation Plans are described in the PAP, Section 2.05.4, and some of the <br />important elements are described below. <br />3.3.1 Topsoil Stripping and Replacement Depths <br />No stripping of undisturbed topsoil is anticipated during the forthcoming renewal period of the <br />Permit. Only reclamation activities are anticipated. Replacement depths of topsoil are: <br />• Two feet over overburden spoil cover (on ash disposal areas) <br />• Two feet over roads <br />• Fifteen inches over the long-term spoil area <br />• Six inches over facilities and topsand storage areas. <br />3.3.2 Revegetation Techniques <br />7 <br />