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2.04.10 -VEGETATION INFORMATION <br />The vegetation of 10.88 acres has been disturbed by prior mining operations. <br />No vegetation remains on this area. Mining activities over the years have replaced <br />the vegetation with coal, shale, and sandstone surfaces in which the surface has <br />been denuded of plants. Only a few trees remain. The two vegetation community <br />types which have been inundated by disturbance are the Pinion-Juniper and <br />Mountain Meadow types (See King I-006). <br />The community most disturbed is the Juniper-Pinion type. The Mountain <br />Meadow community has been disturbed only by the haul road which was <br />constructed prior to 1941. The haul road will not be reclaimed. <br />The available quantitative data applicable to the mine plan area and the <br />permit area are provided by vegetation studies carried out by CDM and the Soil <br />Conservation Service (SCS) in range site descriptions (See Appendix 6(2)). The <br />vegetation types are referenced on Map King I-007. The survey of the area adjacent <br />to the permit area carried out by CDM was conducted from October 16 through <br />October 20, 1978. <br />DESCRIPTION OF VEGETATION TYPES <br />The vegetation of the King I Mine permit area is comprised of two types listed <br />in order of extent: Juniper-Pinion and Mountain Meadow. <br />These vegetation types occur within the mine area at elevations ranging from 7360 <br />feet to 7740 feet. The average annual precipitation is approximately 19 inches for <br />the permit area. The major topographic feature of the. permit area is a broad <br />drainage. <br />JUNIPER-PINION <br />The Juniper-Pinion community occurs on the entire disturbed portion of the <br />permit area with the exception of the haul road area which consists of Mountain <br />Meadow. The dominants of this community are Uta Juniper (Juniperus <br />osteosperma), One-seeded Juniper (Juniperus monosperma), Pinion Pine Pinus <br />edulis ,and Yucca (Yucca kan__abensis). <br />The Juniper-Pinion vegetation type tends to occur on soils of Mapping Unit 42- <br />(Lazear-Rock outcrop complex, 12 to 65 percent slopes) which have primarily a <br />southern exposure. The soils (Lazear and minor inclusions) are shallow, well <br />drained, and medium textured. The soils' surface layers are brown stone loams to <br />light yellowish brown foams to a depth of approximately 9 inches. The underlying <br />material is very pale brown loam that overlies sandstone bedrock between 15 and 20 <br />inches. These soils occur on moderate steep to steep upland mesas. <br />This stand of Juniper-Pinion is more typical of the vegetation described by the <br />Soil Conservation Service in the Rocky Foothills range description. A stand of Pinion <br />and Juniper with a patchy under-story of shrubs and grasses is typical of the sites; <br />however, a change in exposure (dense Mountain Shrub) does produce changes in <br />vegetation. <br />Refer to Appendix 6(2) for Site Description of Pinion- Juniper Woodland <br />prepared by the Soil Conservation Service for details concerning Total Annual <br />Production, Average Ground Cover, Etc. <br />National King Coal, LLC King I Mine <br />Section 2.04.10 <br />Page 1 February, 2007 <br />