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Keenesburg Mine 2018 Vegetation Monitoring Report <br />7.3 Species Composition <br />The species composition standard for Phase II bond release is that a sufficient number of species <br />be present to meet the future Phase III bond release cover requirements. All four the reclamation <br />areas monitored for Phase II release exhibited at least three perennial warm season and one <br />perennial cool season grass in the data. The Phase III bond release standard is that these four <br />species each contribute a minimum of 3% and a maximum of 40% to the relative non -noxious <br />vegetation cover. None of the reclamation areas monitored for Phase III release met this <br />standard. <br />Reclamation Areas 29 and 31 had the required component of warm season species, but no cool <br />season species that contributed that much to the overall cover. Reclamation Area 30 had only <br />three warm season species in that range because sand dropseed provided 41.4% of the relative <br />cover and thus could not be counted. All three areas did have a component of cool season <br />perennial grasses, but even with all cool season perennial species added together the relative <br />cover did not meet 3%. A cool season native annual grass, sixweeks fescue, did provide adequate <br />cover to meet the standard if it could be counted. <br />In 2016, Reclamation Area 29 met the species composition standard and Reclamation Areas 30 <br />and 31 had a combined relative cover of cool season perennial grasses greater than 4% even <br />though no single species met the standard. The decline in cool season perennial grass cover was <br />likely due to the dry spring. The cool season grasses that were observed at the time of monitoring <br />in August were desiccated and many did not exhibit any green biomass (Figure 11). <br />8 SUMMARY <br />Quantitati a monitoring of Reclamation Areas 31, 32, and 33 revealed that these areas met the <br />revegetation success standards for Phase II bond release (Table 25). Reclamation Areas 25, 30, <br />and 34 did not meet the criteria for Phase II release. Reclamation Areas 29, 30, and 31 were <br />monitored under the Phase III bond release guidelines and none of them met the required criteria. <br />Reclamation Areas 29 and 31 met the vegetation cover standard but not the herbaceous <br />production standard, while Reclamation Area 30 met the herbaceous production standard but not <br />the vegetation cover standard. None of these areas met the species composition standard. <br />Habitat Management, Inc. 28 October 2018 <br />