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RULE 4 PERFORMANCE STANDARDS <br />Woody Plant Density — Post -2008 Revegetation <br />As alluded to under the cover and production success criteria, a new revegetation plan utilizing a <br />"prescribed ecological reclamation approach" (PERA) has been adopted for the Colowyo <br />operation that will facilitate the creation of wildlife habitat conducive vegetation communities <br />(sagebrush steppe), hence Post -2008 revegetation will be subject to a different set of success <br />criteria for bond release. In this regard, the following discussion lays some of the foundation of <br />the underlying principles of this approach to provide a basis for development of the success <br />standards. <br />The post -2008 revegetation will specifically target livestock grazing and sage grouse brood rearing <br />habitat. Both of these, in combination, are the two primary components of the Post -mining <br />Rangeland Land Use. Post -2008 areas designed to target livestock grazing (and incidental / <br />unavoidable grazing by elk) will comprise approximately 60% to 80% of the original and South <br />Taylor reclaimed landscapes. These areas will principally occupy more steeply sloping ground <br />(>10%) where the grassland community is necessary to preclude excessive erosion, especially <br />from snowmelt. Based on evaluation of the post -mining topography, the remaining 20% to 40% <br />(estimated) of the reclaimed landscape will afford flat or gently sloping surfaces (<10%) with <br />reduced exposure to erosion. It is on these less exposed more gentle slopes whereby development <br />of wildlife conducive habitats (sagebrush steppe) can be attempted (only on larger blocks of land <br />- e.g., >5 acres) without overly compromising stability. In this regard, sagebrush communities <br />targeting sage grouse brood -rearing habitat will be attempted in earnest on approximately 20% (or <br />more) of the Post -2008 reclaimed landscape, with the goal of achieving success on at least one- <br />half of this acreage or as otherwise agreed upon between Colowyo and CDRMS. <br />The principal basis of PERA is to rebuild the foundation conditions of target vegetation <br />communities taking into account the appropriate aspects, slopes, and topographic features of the <br />reclaimed landscape. In this manner, targeted communities, as opposed to more simple grasslands <br />will be more strongly encouraged. Potential reclamation techniques to be applied to facilitate the <br />targeting of sagebrush communities include, but are not limited to: 1) taking advantage of site- <br />specific opportunities for development of convex and concave surfaces to encourage snow <br />entrapment; 2) development of small berms along the contour and somewhat perpendicular to <br />prevailing winds, also to encourage snow entrapment; 3) use of native species; 4) severe reduction <br />of grasses in the seed mix; 5) use of only bunch grasses for those taxa planted with sagebrush; 6) <br />sharp increases in the amount of sagebrush seed to be used; 7) extra care to obtain the correct <br />subspecies of sagebrush (vaseyana pauciflora) with a seed source as close as possible to the Axial <br />Basin; 8) extra care to place seed at the ideal time of year (immediately prior to the first major <br />snowfall event; 9) placement of thin layers of topsoil over overburden; 10) possible placement of <br />zero topsoil; 11) possible placement of thin layers of overburden over topsoil; 12) use of <br />specialized seed placement equipment to obtain correct planting depths; 13) use of seedbed <br />preparation equipment and techniques to encourage sagebrush emergence; and 14) interseeding of <br />additional grasses and/or forbs (only where necessary) following a period of 2 — 3 years of growth <br />by shrubs. All of these possible techniques / metrics are designed to diminish the competitive <br />advantage of grasses, at least in the early stages of establishment and growth. The primary <br />"foundation -building" element for this approach is the ability to replace variable topsoil depths <br />and/or quality of soil materials depending on site-specific needs, the discretion of the field <br />construction supervisor, and the capabilities (or lack thereof) of available materials and equipment. <br />Rule 4 Performance Standards 4-69 Revision Date: 11/27/18 <br />Revision No.: TR -129 <br />