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<br /> <br />Portland Limestone Quarries (M-1977-344) Permit Amendment-02 <br />Holcim US Inc, 3500 Highway 120, Florence, CO 81226 Revised pursuant to preliminary adequacy review November 20, 2023 <br />Phone (719) 288-1443 www.holcim.us 150 <br />2.10 Exhibit J: Vegetation Information (Rule 6.4.10) <br />Table 2.10-1 was prepared from the NRCS soil survey database. The vegetation listed is expected and <br />typical vegetation for the soil type. Also provided is the average annual production of vegetation in pounds <br />per acre. <br />The vegetation survey was conducted from August 8-10, 2023, within the various soil type areas found <br />within the Mining Permit and Affected Area Boundary. The survey report is provided in its entirety in <br />Appendix 4.9. Sample locations were chosen to include at least one transect within each soil type located <br />within the Mining Permit and Affected Area Boundary. At each location, a 100-ft transect was measured <br />and marked with pin flags. The overall percentage covered with in the area was visually estimated. The five <br />most dominant plants within one foot of the transect were identified and any other notable species in the <br />vicinity were also recorded. <br />For a majority of the transects, tumbleweed and blue grama were the most abundant plant species <br />observed. Differences in abundance and diversity of plant species appears to be driven by the amount of <br />available water, with the driest areas having more tree cholla, prickly pear and yucca while areas closer to <br />water sources were dominated by sedges, a variety of grasses and invasive saltcedars. The areas closer <br />to drainage areas generally have more trees, shrubs and flowering plants as opposed to areas dominat ed <br />by tumbleweed and cacti. The entire area is subject to cattle grazing with no area except for one transect <br />atop a hill absent of cattle tracks and manure. Plants present are well adapted to the presence of cattle. <br />Based on CODEX report, no rare plants were observed. <br />Fremont Weed Control Officer Brittany Pierce visited the Fremont County parcels on September 28, 2020. <br />The Integrated Weed Management Plan is provided in Appendix 4.10. Noxious weed Species observed <br />during the vegetation field survey that are on the Colorado Department of Agriculture’s Noxious Weeds list <br />(https://ag.colorado.gov/conservation/noxious-weeds/species-id) included saltcedar (List B), Russian olive <br />(List B) and common mullein (List C). List B includes species for which the continued spread in Colorado <br />should be halted. List C includes species for which local agencies have authority to decide management <br />strategies for elimination. There were no List A species observed, which include species that have newly <br />arrived and/or are less common in Colorado but still need to be eradicated. Saltcedar was abundant within <br />and in the vicinity of Transects 10 and 11, which were located along Red Creek. This area is also where <br />Russian olive was observed and was in an area uphill of but in a tributary drainage of Red Creek. <br />Common mullein was only observed in one location, Transect 5, in an area near to the middle of Parcel 3 <br />of the Mining Permit and Affected Area Boundary. <br />