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A portion of the bench and outslopes along the reclaimed road will not be <br />topsoiled. These areas consist of fill which was used for grading the <br />~' road and original ground. The applicant has supplied a few analyses from <br />grab samples of this material. Although these analyses indicated that <br />the material is suitable for reclamation, Colorado MI.RD has conditioned <br />the permit by requiring additional soil analysis to improve reclamation <br />potential. <br />The information provided. with respect to the fill is too limited in depth <br />and extent of sampling. The applicant will test the soil and add <br />phosphorous when replacing the topsoil. Other appropriate fertilizers <br />will be added one year after seeding and planting. The applicant's <br />justification for delaying fertilization is that fertilization prior to <br />seeding will encourage undesirable weedy species to invade the reclaimed <br />site. <br />The McClane Canyon site is located in an area that normally receives less <br />than 10 inches of rainfall annually. Revegetation will be difficult. <br />For this reason the surface manipulation of the soils is needed prior to <br />seeding. Contour furrowing will protect the soil from erosion as well as <br />enhance water holding capacity and availability to vegetation. Salt <br />Creek Mining Company plans to rough the surface in areas to be broadcast <br />seeded but intends to grade other areas. <br />Vegetation. <br />' ;~ Salt Creek Mining Company's Munger Canyon project contains the same <br />` __ vegetation types and is_located_adjacent to the McClane Canyon mine. <br />Abiotic factors affecting the occurrence of vegetation communities are <br />similar. For this reason, data from the two areas for productivity of <br />the above communities were compared to determine if the communities of <br />McClane Canyon and Munger Canyon were from differing populations. It was <br />verified statistically that the McClane Canyon and Munger Canyon <br />respective communities were not significantly different in terms of <br />vegetative productivity within the bounds of each vegetative community. <br />Data from the McClane Canyon and Munger Canyon areas were combined <br />(within communities and between sites), and it was determined that the <br />combined data met confidence level requirements. <br />Due to the small area of disturbance at the McClane Canyon mine, the <br />Colorado MLRD has determined that premine productivity and premine cover <br />data may be applied as reclamation success criteria. <br />The applicant has proposed a variance from baseline woody plant densities <br />for the greasewood shrubland and the shadscale shrubland, but has not <br />J ~ ,rry~ provided justification for the proposed stocking level. <br />.~~.npJ _of ~ 1 <br />~ ~ I1~8~ <br />~¢~~~~ The permittee has measured species diversity in terms of species richness <br />and species equitability, but has not proposed a means to evaluate <br />,i revegetation success in terms of species diversity. Colorado MLRD has <br />~.. ..~J'; specified the required species diversity in a condition. The applicant <br />has accepted this condition. <br />-6- <br />