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<br />anticipated time frame within which vegetation monitoring for reclamation liability release <br />applications will be initiated. To be considered successful. revegetation must meet or exceed <br />the applicable total plant cover success standard for its range site (soil reconswction material). <br />Success standazds and monitoring methods to be used in measuring and evaluating revegetation <br />success are presented in [his subsection. <br />5.2.1 Revegetation Success Criteria <br />The plant parameter best suited forjudging the success of reclamation effotts within the 3 to 5 <br />year time frames anticipated for conducting revegetation monitoring at the Yankee Gulch <br />Project is Total Plant Ground Cover. In addition to plan[ ground cover, qualitative assessment <br />of intea-habit and inter-habit Diversity may be used to judge the resiliency of the reclaimed plant <br />community and its potential to continue to develop through the desired stages of sera) <br />succession. Diversity also provides a means to assess the reclaimed plant community's ability <br />to provide for and withstand postmining land use demands. Woody Stem Density <br />measurements will be added to assess the success of shrub establishment in final reclamation <br />and may also be used as an indirect predictor of mature shrub cover where development of <br />wildlife habitats is emphasized. A description of the methods used to develop revegetation <br />standazds and the monitoring and analytical methods to be used to evaluate revegetation efforts <br />are described below. <br />To establish Total Plant Ground Cover success standards, the average potential productivity <br />associated with the range site descriptions and their respective soil series found within the <br />proposed disturbance have been transformed into Total Plant Ground Cover standards (Table <br />13) using aproductivity-plant cover nomograph (Figure l4). The data used to develop the <br />nomograph were taken from studies of revege[ated lands associated with oil shale development <br />in the Piceance Creek Basin (Redente 1980 & 1981. Sabey 1980 & 1981). Productivity values <br />expected under normal precipitation patterns for mature vegetation communities that are <br />properly managed in good or better condition were used. Plant cover and productivity values <br />were graphed, and a linear relationship between them was established for the Piceance Creek <br />Basin area. The Total Plant Ground Cover success standards in Table l3 have been adjusted <br />for vegetation age and soil handling impacts. The methodology by which Total Plant Ground <br />Cover values have been derived for each range site is given in more detail as follows. <br />I) The average productivity for the soils within each range site was obtained from the NRCS <br />soil surveys For the county. The productivity for the soils was averaged based on the <br />number of soil series per range site description and their estimated contribution to soil <br />reconswction volumes. Please note that. after the extent of actual surface disturbance is <br />determined, it may be prudent to adjust and recalculate a range site's Total Plant Ground <br />Cover standard based on actual salvaged soil volumes and their inherent productivity <br />capabilities. Anv adjustments to success standards will be considered in consultation with <br />and as approved by the BLM. <br />?) A nomograph was plotted using productivity and associated total plant cover data taken <br />during previous vegetation surveys performed in the Piceance Creek Basin (Figure 14). <br />Entering the nomograph on the left-hand side with the productivity value for the soil. a <br />percentage of total cover value may be obtained for a given range site. This value <br />represents the estimated average cover for a mature. well-managed vegetation community <br />For the given range site or soil series. <br />3) To arrive at the Total Plant Ground Cover success standards given in Table l3, the total <br />cover value for the mature vegetation community from the nomograph was adjusted for the <br />.amencan Soda L.L.P. x-13 <br />.tiail Conservation. Fioson and Scdtmcnt <br />Control. n:clanutton and Ncve¢eanon Plan <br />UnoDer _'8. 199tl <br />Hcvtscd Apn19. 1949 <br />