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• It is expected that the ecological reserve will <br />serve to demonstrate vegetation potential in the <br />vicinity of the several mines in operation in the area, <br />and lead to the establishment of suitable guidelines <br />for reclamation. <br />Since the ecological reserve is to be located <br />up-wind from the proposed mine disturbance area, it will <br />serve still another purpose. It is anticipated that <br />there will be considerable export of seed from the <br />sanctuary onto the disturbed area, thereby expediting <br />plant succession in the reclamation phase. <br />~. Monitoring Program <br />.9 comprehensive mitigation program should include <br />monitoring, not only to detect impacts as they result, <br />but also to determine the efficacy of the wildlife <br />mitigation plan. <br />a. Sampling Scheme <br />• A 25-ha grid (SOOm x SOOm) will be established <br />within the ecological study area for the purposes of <br />recording biological information and thereby measuring <br />trends in the plant community and trends in wildlife <br />abundance. The following information will be collected: <br />1) Plant cover, composition and productivity - <br />Standard methods (see vegetation, AppP~dix F) will be employed. <br />23 Breeding birds - the grid will constitute a <br />reference area for spot-mapping (Williams 1936). <br />3) Seasonal bird use - grid lines will serve <br />as transect lines for estimating densities of <br />birds in other seasons (Emlen 1977). <br />4) Sage grouse - stakes at points of intersection <br />on the grid will designate the centers of 0.01 ha <br />plots, within which sage grouse droppings will be <br />counted and removed quarterly, to provide an index <br />of sage grouse use. <br />• <br />-16- <br />