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Environmental Assessment Bowie Resources, LLC. <br />August 2005 Spruce Stomp Federal Coal Explomtion License (150- 2005 -43) <br />3.3.4.1 Affected Environment <br />The SSCEL is located in the extreme western section of the southern Rocky Mountain <br />physiographic province (Fenneman 1931). Elevation ranges from 6,640 feet MSL to 8,180 feet <br />MSL. The terrain consists of broad ridges and rounded peaks that are not visually dominant but <br />surrounded by more landforms of similar type. The landscape character consists of rolling <br />ridgelines flanked with deep canyons and steep slopes. Canyon bottoms are lined with riparian <br />vegetation, such as cottonwood and Douglas fir trees. The upper slopes consist largely of oak <br />brush with groves of aspen trees that are lightly scattered along some of the upland slopes. The <br />visual absorption capability (VAC) ranges from moderate on the uplands to moderate to high in <br />the canyon bottoms. <br />A portion of the landscape has been modified with unimproved access roads that wind through <br />the SSCEL. <br />The GMUG Visual Quality Objective (VQO) for the areas affected by the Proposed Action is <br />"Modification". This VQO allows for facilities and activities on GMUG lands to dominate the <br />natural landscape character. However, these facilities and activities must blend with surrounding <br />landscape as much as possible. <br />3.3.4.2 Environmental Consequences <br />Proposed Action <br />The impacts to visual quality would include temporary landscape modifications resulting in <br />visual contrast in form, line, color, and texture of landforms, and vegetation patterns. For the <br />Proposed Action, the visual disturbance from each of the exploration holes would cause color <br />and texture modifications due to vegetation clearing, surface soil disturbance, and subsurface <br />drilling material brought to the surface. During the drilling, structure contrast from drilling rigs <br />would draw some visual attention from viewers passing near the drill sites. This impact to visual <br />quality would be short-term. Similarly, construction of temporary roads would result in short- <br />term line, color, and texture visual contrast. Improvements to existing roads would cause <br />additive impacts to existing visual contrast of line, color, and texture. Lighting at the drill sites at <br />night would have no effect on local residents, due to the lack of proximity of the sites to <br />residential areas and to adequate screening from vegetation and landscape forms. <br />Visual quality impacts from the water pump sites would result in a small -scale form contrast for <br />the pump. The water pumps would be located in high VAC areas along riparian zones and <br />would not draw visual attention. <br />Collectively, these visual quality impacts described herein are allowable within the <br />"Modification" VQO. <br />No Action Alternative <br />For the No Action alternative, there would be no impacts to visual quality within the SSCEL <br />beyond what is now occurring. <br />3 -38 <br />