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Section 4 cont. page 2 Calcium Carbonate - A solvable salt formed from the dissolution of cal- cite by C02. CaC03 tends to neutralize acid formation in over- burden materials when present. Optimum CaC03 in soils is gener- ally <15Y, (Merritt 1983). Actual spoil values ranged from 1.7 to 8.9X (x = S.S). Organic Matter - Matter composed of once living organisms and is com- prised of carbon compounds. Generally organic matter content in topsoil of western mining areas ranges from 1-S% (Smith et al 1987). Actual organic matter content on mine spoils ranged from .7 to 7.0% (z = 4.0). Nitrate - Nitrate is that nitrogen in the soil that is available for plant uptake and is seldom more than 1-2% of the total N present (Brady 1974). Merritt (1983) reported >10-20 ppm N03-N as suspect levels. Soltanpour (1985) reported N03-N between 0-10 ppm as low. Actual spoil analysis at Trapper ranged from 1 to 22 ppm (z = 7.1). Phosphorus - Essential macronutrient critical to the growth of plants. Soltanpour (1985) expressed a range of P available in soil as 0-11 mg/kg with 0 being the suspect level (Merritt 1983). Actual analy- sis of spoils ranged from a low of .1 to a high of 2.8 (`x = .9 mg/kg). Potassium - Macronutrient essential for photosynthesis, starch Formation and trans to cat ion of sugars in plants. Can be present in soils in very large quantities with no harmful effect on the crop. Optimum range is <180 mg/kg (Soltanpour 1985). Actual spoil analysis at Trapper ranged from 48 to 192 mg/kg (z = 113.0). Zinc - A naturally occurring trace metal which is an essential consti- tuent of many enzyme systems. Its role in metabolic processes cri- tical to the development, division, and differentiation of cells is well-established. Suspect concentrations in soils according to Merritt (1983) are >30-40 ppm. Soltanpour (1985) reported high values at >1.5 mg/kg. Safoya etal (1987) reported zinc concentra- tions in native soils ranged from 10 to 300 mg/kg. Zinc concentra- tions at Trapper ranged from 1.2 to 9.5 ppm (z = 4.9). Iron - Micronutrient required for the formation of chlorophyll in plant cells. Iron deficiency can be induced by high levels of manganese or high lime content in soils. Soltanpour (1985) reported high levels of Fe up to >5 mg/kg. Merritt (1983) reported the suspect levels of iron were unknown. Trapper spoils ranged from 6.6 to 56.4 ppm (z = 23.9). Manganese - Manganese serves as an activator for enzymes in growth pro- cesses. High manganese concentations may induce iron deficiency. cont.