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§2.04 APPLICATION FOR PERMIT FOR SURFACE OR UNDERGROUND MINING ACTIVITIES -- <br />MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR INFORMATION ON ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES. <br />2.09.11 Fish and Wildlife Resources Information. (Cont'd.) <br />(1) (Cont'd.) <br />Uniqueness <br />At present there is no evidence of any uniqueness of the North Fork <br />in terms of aquatic habitats, especially high productivity of <br />desirable aquatic life, or aquatic species or communities in the <br />Paonia Study area. <br />Aquatic habitats of the North Fork in the vicinity of the Highway <br />187 bridge crossing to Paonia have been highly disturbed by man and <br />do not present any unique habitat for species, communities, or <br />productivity. The drainage of Stevens Gulch to the North Fork is <br />dry most of the time except in the very lower 150 yards (which is <br />dry part of the year) and presents no unique habitat. Because Main <br />Roatcap Creek to the North Fork is dry for the most part, due to <br />Flows diverted upstream for irrigation, it also presents no unique <br />habitat. Terror Creek is a perennial stream and flows year round <br />with contributions from reservoirs upstream. Though the flows are <br />perennial, the steep topography of the streambed causes a <br />constriction of flows and creates a narrow area of riparian <br />vegetation, thus presenting no unique habitat. <br />• <br />The shallow pond, riparian habitat located along the river's edge <br />can be considered of high value for wildlife and is not common in <br />the vicinity of Paonia although similar habitat occurs in several <br />locations along the river's length. <br />Threatened and Endangered Species <br />Based on available macrobenthic and fish sampling and conversations <br />with biologists of the area, productivity of fish life or benthic <br />food supply does not appear to be especially high, nor is there any <br />evidence of unique assemblages of aquatic organisms or species that <br />qualify as threatened or endangered either on a national or <br />statewide basis. <br />The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has, however, identified three <br />threatened or endangered fish species which do not inhabit the North <br />Fork of the Gunnison River, but may be affected by a depletion of <br />flows caused by the operator's operations in the Upper Colorado <br />River Basin. See Section 2.05.6(2)(a)(iii)(A) for further <br />information. <br /> <br />Added 12/26/89 <br />Revised 12/26/84 <br />Revised 10/01/87 <br />M 2-lb S Revised 9/21/01 <br />/~ PPRovc.D <br />G /~-9/b ~( 8 3 <br />