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Public Outreach In order to disperse information relative to the outslope revegetation efforts, a paper was delivered in the spring of 2000 at the Billings Reclamation Symposium. The paper detailed the revegetation and sediment control methodologies undertaken in 1999. The Division formed a partnership with the Roaring Fork Conservancy, a local community interest group in the spring of 2000. The purpose of the partnership was to establish a role for community involvement in water quality monitoring within Coal Basin. A monitoring station was established in the early summer of 2000 on Coal Creek below the Coal Basin Mine. This site was maintained by community volunteers. The data collected from this site was used in conjunction with the data collected by the Division as part of the Non- Point Source Project. Monitoring The outslopes were observed and data recorded following the revegetation effort in 1999. The data set was used to help assess the stability of the slopes as a function of gully stability and vegetative cover. Vegetative cover at the mine bench outslopes did not develop as desired during the 2000 growing season. The lack of cover establishment is thought to be a result of the anomalously dry climatic conditions experienced in the azea during the fall of 1999 and the spring and summer of 2000. The revegetation project undertaken during the 1999 construction season was timed to coincide with typical annual snowfall patterns observed to occur in Coal Basin. Generally, light snows begin to fall by mid-September of each year. Three to six inch snow falls usually occur on a seven to ten day interval from mid-September through eazly-October, with the latter snows sticking For the winter. Dryer and colder conditions usually prevail in mid-October, with snow accumulation becoming significant in November. Revegetation projects are timed so that seed, mulch and fertilizer are on the ground by no eazlier than mid-September, and being completed by early-October. The Mine Bench Outslope Revegetation Project was completed during this timeframe. Climatic conditions during the fall of 1999 were very different than what was observed in previous yeazs. Substantial moisture accumulation ended in eazly September, and the fall of 1999 was extremely dry, with no appreciable snow accumulation until well into December. The lack of snow accumulation was detrimental to germination potential and overall revegetation success. This is because we depend upon the eazly fall snow accumulation to help secure the protective straw mulch to the outslopes. The mulch cover is critical as it provides shade and protection to the underlying seed. Without the snow cover, the mulch was susceptible to removal by wind. In fact, the bulk of the mulch was observed to be removed from some of the slopes during the fall. However, some mulch accumulation was observed to occur on the constructed outslope benches. The lack of fall moisture and the mulch removal severely impacted overall germination rates. 6