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1 <br />EXHIBIT J <br />' S`' VEGETATION INFORMATION <br />' Vegetation Baseline <br />The dominant vegetation in the area of mining operations <br />includes the Pinyon pine-Juniper type of forest cover at <br />' elevations between 7000 and 8000 feet (U.S. Soil Conservation <br />Service, 1975). Observations of this vegetative type in <br />May 1977 revealed that Pinyon pine and Juniper trees ranged <br />' from 5 to 15 feet in height and constituted a ground cover <br />of 30 to 658. Juniper was dominant in dry and low elevation <br />areas. Pinyon pine was found to be more plentiful at the <br />upper elevations. The understory,which constituted less <br />than 158 of the remaining vegetation cover, was dominated <br />by two grasses, Blue grama and Indian ricegrass, and two shrub <br />:•pecies, Rabbitbrush and Wax currant. The latter two shrubby <br />species ranged to 4 feet and 6 feet in height, respectively. <br />Relatively low rainfall and shallow, well-drained soil have <br />resulted in a land surface which is from 30 to 658 bare of <br />vegetation. <br />The mining area lies on rough broken land and gravelly <br />' alluvial land (Soil Conservation Service, 1975). Vegetation <br />on the rough broken land is dominated by the Pinyon pine - <br />' Juniper vegetation type. According to the U.S. Soil Conser- <br />' ration Service, the potential productivity of the Pinyon pine- <br />J-1 <br /> <br />