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3.2.12 Wildlife <br />Protection of wildlife and related environmental values are presented in paragraph 4.18 of the <br />Permit. No threatened or endangered species have been identified in the permit azea. No critical <br />habitat for any such species is known to exist. Herds of deer and elk are regularly seen grazing <br />on the reclaimed area, especially during the winter. Rodent and small game populations have <br />reestablished on reclaimed areas, and small birds and raptors are numerous on reclaimed and <br />adjacent undisturbed areas. <br />There is no fish habitat or fish within the areas to be mined or reclaimed. The Wilson Reservoir, <br />from which water is drawn for mining activities, is an important fishery of the area. <br />3.3 Description of the Operations and Reclamation Plans <br />3.3.1 Operations Plan <br />Detailed information on the Colowyo Operations Plan is found in Section 2.05.3 of the Permit. <br />Performance standazds associated with mining operations are found in Section 4.00 of the Permit <br />and are summarized in Section B of this document. The Colowyo Mine is a strip mine. As <br />proposed, it consists of three pits (East, West, and Section 16 pits) operating within 7,402 <br />permitted acres (a fourth pit, the Section 11 pit, was opened and closed during the preceding 5- <br />year permit term). <br />Mining operations began in 1976 with the East Pit, amulti-seam coal operation that continues to <br />move in a southerly direction. Eight coal seams (Y, X, A, B, C, D, E, F) are mined from the East <br />Pit, ranging in thickness from two to fifteen feet. The East Pit is neazly 6,000 feet from east to <br />west (width), and 1,000 feet in breadth (highwall to highwall), and 450 feet deep. Due to the <br />number of coal seams, immense size of the pit, and manpower and equipment employed, pit <br />progression is slow, with additional disturbances of approximately 40 to 50 acres per year. The <br />21 Revised October 30, 1997 <br />