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<br />Exhibit H - Wildlife Information <br />The operation is expected to have minimal impact on wildlife <br />during the course of operations. The existing pit has been <br />worked for a number of years therefore much of the disturbance <br />which could occur probably already has happened. Mining has <br />the effect of immediately displacing animals inhabiting the <br />area to be disturbed and also the animals using the area for <br />foraging and hunting. With the areas around the gravel pit <br />available for the animals, little impact should occur to the <br />existing wildlife. <br />The elements of potential wildlife habitat are rated on <br />a basis according to the amount of vegetation that is available <br />to wildlife as food and cover. The kind and abundance of <br />wildlife that populate an area depend largely on the amount <br />and distribution of food, cover and water. If any one of these <br />elements is missing, inadequate, or inaccessible, wildlife <br />becomes scarce or does not inhabit the area. The area adjacent <br />to the existing pit is and has been used for cattle grazing <br />but does produce food, cover and some nesting areas that are <br />primarily attractive to rodents and ground-dwelling birds, and <br />the predators that feed on these animals. Nearby wooded areas <br />provide an abundance of cover and nesting areas. <br />The species likely to transplant to or inhabit the site <br />or immediately adjacent areas are given below. There are no <br />threatened or endangered species known to use the area for <br />breeding habitat to be affected by the operation. <br />BIRDS <br />Mourning Dove <br />Meadowlark <br />Owls <br />Various Songbirds <br />Hawks <br />LARGER MAMMALS <br />Mule Deer <br />Coyote <br />Cottontail Rabbits <br />Raccoon <br />Skunk <br />Squirrels <br />REPTILES <br />Rattlesnake <br />RODENTS <br />Prairie Dog <br />White-footed Mouse <br />As mentioned above in the reclamation plan, the owner plans <br />on revegetating with seedling trees and shrubs to produce a <br />vegetative cover more conducive to wildlife than with only <br />reclamation grasses. The owner feels that the seedling trees <br />will provide a more logical approach to replacement of large <br />trees lost in the mining process than planting large caliper <br />trees that will require maintenance for some years. <br />