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• Length Slope Factor <br />This parameter must be chosen very carefully to represent the pre-mining and <br />post-mining conditions. Since the area was restored to approximate original <br />contour, the same LS factor is used in both cases. No undisturbed areas above <br />the disturbed areas are considered. <br />The 6.24 acre area at the N#1 Mine is shown on the attached map. This area <br />is best represented as a slope of 30% grade and a length of 300 feet. <br />Using the enclosed Table 1 from the RUSLE reference, it is seen that the LS <br />factor for these conditions is 8.68. This is used for both the pre and post- <br />mining conditions. <br />The slopes at all sites are relatively straight, therefore no adjustments to the LS <br />factor due to concave or convex slopes are needed. <br />C Management Factor <br />For rangeland and pastureland, the "C" factor is directly related to the percent <br />of the ground that is covered by vegetation and the type of vegetation that is <br />present. The type of vegetation is important because herbaceous cover, <br />grasses, will protect the soil better than trees or shrubs at the same vegetative <br />cover levels. The enclosed Table 2, reproduced from the EPA (1977), shows <br />how the "C" factor is related to the vegetation. <br />According to all of the baseline data for vegetation in Chapter K of the permit, <br />almost all of the pre-mining communities were mountain shrub or big sagebrush. <br /> <br />The mountain shrub community consists of predominately oak and serviceberry <br />with very little grass cover. The big sagebrush community consists of big <br />sagebrush, rabbitbrush and minor grasses. Total graminoids comprised less <br />than 12% cover. Total vegetative cover is 65.1%. Canopy cover for this <br />community is approximately 55%. From the enclosed Table 2, using "w" for the <br />type of cover and using 10°k cover that contacts the surface, the C factor for <br />this community at shrub height of 0.5 meters is 0.26. With 2.0 meter shrubs, C <br />= 0.34. These are averaged to get c = 0.30. <br />Pre-Mining Average "C" _ .30 <br /> <br />