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<br />CRAPTERTHREE <br />Affected Emironmem , <br />Class II is intended to retain the existing chazacter of the landscape. The level of change to <br />the characteristic landscape should be low. Management activities may be seven, but should <br />not attract the attention of the casual observer. Any changes must repeat the basic elements <br />of form, line, color, and texture found in the predominant natural features of'the characteristic <br />landscape. <br />Class III is intended to partially retain the existing chazacter of the landscape The level of <br />change to the characteristic landscape should be moderate. Management activities may <br />attract attention but should not dominate the view of the casual observer. Changes should <br />repeat the basic elements found in the predominant natural features of the chavacteristic <br />landscape. <br />• Class IV is intended to provide for management activities which require major modification <br />of the existing chazacter of the landscape. The level of change to the characteristic landscape <br />can be high. These management activities may dominate the view and be the major focus of <br />viewer attention. However, every attempt should be made to minimize the impact of these <br />activities through careful location, minimal disturbance, and repeating the ba:>ic elements. <br />The Project Area is located in the Piceance Creek Basin, at the eastern edge of the Colorado <br />Plateau Physiographic Province. Topography at the northern end of the Project Ruea is generally <br />dissected by shallow valleys with level to rolling ridges. The roughness and steepness of the <br />terrain increases as the pipeline heads south to its terminus at the Pazachute Site. Vegetation is <br />dominated by pinyon juniper, sagebrush, grasses, and barren land such as outcrops, cliffs, rock, <br />and talus slopes. Cultivated hayfields aze located along Piceance and Parachute creeks. The <br />landscape appeazs to be mostly rural and undeveloped; however there are several existing <br />pipelines with the associated metering and compressor facilities scattered across the landscape, <br />and the southern end of the Project Area has been highly modified in some areas by industrial <br />facilities associated with oil shale development. <br />The BLM has evaluated the scenic values of BLM lands within the White River Itesource Area, <br />and land in the Project Area were rated as VRM Class III. Private lands aze not included in the <br />BLM visual resource designation. Scenic azeas on private lands include the Piceance and <br />Parachute creek valleys, Barnes Ridge and Davis Point. <br />The BLM designated the Ryan Gulch ACEC to protect federally threatened plant species. A <br />portion of the ACEC overlaps the Piceance Site in Section 29 T1 S R97W. In the Visual <br />Resource Management section of the White River RMP, the BLM listed visually sensitive or <br />important areas and assigned them a VRM class. The Ryan Gulch ACEC was listed as a VRM <br />Class II area. <br />3.13.2 Piceance Site <br />The Piceance Site is located in an azea of level to rolling ridgetops with intervening ravines and <br />small valleys. Pinyon-juniper and sagebrush aze the dominant vegetation types opt the more level <br />ridgetops, giving the groundcover a grey-green to dazk green color. Many of the cast facing <br />slopes are covered in sagebrush, giving the slope agrey-geen color. Vegetation on south facing <br />slopes is very spazse, and the tan to brown color of the exposed rock and soil is the predominate <br />color an observer would see when viewing these slopes. <br />3-52 Visual Resources <br />