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Soils <br />The proposed permit site is located in an "ustic-acidic" soil moisture regime and a "cryic-frigid "soil <br />temperature regime. Moisture is limiting within these soils, but the soil moisture is present during <br />the growing season as a result of the quantity and distribution of precipitation. The majority of soils <br />found within the permit azea are suitable for topsoil salvage in a depth of 0.5 to 3.5 feet. The primary <br />limiting factor to topsoil salvage is occasional slopes in excess of 45%. Loams and clay loams are <br />the soil types most commonly found throughout the permit azea. <br />Land Use <br />The most dominant land use, in terms of area, in and adjacent to the mine area is rangeland. Other <br />adjacent land uses include irrigated and dryland cropland, residential areas, coal mining, electric <br />power generation, oil production, and recreation. <br />The postmining land use of the Yoast Mine permit azea will be primazily livestock grazing with a <br />secondary use as wildlife habitat. <br />Wildlife <br />Wildlife baseline studies were conducted in 1993 and 1994. Wildlife observed included big game, <br />upland game birds, raptors, breeding birds (song birds), and small mammals. Details of the wildlife <br />study are located in Attachment 11-1 of the permit application. <br />Big Game <br />The entire Yoast permit area is classified as winter range for elk, and summer habitat for mule deer. <br />Pronghorn were sighted on two occasions during the two-year baseline monitoring period, in <br />Sections 5 and 9, near the haul road corridor. <br />Upland Game Birds <br />Sharp-tailed grouse, blue grouse, and sage grouse all occur within the permit boundary. Sharp-tailed <br />grouse leks were observed in Sections 5 and 9. Blue grouse were observed in the permit azea <br />throughout spring and summer, with one brood observed. Sage grouse range, production, and brood <br />azeas overlap nearly 150 acres in Section 8 of the proposed permit area. There are roughly 80 acres <br />of sage grouse range and production azeas in Section 16, and the entire haul road corridor is in sage <br />grouse range. There were no active sage grouse leks observed within the proposed permit area. <br />Raptors <br />Three species of raptors were found nesting in the wildlife survey azea in 1993. They were Cooper's <br />hawk, red-tailed hawk, and great horned owl. Seven other raptor species were observed during the <br />1993-breeding season, but no active nests were found. The seven species were turkey vulture, <br />Yoast Mine 15 February 28, 2006 <br />