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woody stems per 100 MZ belt transect. This value calculates to 221 woody <br />stems per acre. The reclaimed area achieves the woody plant success criteria <br />for the 2004 sampling event. <br />The 2004 data (year 9) shows that the reclaimed vegetative community at the <br />Raton Creek Mine is successful for cover, production, diversity and woody plant <br />density. <br />2005 Vegetafion Sampling <br />Based on vegetation sampling conducted in 2005, live vegetative cover of all <br />species totaled 35.27%. Subtraction of the percentage cover provided by <br />noxious species (3.93%) and annuals/biennials (5.21%) results in an "allowable" <br />cover percentage of 28.99%. This value exceeds the reclamation success <br />standard for cover of 25%. Live vegetative cover is successful for the Raton <br />Creek Mine for the 2005 sampling event (year 10). <br />The approved productivity standard for the Raton Creek Mine is 300 Ibs/acre. <br />Vegetation production data was collected from three'/< MZ quadrats along 30 <br />transects. The three quadrats were combined for each transect. Perennial <br />grasses and (orbs were included in the productivity determination. Annual, <br />biennial, noxious species, and woody plants were not included in the productivity <br />evaluation. The operator used "reverse null hypothesis' with a minimum of 30 <br />data points to demonstrate reclamation success. The operator did not provide <br />detail of these calculations. The Division worked through the calculations, as <br />described in Rule 4.15.11(2)(c) and found that the "reverse null hypothesis" was <br />rejected, therefore, the productivity value is deemed successful. Results of <br />productivity sampling determined that the reclaimed community produced 29.33 <br />g/'/. M2. This value translates to 1,045.3 Ibs air-dry biomass per acre. The <br />reclamation standard for productivity is 300 Ibs air-dry biomass per acre. The <br />reclaimed area was successful for biomass production in 2005. <br />Species diversity was evaluated using the vegetative cover data. The 2005 <br />cover data recorded 12 perennial grass species, 3 perennial forb species, 1 sub- <br />shrub species, 1 shrub species, and 7 annual or biennial species. One noxious <br />weed species, field bindweed, was encountered with in 10 of the 15 transects <br />during the sampling event. The data show a permanent, relatively diverse, <br />grass-dominated community on the reclaimed mine area. <br />Perennial grasses achieved 63.5% total allowable relative cover. This value <br />exceeds the approved 60% required in the permit. Of the perennial grass cover, <br />no single grass species should comprise greater than 50% of the total allowable <br />cover. Western wheatgrass was the most dominate species, comprising 41.8% <br />of the total allowable cover. The diversity standard regarding grass species has <br />been achieved for the 2005 sampling event. <br />Three perennial forb species contribute 21.35% relative cover. Cover from sub- <br />10 <br />