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-2- Surface water in the Pryor mine area is drained by two tributaries of Santa Clara Creek; Black Hawk and Pryor Canyon. The general flow direction is east, then northeast into the Arkansas River as is shown on map 3 of this document. Water flows in the ephemeral drainages only in direct response to precipitation in the immediate watershed. Precipitation that falls as snow usually melts within a week. Because of the nature of these ephemeral watersheds, no water quality or quantity measurements has been made. Since all of the drainages in the immediate area are ephemeral with low, infrequent flows, most surface water infiltrates or evaporates before it reaches a perennial stream. No adjudicated downstream water rights were found in the general area. There is one abandoned diversion two miles downstream of the town of Pryor. Most of the adjudicated wells in the general area have been abandoned. However, information from local residents shows that the ground water in the area is high in alkalinity and total dissolved solids making it unfit for drinking or irrigation. Since baseline-premining hydrologic information was not collected by the previous mining operations in the area, it is most difficult to assess the baseline ground water quality and quantity. Indications show that the extensive "pre-law" mining without reclamation has impacted the hydrologic balance. The average estimated rainfall for the area is 15 inches. Most of the rain falls during the months of April through July. The large thunderstorm activity usually occurs in July. Winds are primarily out of the east during the day, while at night westerly winds prevail. Three soil types occur within the area as shown on map 4 of this document. The soil types are Lou viers-Travessilla Rock Outcrop Complex (LT), Manzano Loam, (TM) and the Louviers-Travessilla Complex (LTE). Ninty-five percent of the area to be disturbed by the reclamation operation is in the LTE complex. The other 5% of the area to be disturbed is composed of LT and TM. Two natural plant communities were identified in the area: 1) grassland and 2) pinon-juniper. The gently sloping portions of the area to be reclaimed are characterized by a diversity of grasses, fortis, and iow shrubs (grassland). The steeper slopes have a cover of pinon and juniper interrupted by decidious shrubs (pinon-juniper). No species identified as rare or endangered were observed in the mine area during vegetation data collection. Premining and reference areas were sampled in the summer of 1981. Determination of sample size and similarity were derived using the Office of Surface Mining guidelines. "A Survey of Techniques for Measurement of Herbaceous and Shrub Production, Cover and Density, on Coal Lands in the