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EVALUATION OF RECLAMATION SUCCESS FOR <br />PHASE III BOND RELEASE <br />The requirements for Phase III bond release are aten-year minimum liability period since initial <br />seeding, documentation of revegetation success criteria, proof of post mining land use capability, <br />and analysis of effects to surface and groundwater quantity and quality (CDMG; Guidelines <br />Regarding Selected Coal Mine Bond Release Issues, 1995). No alluvial valley floors or prime <br />farmlands were present on the site prior to mining so these criterion do not apply to CCM#1. <br />Achievement of each requisite was documented by completion of the te~ear liability period since <br />initial seeding; surveying the established vegetation for cover, production, and species diversity <br />standards; conducting a grazing program to prove sustainable use of rangeland; and an~_a__lysis of <br />water quality and quantity data collected from the site over the past 14 years. Each condition and <br />its supporting documentation are discussed in the following sections. <br />MANAGEMENT <br />Post mining management of the reclaimed areas at CCM#1 have involved revegetation activities <br />and short-term grazing trials. Revegetation activities involved interseeding of warm-season <br />grasses on the reclaimed areas by drilling the approved seed mixture. As of next summer, the ten <br />year liability period since initial seeding will be met. Five years have elapsed since e <br />supplemental seeding program was enacted ana completed in 1993, fulfilling the required time <br />criteria since last seeding. Kaiser implemented a controlled grazing program (MR-06) during the <br />spring of 1995 and 1996 in an attempt to decrease the abundance ofcool-season grasses and allow <br />warm-season grasses a chance to propagate. This program appears to have been successful in <br />expanding the cover of warm-season grasses. Unfortunately, cattle have occasionally been .~ <br />allowed to illegally access the property and graze the reclaimed areas for periods longer than <br />originally planned, resulting in patches where soil compaction is higher and vegetative cover is <br />lower than the average conditions existing on the majority of the reclaimed area. <br />POST-MINING LAND USE <br />The reclaimed areas were designated in the mining permit exclusively as rangeland, a classification <br />consistent with the historical land use. The seed mixture applied to the reclaimed area featured <br />species which are high in livestock palatability and which enhance the ability of the reclaimed area <br />to sustain aself-perpetuating vegetative community. <br />REVEGETATION SUCCESS <br />Vegetation on the reclaimed and reference areas was randomly sampled on June 18 through June <br />20, 1998. Vegetative cover, species composition, and biomass production were evaluated. <br />Evaluation of the data collected during the June sampling event revealed a deficiency in the cover <br />represented by warm-season grasses/I'he reclaimed area was sampled again on September 16, <br />eaW~53 1999-051 wpd\Febn~ary 26. 1999 4 <br />