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to Mining creates. range~~ f or wool industry By Roy Kero Surface mining le many people means rock piles, open ,acid pits, and barren land- scape alter mining. F'or sev- eral Northwest Colorado live- stock producers it means lush pas lures, fat lambs and healthy calves. Today's sur- face coal mined lands are bet- ter for livestock prod action than ppre-mined native pas- ture. Re-graded and re-rege- ~teled mined lands are replac- ing the old strip mine image with high qunlily range. Peabody Coal Co. operates .the Seneca Mine seven miles southeast of Hayden, Col- orado. The mine is situ sled in a mountain shrub ecotype, predominantly scrub oak and sagebrush. Scattered stands oC aspen exist throughout the mining area. Prior to mining, :this land is lvpical scrub oak `pasture. $efore the initial cut, scrapers remove the top- soil and sto[kpile it separate- ly for future use. As mining progresses and the coal is re- moved, Peabody re-grades the lend to the approximate pre-mining contours. As the operation advances across the mountainside, Peabody ii_1. 1 i:' . live handles the topsail. (Live handled topsoil is picked up on one side of the open pit, ahead of mining, and then re- placed directly on graded spoil. This gives the native seed the beat chance for sur- vival.) Dozer operators recon- lour the slopes to a gently rolling terrain similar to re- mining condition end replace all drainages. Usually, within two years after mining, the land produces enough good forage for controlled grazing. Seneca reclamation person- nel restore 10 acres annually, using primarily native species for re-vegetation. The reclamation pastures contain e higher percentage of palat- able grass and (orbs (plants used by animals for brows- ing)than the surrounding na- tive range. weed control spe- cialists practice environmen- tally sound weed control over the entire mine site for weeds such as Hound's Tongue, Canada Thistle and Knap- weed. Chokecherry, Service- berry, Snowberry end Aspen are replanted on the re- claimed land to provide shade and wildlife hapilal. The re- sult is apasture that is suit- able for both livestock and wildlife. Ueer and elk favor the re- claimed slopes for both win- ter end summer grazing. Limited hunting is allowed on the land surrounding thei mine's permit. Each morning of hunting season dawns with blaze-orange hunters dotting the fence Itne between the mine reclamali~on and the nearby scrub oak. Success rates are high (or the private hunting lessee across the fence. Re-vegetation monitoring studies show an annual pro- duction of 1600 to 3000 oven dry pounds per acre on re- claimed sites. Nelive pas- tures with the same climate end aspact produced 500 to 1200 lbs. per acre. This is strictly dry land agriculture where rainfall seldom ex- ceeds 16 inches per year. The summer of 1988 was dryer than normal in Rautl county and quality grazing was hard to find. During Au- gust and September, tattle and sheep were pastured on the reclamation at Seneca mine. Inside a 302-acre test pasture, 340 head of yearling heifers grazed for 45 days. A range study by an indepen- dent consultant showed 39:0 utilization on the reclaimed pasture, after grazing. Out- side the test plot on re- claimed land, sheep foraged on the lush pasture. Seneca reclamation personnel did not measure the sheep area for utilization, however they showed an increase in the cover index on those areas the following year. During annual monitoring oC the re- claimed land the pastured areas continued to show in- creased cover, diversity, na- tive plant success, end over- all vigor. Sheep operator, Tony hfa- neolissaid, "1Ve can put three times as many sheep on the reclamation as on the natural rsnge here.' The studies done by Peabody Coal Co. end other mining companies prove that he is correct. The research in- dicates reclaimed surface Sleigh Rides With Dinner on the Trail mined land provides superior quality livestock grazing and wildlife habitat when com- pared to surrounding native as tares. It is possible to Rave coal for electricity and return the mined land to pro- duction of valuable forage and wildlife habitat. Coal rnmpanies are selling an ex- ample for other industries in the reclamation of disturbed Isnds. EDITOR'S NOTE: Roy Kara is a (reeleance writer! pholog- Q r