Laserfiche WebLink
Soils of the West Elk Mine were mapped during the summer of 1976. Throughout the soil <br /> survey, "mapping units" were used to characterize the soils in the mine area. These survey <br /> mapping units are combinations of Soil Families or selected Great Groups and Subgroups <br /> according to the system of soil taxonomy used in the National Soil Survey Program of the <br /> United States. During the summer of 1993 the soils of the Jumbo Mountain Tract were <br /> mapped utilizing criteria and descriptions contained in the Soil Conservation Service soil <br /> survey of the Paonia, Colorado area (USDA-SCS, 1993). The maps have been updated for <br /> subsequent permit revisions. Any discrepancies in soil mapping units can be attributed to the <br /> change in soil classification during the time between the mapping efforts. The survey is a <br /> general reconnaissance and the mapping units are broad in concept. <br /> Vegetation - Rule 2.04.10 <br /> Specific information regarding collection and analysis of vegetation can be found in Section <br /> 2.04.10 in the permit document. The distribution of the land and vegetation types can be <br /> found on Map 42 and 43. <br /> The West Elk Mine collected baseline vegetation information in 1975, 1976, and 1993 by <br /> studying a designated environmental study area, which extends approximately one mile outside <br /> the permit boundary and mine plan boundary. This area is approximately 25,560 acres in size. <br /> This survey identified ten vegetation types and six land types. They are as follows: 1) Aspen, <br /> comprising 19 percent of the study area; 2) Douglas fir, comprising four percent of the study <br /> area; 3) Wet Mixed Shrub, comprising 50 percent of the study area, dominated by serviceberry <br /> and Gambel oak; 4) Dry Mixed Shrub, comprising 10 percent of the study area, distinguished <br /> by serviceberry, Gambel oak, Mountain mahogany, Cliff findlerbush, and bitterbrush; 5) Oak, <br /> comprising one percent of the study area, including Gambel oak and the larger size oak <br /> individuals (15-20 ft in height), which are limited to the bottom of permanent stream <br /> drainages; 6) Juniper, comprising five percent of the study area, which includes <br /> Rocky Mountain Juniper and Utah Juniper; 7) Riparian, comprising two percent of the study <br /> area, 8) Sagebrush, comprising six percent of the study area; 9) Wet Meadow, comprising one <br /> percent of the study area, distinguished by open boggy areas along major drainages above <br /> 7,000 feet and openings in brushy or forested areas at elevations above 8,000 feet, occupied by <br /> herbaceous species such as sedges and false hellebore; 10) Dry Meadow, comprising one <br /> percent of the study area which is dominated by various shrub species such as snowberry, <br /> Douglas rabbitbrush, and Gambel oak; 11) Barren Terrain, comprising less than one percent of <br /> the study area which was identified by no apparent vegetation cover; 12) Chained Area, <br /> comprising less than one percent of the study area, is so named because the area has been <br /> mechanically treated by chaining to remove tall shrub species and has been trenched along the <br /> contours and planted to ponderosa pine; 13) Reservoir, comprising less than one percent of the <br /> study area and includes Beaver Reservoir and Minnesota Reservoir; 14) Residential, <br /> comprising less than one percent of the study area and includes the town of Somerset; 15) <br /> Industrial, comprising less than one percent of the study area which includes the Somerset <br /> Mine, the Bear No. 3 Mine, railroad sidings, and mine vents; and 16) Agricultural, comprising <br /> less than one percent of the study area. <br /> 16 <br />