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Kent Gorham <br />June 12, 2006 <br />Page 3 <br />Vegetative Ground Cover <br />Sampling for vegetative ground cover will be conducted in July of 2006. Vegetative ground cover <br />will be evaluated on all sampling units using 25-meterpoint intercept transects. Two sampling points <br />(one meter apart) on both sides of the transect will be sampled atone meter intervals, resulting in 50 <br />sample points per transect. Each corresponding sample point is determined by projection of the <br />ocular sight (Cover-Point Optical Point Projection Device, Model 2) vertically downward and <br />physically recording all manner of "first hits". The "first hits" will be recorded as rock, bare ground, <br />litter, or live vegetation. Live vegetation will be further classified to genus and species. Vegetative <br />ground cover on the reclaimed aeeas will be considered successful if the sample mean is at least 90 <br />percent of the cover sample mean measured on the corresponding reference areas. <br />The live vegetative "first hits" will be used to calculate total vegetative cover for each transect <br />according to Equation 1. <br />(1) <br />Percent Total Vegetative Cover = Number ofHits on Vegetation <br />Total Number of Points <br />Fifteen transects will initially be evaluated on each sampling area for success comparison and <br />statistical evaluation. The Snedecor-Cochran sample adequacy formula (Equation 2) will be used to <br />determine that an adequate number of transects are sampled. <br />(2) <br />t2 sZ <br />Nmin (cl X )2 <br />Where: <br />N = required number of transects or quadrats <br />d = desired level of precision (0.1 the level ofprecision for estimate ofthe <br />Mean to be within 10% of the actual mean) <br />x = sample mean <br />s2 = sample variance <br />t = the a = .10 t-table value for a single tailed t-test with n-1 degrees of <br />freedom <br />