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• Wet mixed shrub is the most prevalent vegetation type in the permit area and is <br />characterized by dense shrub stands dominated by serviceberry (Ame/anchier a/nifolial and <br />gambel oak IQuercus gambe/ir). The type dominates the north and east facing slopes <br />south of the North Fork of the Gunnison River. Steep north facing slopes at higher <br />elevations support stands of douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesir). Riparian vegetation, <br />including cottonwood trees (Popu/us angustifo/ial, shrubs such as willow (Sa/ix spp.l and <br />hawthorne (Crataegus spp.) and numerous herbaceous species, occurs along undisturbed <br />sections of the North Fork of the Gunnison flood plain. Small areas of Aspen, <br />Juniper-Pinon and Dry meadow vegetation types exist at higher elevations on the permit <br />area. <br />The Wet mixed shrub and riparian vegetation types have been affected by mining at the <br />Bear No. 1 , 2, and 3 surface facilities areas. Mining impacts to the vegetation types at the <br />Bear No. 1 and 3 Mines began in 1934. The area at the Bear No. 2 Mine was disturbed in <br />1980, Revegetation activities have taken place at the Bear No. 1 and 2 disturbed areas. <br />Revegetation of the Bear No. 3 surface disturbance will commence when active mining <br />ceases. <br />Fish and Wildlife -Rules 2.04.11, 2.05.6(21, and 4.18 <br />Fish and wildlife resource information is located in Section 2.04.1 of the Bear No. 1 and 2 <br />permit application and Sections 2.04.11 and 4.18 and Exhibit 10 of the Bear No. 3 permit <br />revision application. Information describing the mitigation of coal mining impacts on fish <br />• and wildlife is presented in Section 2.05.6 of the Bear No. 1 and 2 permit application and <br />Sections 2.05.4 and 2.05.6 of the Bear No. 3 permit revision application. <br />Numerous wildlife species inhabit the general area. Mule deer and elk which utilize the <br />mountain shrub habitat in, and adjacent to, the permit area throughout the year are the <br />most prominent big game species. The northern bald eagle is a winter resident along the <br />North Fork of the Gunnison River and is the only rare or endangered wildlife species in the <br />area. The North Fork of the Gunnison River from Paonia Reservoir downstream five miles <br />to Somerset is stocked by the Division of Wildlife with rainbow trout and supports an <br />estimated 2,000 angler days per year. Below Somerset to the confluence with the <br />Gunnison River, the fishery is less important, with rough fish such as suckers, scuplins and <br />northern pike making up a larger proportion of the fish population. <br />Descrintion of Operations and Reclamation Plan <br />A description of mining operations at the Bear No. 1 and 2 Mines is located in Sections <br />2.05.2 and 2.05.3 of the Bear No. 1 and 2 permit application. Mining operations at the <br />Bear No. 3 Mine are described in Sections 2.05.2, 2.05.3 and 4.02 to 4.11, and Maps 9 <br />and 10-of the Bear No. 3 permit revision application, and in Exhibits 14 and 19 of the Bear <br />midterm response. <br />The Bear Coal Company currently extracts coal from the Bear No. 3 Mine. No coal has <br />been extracted from the Bear No. 1 and 2 Mines since June of 1982. The Bear No. 3 <br />Mine is an underground room and pillar operation, currently producing an average of <br />• 450,000 to 500,000 tons of coat per year from the B-Seam. The coal mined by Bear Coal <br />Company is transported from the underground workings via conveyors to the Bear No. 3 <br />10 <br />