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-6- Description of the Environment The Orchard Valley Mine is situated in the northeastern portion of Delta County, Colorado and is located approximately 4 miles north of Paonia, Colorado along the Steven's Gulch Road. The western extremities of the Orchard Valley Mine permit area are bounded closely by the East and West Roatcap Creek drainage divide, and the northern boundary is located at approximately the Morrell Cow Camp area. The location of the entire Orchard Valley Permit area can be found on Figure 1. The coal loadout facilities are located approximately 1 mile northeast of Paonia along State Highway No. 133. The general area in which the mine is located is characterized by a semi-arid environment of steeply sloping mountains. Both the mine portal facilities and the loadout were constructed in the 1970's prior to the passage of SMCRA or the Colorado Surface Coal Mining and Reclamation Act. Soils within those portions of the permit area which have been or will be disturbed by surface operations and facilities are generally deep, well-drained, and vary widely in slope. Permeability values are low, thus encouraging surface runoff. As a result, the water erosion hazard is often high. Generally, available water capacities are high, reflecting the potential of these soils to store water for plant use. Topsoil layers are shallow, ranging from about 2 inches to 8 inches, surface textures are generally loams or clay loams with subsoils ranging from clay loams to clays. Basaltic cobbles and stones are common throughout the profiles of most soils. The general area is somewhat susceptible to landslides, especially in the steeper topography of the mine bench area, and as such, the continual sloughing of colluvial material in this area impairs horizon development. The general area contains important winter range for both elk and deer, and over 10,000 hunter days per year are spent in this area. Golden eagles have been noted near the mine site, but no threatened or endangered wildlife species have been observed. The North Fork of the Gunnison River contains 12 species of fish, including 3 species of game fish (rainbow trout, brown trout, and northern pike). However, due to the poor production of benthic organisms and poor habitat conditions, the North Fork is not stocked frequently. The permit area can be divided into two general land use categories. The loadout is within an area historically used as cropland, or more specifically, orchard land. The permit area north of Highway 133 is used as short term grazing and wildlife habitat. Grazing tends to be short term due to the low productivity of the pinyon-juniper andd oakbrush vegetation. Some recreational use, hunting and hiking in particular, occurs wihtin the mine area. There are also a few summer homes, cow camps, and even a restaurant that has been used intermittently.