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Diversity Standard: <br />The reclaimed area will contain at least three cool season perennial grass <br />species, each contributing a minimum of 3% relative cover. All perennial forb <br />species combined shall contribute at least ~% relative cover. In addition, no <br />single species shall contribute greater than 50% relative cover. <br />Diversity Sampled: <br />The standazd was met. Three perennial cool season grasses exceeded 3% relative cover, <br />smooth brome (34.6%), mountain brome (5.2%), and Kentucky bluegrass (3.6%). Non- <br />noxious perennial forbs did exceed 4% relative cover combined (Rocky Mountain <br />penstemon alone provided 20.3% relative cover). All of the smooth brome was in the <br />soil stockpile/sediment pond area, where it had been planted as a stabilizing cover, and <br />was the heavy dominant. All of the Rocky Mountain penstemon was on the facility slope <br />reclaimed area. No single species contributed greater than 50% relative cover over the <br />azea as a whole. The noxious weed Canada thistle was present in the northeast portion of <br />the reclaimed slope and a dense patch was encountered on one transect (1.5% relative <br />cover). <br />Summary and Discussion <br />The over-all production sample mean was 134 grams per square meter (based on lumping <br />the data from all 73 quadrats into a single sample). The sample mean slightly exceeds the <br />standard, but unfortunately we did not meet sample adequacy for production (data was <br />skewed by a relatively few extremely high values in the stockpile area). Reverse null t- <br />test results indicate that the reclaimed mean did not exceed the standard, at the 90% <br />confidence level. If this data were submitted by an operator for a permitted coal site, the <br />conclusion would be that production success had not been demonstrated. <br />Production was substantially higher in the pond/stockpile azea as compared to the <br />reclaimed facility slope area. The production mean for the pond/stockpile area was 184.3 <br />g/sq.m (primarily smooth brome), whereas the production mean for the reclaimed slope <br />area was 106.1 g/sq.m. <br />The over-all cover sample mean was 31.1 %, with an upper 90% confidence limit of <br />33.2%, based on lumping all the transects. Cover was substantially lower on the <br />reclaimed facilities slope. For the 47 transects taken in the facility slope location, sample <br />mean was only 25.5%, with a significant baze ground component (49% bare ground). The <br />dominant species on the slope area was the seeded perennial forb, rocky mountain <br />penstemon. Several seeded and volunteer grasses contributed to the cover, along with <br />volunteer forbs including dandelion and curly dock, and volunteer shrubs including big <br />sagebrush and snowbeny. The noxious species Canada thistle was present in small <br />patches in the northeast corner of the reclamation. Significant rill and gully erosion was <br />not present, but vegetative cover on the reclaimed slope area was visually lower and the <br />