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WILDLIFE Eva WAnGN FDR THE NOR i H RERM CF THE GARCL ANN Prt'.nNING 9TE • residing threatened and endangered species that occur in the area and would potentially impacted by the mining activity. The potentially occurring threatened and endangered species that can occur in Eagle county include the bald eagle, northern goshawk, black tern, black-footed ferret, North American wolverine, North American lynx, Colorado River cutthroat trout, and the boreal toad (U.S. FWS, 1994). Review of the site conditions indicates that the area provides insufficient habitat for any of these species. 3.0 Mining Impacts As described in the'Carol Ann Pit; Application for Special Use Permit Eagle County, Colorado' document (1996), the north berm will be left untouched until the very end of the mine life, when it is possible that part of the berm will be mined (Lewicki and Associates, 1996). At least 10 feet height or more will be left for a wildlife protection barrier for the meadow area below along the Eagle River. Therefore, the existing condition will not be impacted until the mining nears completion. At that time, a portion will be mined Eor its mineral resources. To determine the impacts of the mining to existing wildlife in the north berm, an evaluation of the loss of habitat to a diversity of species that may occur was conducted. Table 2 presents a list of species and their life-history requirements for forage type and forage area. A diversity of species from a variety of trophic levels were evaluated so as to identify all possible impacts. Results of the evaluation are as follows; • The predators (the fox and hawk) rely upon much larger areas than the north berm in order to acquire sufficient prey to sustain them selves. The berm area (40,000 sq Et which • equates to 0.37 hectares [ha]) comprises only 0.3 to 0.6 percent of their foraging area requirements. The removal of this berm would not significantly affect these species. • The area of the berm could provide sufficient habitat for an organism such as the American robin if the vegetation and insect species within it are abundant enough to sustain the bird. Existing habitat within the berm is sparse, therefore species of bird would use the berm area as only a portion of their entire foraging area. Mining effects to these species would be minimal. • Herbivorous and omnivorous mammals such as the rabbit could also use the berm area as a source of food. The sage is not preferred but palatable enough to be utilized when weather conditions do not permit foraging of other more preferred vegetation. The foraging requirements Eor these species are unlikely to be met by the amount and diversity of vegetation species that currently occur on the berm. Mining effects to these species would be minimal. In summary, the north berm is characterized as a predominantly dry shrubland containing sage and rabbit brush as the dominant vegetation species. The eastern area of the berm provides scant habitat for many wildlife species. The western portion provides more substantive habitat for wildlife due to the presence of a spring and the occurrence of shrubs and trees. A review of the possible impacts to wildlife attributable to mining activity of the berm indicate the following; • The spring and the spring fed wetland are not going to be impacted and the adjacent • habitat areas within the Unnamed creek channel will be left in place. These areas provide the most significant wildlife habitat as compared to the remaining areas of the Dew867a.DOc