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• Affected Environment <br />Lying within the Colorado Plateau physiographic province, <br />the study area falls within one of the most geologically <br />unusual portions of western Colorado, the Paradox Basin. In <br />Colorado, the basin is bordered by the Uncompahgre uplift to <br />the northeast, a remnant of an ancient mountain range, and by <br />the Four Corners uplift, including the San Miguel mountains, <br />to the south and southeast. It is characterized as a highly <br />dissected area of mesas and canyons. This basin is drained by <br />the Dolores and San Miguel Rivers, which originate in the <br />mountains to the south and east and drain generally north and <br />west into the Colorado River (Young and Young 1977:52-54). <br />The proposed mining site is situated atop a flat, north- <br />sloping mesa that overlooks the San Miguel River. The mesa is <br />part of an extensive flat-land area, which extends to the San <br />Miguel Mountains, formed from the resistant, Cretaceous-age <br />Dakota Sandstone and Burro Canyon Formation. The Dakota is <br />the bedrock of the project area and contains the thin, <br />lenticular bed of coal expected to mined by the proposed <br />mining project. <br />• Soils in the project area are Barx series, Progresso <br />loam, Paradox sandy loam, and Pinon loam types. The former <br />three are deep and well-drained soils, formed in alluvium and <br />derived from sandstone. Because they are formed in alluvium <br />they contain a low density of gravels consisting of sub- <br />angular to rounded chunks of chert and quartzite materials. <br />The Barx series and Progresso loam are found mainly on the <br />flat tops of the mesas and support a sagebrush/grassland <br />(Semidesert Sandy Loam plant community) environment. The <br />Paradox is found on alluvial fans and in narrow alluvial <br />valleys. Pinon loam is formed in residuum and derived from <br />interbedded sandstone and shale. ~t is shallow, having a 5 <br />inch surface layer, and supports pinyon/juniper woodland. It <br />is found on the edges and slopes of the benches, and contains <br />some gravels made up of chert and quartzite pebbles and <br />cobbles. Ground surface visibility varies between the <br />pinyon/juniper and sagebrush/grasslands, but it is generally <br />good, ranging from 60~ to 90$. <br />Elevations of the project area are between 5660 feet to <br />6060 feet, which falls within the Upper Sonoran Vegetation <br />Zone. It provides habitat for a variety of fauna; rabbits, <br />large mammals (elk, deer, bear, and coyote), grouse, and <br />raptors are common. <br />• Climatically, the region is characterized as having a <br />3 <br />