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slopes and aspects within the permit area. Generally, the areas <br />with decreased soil moisture and shallower soils will tend towards <br />elements of the sagebrush community in a diverse transition area. <br />For further details on soil/moisture relationships refer to <br />Figure 1, Environmental Gradient/Plant Tolerance Graph. <br />Juniper Communit <br />Within the permit area the juniper community is limited to the area <br />around Mount Streeter and the bluffs along the lower portion of <br />Taylor Creek and Goodspring Creek. The community is dominated by <br />an open overstory of Utah juniper (JUniperus utahensis), rarely <br />over 15 feet tall, with big sagebrush as a major associate. <br />The open understory contains a sparse population of grasses and <br />forbs with the major species being Indian ricegrass (Oryzopsis <br />hymenoides), bluebunch wheatgrass (Agropyron spicatum), prickly <br />pear cactus (Opuntia polycantha), and lupine. <br />According to the 1975 USDI, BLM, EMRIA Taylor Creek Study, the <br />• herbaceous cover for the juniper community was determined to be 1.6 <br />percent. <br />Overall, the productivity of the juniper community is low due to <br />the combined effects of shallow to rocky soils, southerly aspect <br />and steep, highly erodible slopes. Productivity, as determined by <br />the BLM is .036 AUM's per acre for the juniper type in this area. <br />Only a limited amount of this vegetation community was disturbed <br />mainly for material to be crushed for pit haul road use during the <br />initial permit term. <br />Aspen Woodland Community <br />The aspen community is very limited within the permit area <br />comprising less than 1~ of the area to be mined. Groves of aspen <br />occur within the upper reaches of Streeter and Taylor Creek <br />watersheds in locations where snow melt continues to provide <br />moisture later in the spring. <br />• <br />2.04.10-14 <br />