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3.6.2 Results <br />3.6.2.1 Surface Facilities Area <br />The area where the surface facilities will be constructed is <br />dominated by two major vegetation types: 1) sagebrush and 2) <br />irrigated hayland. Some small amounts of a mountain shrub com- <br />munity occur on the sideslope of the Grand Hogback at the south <br />side of the surface facilities area. Figure 3.6-1 exhibits the <br />location and areal extent of the types of vegetation in the surface <br />facilities area. There will be approximately 31 acres of sage- <br />brush, 15 acres of irrigated hayland, and less than one acre of <br />mountain shrub disturbed by construction of the surface facilities. <br />The following sections describe the communities. <br />3.6.2.1.1 Sagebrush <br />This community comprises most of the surface facilities area. It <br />occurs on the highest reaches of an alluvial bench above the ~~ <br />Colorado River and gives way to the mountain shrub above and <br />irrigated hayland below. The aspect is north in this type and <br />slopes are moderate, averaging 5 to 15%. <br />Big sagebrush (Artemisia tridendata) is the dominant species and <br />the understory is almost exclusively cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum). <br />Some western wheatgrass (Agropvron smithii), green needlegrass <br />(Stipa viridula), and alfalfa (MedicaQO sativa) occur interspersed <br />in the big sagebrush understory as well as other grasses and forbs. <br />The vegetation cover for the sagebrush. type was composed of <br />grasses, forbs and shrubs. These species produced a total actual <br />cover of foliage of 37.49% of the ground surface with perennial <br />grasses amounting to 9.31%, perennial forbs 0.50% and shrubs 17.61% <br />with the balance being cheatgrass. Cushion plants covered 1.66% of <br />the soil surface, litter 19.20%, rock 5.28% and this left a total <br />of 36.37% of the soil unoccupied and referred to as bare ground. ., <br />NCEC - Coal Ridge #1 3-64 ABC/1145/900301 <br />