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• Livestock grazing has historically been the most intensive land use of the permit area. <br />Wildlife management has generally been restricted to managing populations through harvest <br />(hunting), and wildlife habitat development or improvement has not been intensively <br />pursued. Since the surface ownership of the permit area is, for the most part, State of <br />Colorado (see Tab 3, Adjudication File), the postmine surface control will be similar. <br />Thus, because of economics, leasing patterns, and agriculture as a major industry in the <br />area, the primary postmine land use will revert to livestock grazing. However, wildlife <br />and associated uses will not be excluded. Revegetation will concentrate on stabilization <br />and forage resources while backfilling and grading practices will provide topographic <br />diversity and stockwa[er developments. The latter will be significantly enhanced compered <br />to the premine situation. These practices will concurrently satisfy the needs of <br />livestock end wildlife. livestock grazing on reclaimed lends will encourage <br />reestablishment of native plants, species diversity, end woody plant density (see the 1991 <br />Revegetation Monitoring Reports for the Seneca 11 Mine, Wadge Pasture grazing discussion). <br />A common range improvement/rehabilitation practice is the reduction in, or elimination of, <br />woody plant vegetation in areas used by livestock. This allows plant growth resources to <br />be directed towards the herbaceous component, thus increasing the useable herbaceous <br />forage production for livestock, as well as wildlife. 1t also improves accessibility and <br />utilization by removing dense end many times impenetrable thickets of brush. Colorado <br />Division of Wildlife (CDOW) personnel agree these dense shrub communities could be thinned <br />or "opened up" by various means including mining, thus providing benefits to wildlife at <br />the same time (Whitaker, 1982). <br />Surf icial impacts (e.g., range improvements or range fires) in native sagebrush or clonal <br />mountain brush stands may be relatively short-lived. Frischnecht (1963) found sagebrush <br />readily reinvaded brush stands which had been removed. In a summary of findings by <br />others, Kimball, et al. (1985) stated Gambel oak stands impacted by fire had the same <br />structure prior to the fire in 18 [0 20 years. The more drastic disturbances associated <br />with mining will require longer periods for woody plant reestablishment. Successional <br />time frames (starting from primary levels) and patterns, applied reclamation practices, <br />level of disturbance, and the inherent developmental requirements of native woody <br />vegetation all determine the level of reestablished woody plant density and composition <br />during the liability period. At any rate, the composition differences and densities Lower <br />• than premine conditions are inevitable (see Revegetation Monitoring Reports for the Seneca <br />II Mine, 1987 to 1991). This subject is discussed further under woody plant density <br />success standards Later in this tab. <br />13-5 Revised 01/15/93 <br />