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TE OF COLORADO Qnrf~lt/PfI I Owens, Governor PARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES iIVISION OF WILDLIFE EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER McCloskey, Director Broadway er, Colorado 80216 .hone: (303)297-1192 Received East 16th Street meo, CO 81301 July 2005 AUG 2 3 2005 Durango Field OfSCe Division of Minerals & Geology m Kruger Yla[a County Community Development Department i0 East 2nd Avenue raneo. CO 81301 PIEllRAS DE LA FLORIDA CDP AND CLASS II Mr. Kruger: For l4'r/dlifc- For People j~? U f ?tl~~ Colorado Division of Wildlife (CDOW) has reviewed the proposal for the Piedras De La Florida CDP and s II project and offers these comments for your consideration. The written proposal for [he Piedras De La da CDP and Class II project included some information regarding considerations for wildlife (e.g., habitat ;coon and mitigation). The applicant may request a complimentary copy of."Developing with Wildlife in ~," which outlines our general guidelines. Tas De La Florida CDP and Class II is located west of County Road 309, also known as Airport Road, oximately 12 miles southeast of'Durango, and is accessed by Colorado Highway 172 in La Plata County. 1'he ras De La Florida CDY and Class II project is in Township 34N, Range 8W, Section 30 and is approximately acres in size. Mining will take place during the first few phases of the project and the project area will later be ;loped into residential and commercial lots. CDOW has mapped and designated the project area as winter and severe winter ranges for mule deer and er, severe winter ranges for elk. Black bear and mountain lions also inhabit the area at various times of the To help reduce impacts to and contlicts with mule deer, elk, black bear and mountain lion, the CDOW mmends incorporating the following proactive measures into the project's guidelines and plats. the Piedras De La Florida CDP and Class II, the setbacks were considered f'or the Florida River. River systems d associated wetlands provide invaluable habitat to diverse wildlife species and perform important functions :h as stream bank stabilization. We recommend establishing setbacks of at least 100 feet to create a protective between human development, activities and the river. rider leaving a portion of the gravel pit as new wetland habitat for wildlife. This would create terrestrial and .hland habitat to accommodate a vaziety of birds, waterfowl, various small mammals, deer and elk. You may request a complimentary copy of"Sand and Gravel Pits as Fish and Wildlife Habitat in the Southwest." • luster proposed development with existing developments and roads. This concentrates development and inimizes habitat fragmentation by maintaining lazge contiguous pieces of land. Animals most affected by habitat agmentation are species with large home ranges, e.g., mule deer, mountain lion and Neotropical birds' . For DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES, RusseA George, Executive Director W ILDLIFE COMMISSION, Jeffrey Crawford, Chair • Tom Burke, Vice Chair • Ken Torres, Secretary Members, Robert Bray .Rick Enstrom • Philip James • Claire O'Neal • Richard Ray • Robert Shoemaker Ex Officio Members, Russell George and Don Ament