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landscape. The herbaceous vegetation, necessary for quick and long-term stabilization, is highly <br />competitive and will dominate for a considerable period of time. Even in unseeded areas, herbaceous • <br />vegetation (perennial) establishes in a relatively short time, and will maintain a presence as an early to mid- <br />successional community for soma time (see the 1990 Revegetation Monitoring Report for the Seneca II <br />Mine). <br />Livestock grazing has historically been the most intensive land use of the permit area. Wildlife management <br />has generally been restricted to managing populations through harvest (hunting), and wildlife habitat <br />development or improvement has not been intensivety pursued. Since the surface ownership of the permit <br />area is, for the most part, State of Colorado (see Tab 3, Adjudication File), the postmine surface control will <br />be similar. Thus, beceuse of economics, leasing patterns, and agricukure as a major industry in the area, <br />the primary postmine land use will revert to livestock grazing. However, wildlirfe and associated uses will not <br />be exduded. Revegetation will concentrate on stabilization and forage resources while baddilling and <br />grading practices will provide topographic diversity and stodkwater developments. The latter will be <br />significently enhanced compared to the premine situation. These practices will concumentty satisfy the <br />needs of livestodk and wildlife. Livestock grazing on redaimed lands will encourage reestablishment of <br />native plants, spades diversity, and woody plant density (see the Annual Revegetation Monitoring Reports <br />for the Seneca II Mine). <br />A common range improvemenUrehabilitabon pradice is the redudion in, or elimination of, woody plant <br />vegetation in areas used by livestock. This allows plant growth resources to be directed towards the <br />herbaceous component, thus intxeasing the useable herbaceous forage produdion for livestodk, as well as • <br />wildlife. It also improves accessibility and utilization by removing dense and many times impenetrable <br />thickets of brush. Colorado Division of Wildlife (CDOW) personnel agree these dense shrub commundies <br />could be thinned or "opened up" by various means induding mining, thus providing benefits fo wildlife at the <br />same time (Whitaker, 1982). <br />Sufidal impads (e.g., range improvements or range fires) in native sagebrush or Gonal mountain brush <br />stands may be relativey short-lived. Frischnecht (1963) found sagebrush readily reinvaded brush stands <br />which had been removed. In a summary of findings by others, Kimball, et al. (1985) stated Gambel oak <br />stands impeded by fire had the same structure prior to the fire in 18 to 20 years. The more drastic <br />disturbances assodated wkh mining will require longer periods for woody plant reestablishment. <br />Successional time frames (starting from primary levels) and patterns, applied redamation pradices, level of <br />disturbance, and the inherent developrnental requuoments of native woody vegetation all determine the level <br />of reestablished woody plats density and kprrrpositbn during the Lability period. At any rate, the composition <br />differences and densities lower than premine conditions are inevitable (see Annual Revegetation Monitoring <br />Reports for the Seneca II Mine). This subjed is discussed further under woody plats density success <br />standards later in this tab. <br />For adequate livestodk performance (ladation, gestation, and daily gains) on rangeland, a balanced forage <br />diet is necessary. The herbaceous component will provide the majority of forage and adequate nutrient • <br />quality (digestible protein, energy, phosphorous and carotene) during the grazing season (Cook, et al., <br />TR-37 13-4 Revised 04/05 <br />