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KERR COAL COMPANY <br />MARR MINE <br />VEGETATION SAMPLING <br />FOR INTERIM MONITORING AND BOND RELEASE <br />INTRODUCTION <br />Vegetation sampling was completed on the Reclaimed Area and two reference areas at the <br />Kerr Coal Company Marr Mine by Rocky Mountain Reclamation during mid to late July and early <br />August, 1996. Approximately 109.1 acres of reclaimed land, the low sagebrush vegetation type <br />reference area, and the big sagebrush reference area were sampled for vegetation <br />characteristics under this sampling and monitoring program. The 1996 study was completed to <br />gather data for trend analyses and to evaluate revegetation success. <br />The Kerr Coal Company Marr Mine is ten miles east of Walden, Jackson County, Colorado, <br />at ari elevation of between approximately 8200 and 8400 feet above mean sea level. Soils are <br />shallow to moderately deep and are derived from sandstones and shales. The topography is <br />comprised of rolling hills with relief of 50 to over 100 feet and with most slopes with east or west <br />facing aspects due to the drainage pattern in the area. The study area occurs in a high <br />mountain valley environment, dominated by semi-arid, sagebrush steppe, and cold desert shrub <br />plant species. Average annual precipitation at Walden is 9.9 inches (1951-1970), with 61 <br />percent of the precipitation occurring as rain during the months of May through September. The <br />average frost free period is 46 days with a mean annual temperature of 37.1 F. <br />SCOPE OF WORK <br />The work consisted of providing vegetation sampling to obtain percent cover, herbaceous <br />production, shrub density, noxious weeds, and a list of existing plant speces observed on or <br />adjacent to the study area. A total of 50 transects were sampled for cover on the alkali <br />sagebrush reference area, 25 transects of the big sagebrush vegetation reference area, and 27 <br />transacts on the reclaimed area. A total of 50 quadrats were sampled for production on the alkali <br />sagebrush reference area, 70 on the big sagebrush reference area, and 60 on the reclaimed <br />area. A total of 182 belt transacts were completed for shrub density on the reclaimed area. An <br />1 <br />