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Uni~rsity <br />Knowledge to Go Places <br />Februazy 21, 2006 <br />Angela Bellantoni <br />Environmental Alternatives Inc. <br />410 Macon Avenue <br />Canon City, CO 81212 <br />Colorado Natural Heritage Program <br />Colorado State University <br />8002 Campus Delivery <br />Fort Collins, Colorado 80523-8002 <br />(970) 491-1309 <br />FAX: (970) 491-3349 <br />www.cnhp.colostate.edu <br />Deaz Angela: <br />The Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP) is in receipt of your request for information regarding the <br />proposed Northfield Partners LLC underground coal mine. In response, I have searched our Biodiversity <br />Tracking and Conservation System (BIOTICS) for natural heritage elements (occurrences of sigr~ificant <br />natural communities and rare, threatened or endangered plants and animals) documented from the vicinity of <br />the area specified in your request, specifically within atwo-mile radius of Sections 11,12, 13, 23, and 24 of ~ <br />Township 19 South, Range 70 West in Fremont County. ~ ~~ / ~ l Z 2 <br />The enclosed report describes natural heritage resources known from this area and gives location (by <br />Township, Range, and Section), precision information, and the date of last observation of the element at that <br />location. This report includes elements known to occur within the specified project site, as well as elements <br />known from similar landscapes near the site. Please note that "precision" reflects the resolution of original <br />data. For example, an herbarium record from "4 miles east of Colorado Springs" provides much less spatial <br />information than a topographic map showing the exact location of the occurrence. "Precision" codes of <br />Seconds, Minutes, and General are defined in the footer of the enclosed report. <br />The report also outlines the status of known elements. We have included status according to Natural Heritage <br />Program methodology and legal status under state and Federal statutes. Natural Heritage ranks are <br />standardized across the Heritage Program network, and are assigned for global and state levels of rarity. They <br />«,~ «„ <br />range from 1 for critically imperiled or extremely raze elements, to 5 for those that are demonstrab y <br />secure. <br />You may notice that some occurrences do not have sections listed. Those species have been designated as <br />"sensitive" due to their rarity and threats by human activity. Peregrine falcons, for example, are susceptible to <br />human breeders removing falcon eggs from their nests. For these species, CNHP does not normally provide <br />location information beyond township and range. Please contact us should you require more detailed <br />information for sensitive occurrences. <br />There are no CNHP designated Potential Conservation Areas located within your project area. In order to <br />successfully protect populations or occurrences, it is necessary to delineate conservation areas. These <br />conservation areas focus on capturing the ecological processes that are necessary to support the continued <br />existence of a particular element of natural heritage significance. Conservation areas may include a single <br />occurrence of a rare element or a suite of rare elements or significant features. <br />a '' <br />'~ - <br />~OR/-d~ <br />