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• 3.0 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION <br /> 3.1 Description of Vegetation <br /> The three plant community types quantitatively sampled at the Coal <br /> Basin studv site were Aspen Woodland, Aspen Shrubland, and Spruce/Fir <br /> Parkland. <br /> 3.1.1 Aspen Woodland <br /> Aspen Woodland was dominated by aclosed canopy (63 percent cover) <br /> of Quaking Aspen with a predominantly herbaceous understory. Aspen Woodlands <br /> occupied a broad ecological range within the study area but were most common <br /> on the crests and flanks of east—west ridges along drainages, between, about <br /> 9,000 and 10,000 ft. The presence of scattered conifer seedlings suggests <br /> that this type is successional to coniferous forests, although apparently <br /> over very long periods. <br /> Total vegetation canopy cover in this type was 88 percent , with <br /> only 5 percent contributed by shrubs, chiefly Mountain Snowberry SymphOiLL- <br /> cal.pve v zev ph i.l . <br /> Grasses and grasslike plants (graminoids) added 5 percent cover, <br /> with most of that contributed by two species, Elk Sedge Can.ex g.eue/ i. and <br /> • B l ue W i I d r y e C1 ym Lj aucuA. <br /> Forbs were abundant , constituting 15 percent cover, and were <br /> dominated by Porter Lovage Licq.u4zi.cum pv.z.te/u., Wh i tef lower Peav i ne La-thcyru4 <br /> .�eucan,t�, Fend I er Meadow—rue I haact gum 4errd)-erti, Fern I eaf Lovage Li9Lz4ti Cum <br /> ,Ie)jcin.um, and Anise Sweetroots 04mo443a depaupe/tata and 0, vccidef ta'L.- <br /> Cover data for Aspen Woodland are presented in Table 1. A repre— <br /> sentative stand is depicted in Figure 4. <br /> 2 <br /> Mean production in Aspen Woodland communities was 67.9 g/m , <br /> with 60 percent (40.8 g/m2) contributed by graminoids, especially Elk Sedge <br /> (24.7 g/m2) . Prominent (orbs were Porter Lovage (2.5 g/m2) , Bracken Fern <br /> (2.3 g/m2) , and Whiteflower Peavine (1.9 g/m2) . Production data are presented <br /> in Table 2. <br /> Shrubs. were present in densities of 9,564/ha at the Aspen Woodland <br /> affected area sample sites. Thirteen shrubs were present , but five species-- <br /> Mountain Snowberry, myrtle Blueberry Vacci� mb( ,ti.l.Lu4, Sery i ceberry <br /> imetianclzi e�z 2in i.�v i ia, Chokecherry 1 ru nu4 vizgii ana var .. me)anvca,,zpa, and <br /> Woods Rose RoAa wooCIAi.i_--combined for 94 percent of the total . Mountain <br /> Snowberry alone provided over 51 percent . Mean shrub height was 51 cm. <br /> Aspen in the affected areas averaged 13 m tali and 17 cm in diameter ; tree <br /> density was 1,591/ha. Woody plant data are presented in Table 3. <br /> —8— <br />