2008-05-13_REVISION - C1981008 (5)

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New Horizon Mine: 2007 Vegetation Sampling for Phase 2 Bond Release • Table 3. Comparison of mean cover and production between the Dryland Pasture reclaimed areas eligible for Phase 2 bond release and the Dryland Pasture reference area. Dryland Pasture Reclaimed Area, Phase 2 Bond Release Dryland Pasture Reference Area Mean # of Sam les Mean # of Sam les Cover % 35.2 23 30.0 21 Production (Ib/acre) 571.8 31 150.3 49 Conclusions: Cover. The mean value in the Phase 2 reclaimed areas currently exceeds the mean in the reference area. No statistical comparison of the mean is performed. Cover in the Dryland Pasture reclaimed areas now eligible for Phase 2 bond release only may decrease in the next few years as alfalfa declines, although the degree to which cover decreases will depend on climate, particularly the timing and total amount of precipitation. Production. The mean value in the Phase 2 reclaimed areas substantially exceeds the mean in the reference area. No statistical comparison of the mean is performed. As described above for cover, production in the Dryland Pasture reclaimed areas now eligible for Phase 2 bond release only may decrease in the next few years, subject to precipitation and other variations in climate. • 5.0 REFERENCES Whitson, T.D., editor. 2000. Weeds of the West, 9th edition. The Western Society of Weed Science, Newark, Calif., and University of Wyoming, Laramie. 628 pages. 6.0 PREPARERS Project Manager and Report Author was Steve Boyle, Owner and Senior Biologist at BIO- Logic Environmental. Mr. Boyle conducted the site visits and authored this report. Mr. Boyle holds a Master's degree in Wildlife Biology (Colorado State University, 1981) and has 26 years of experience in biological assessments, natural resource planning, and surveys for threatened and endangered species in the western U.S. and overseas. He has carried out more than thirty Biological Assessments, Environmental Assessments, and Environmental Impact Statements. Mr. Boyle has been the Principal Investigator for funded research on pronghorn, wild horses, bats, and songbirds, and has field experience investigating the biology of spotted owls, kit fox, mule deer, elk, bighorn sheep, wild turkey, and desert tortoises. He has conducted western Colorado bird surveys, validated theoretical models linking vertebrate species distributions to habitat characteristics for the Colorado Gap Analysis Project, and co-authored the Colorado Breeding Bird Atlas. Mr. Boyle was formerly District Wildlife Manager for the Colorado Division of Wildlife in Dolores County, and has held research and field positions with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of Fishery and Wildlife Biology at Colorado State University, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, and the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union in Western Australia. r~ BIO-Logic Environmental 10 November 12, 2007