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available in conjunction with lower snow depths. See Seneca Yoast Mine 2006 Annual Reclamation Report, <br />Wildlfe Report for further discussions. <br />The results of the past +10 years of annual winter aerial surveys at the Yoast Mine indicate that big <br />game winter use is more a function of winter snow depth and general herd movements rather than <br />reclaimed vegetation success since no definitive use trends are shown based on the survey counts and <br />population densities within the Yoast survey area. Now that active mining has ceased and <br />reclamation/revegetation activities have been ongoing for a number of years, SCC will cease <br />conducting annual winter big game aerial surveys at the Yoast Mine. <br />Species of High Federal and/or State Interest. Impact assessments made in previous sections of this <br />tab indicate the potential for minor impacts on two species of high Federal and/or State interest: <br />Columbian sharp-tailed grouse and greater sandhill cranes. The CDOW has expressed concern <br />about potential impacts to sage grouse, stating this species should be given equal weight in impact <br />assessment, mitigation, and monitoring as the Columbian sharp-tailed grouse. The U.S. Fish and <br />Wildlife service has expressed concern about the peregrine falcon, bald eagle, whooping crane, <br />northern goshawk, <br /> <br />Reduction of Monitoring. As stated above the wildlife monitoring program was reduced in 2007 to <br />eliminate the annual winter big game surveys and now that the reclamation activities are coming to an <br />end, SCC would like to eliminate further wildlife monitoring. <br />SCC is currently monitoring known Columbian shatp-tailed grouse leks and the all known golden <br />eagle nests for activity. During these surveys sandhill crane sightings are also documented. The <br />CDOW has also been monitoring sharp-tailed grouse leks and the overall trends show that sharp- <br />tailed grouse populations are on the increase. With the results of these trends the CDOW has been <br />trapping birds on the Seneca reclamation to further increase populations in other locales. <br />There has been no recorded golden eagle activity in the Yoast area since 2003. Results of the annual <br />surveys are contained in the Annual Reclamations reports submitted every March for the Yoast Mine. <br />Since there is no active mining or blasting and limited human activities on the reclamation areas, <br />there is no longer any need for wildlife monitoring. Beginning in 2009, SCC will discontinue wildlife <br />monitoring on the Yoast Mine. <br />• <br />TR-41 13a Revised 6/09