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I ~ DETERMINING FINAL 12EVEGETATION SUCCESS <br />CEC has elected to standards based on historic records for the evaluation of revegetation <br />success at the Keenesburg Mine site. Sampling of the Osgood Sand Reference Area <br />since 1994 has yielded a data set for vegetation cover and total herbaceous production <br />that, when plotted against the precipitation regime at the mine produced predictive <br />mathematical equations with high correlations. Two of these mathematical equations will <br />be used to establish the revegetation success criteria for vegetation cover and total <br />herbaceous production. For the parameter of species composition, a qua~rtitative success <br />standard based on historic values of relative cover at the Osgood Sand Reference Area <br />was developed by Coors Energy Company. Since there is no requirement for the <br />replanting of woody plants, there is no woody plant density success criterion. <br />SamoGng Methods. Reclaimed areas may be treated as a single type or divided into <br />pazcels, based on seeding date or other logical criteria. Sample locations within all <br />reclaimed parcels will be randomly selected using randomly generated grid coordinates <br />overlain on a map of the mine. <br />Transect and quadrat locations aze randomly selected prior to the commencement of field <br />work. The reclaimed area(s) to be sampled are divided into a grid on the mine map. <br />Horizontal and vertical axes are assigned a unique alphabetic or numeric character. <br />Characters are then randomly generated, and sample points established based on their <br />~, unique [x,y] Cartesian coordinates. Extra sample points are generated and plotted, to be <br />used if a given location is not available for sampling (e.g., the sample point falls on an <br />existing road or other structure). <br />Total veeetation cover. Vegetation cover transects will be randomly located within the <br />reclaimed areas. Transects will be of a length consistent with Colorado Division of <br />Minerals and Geology regulations. At this time, quadrats of 25-50 meters in length aze <br />proposed for reclaimed azeas at the mine. A minimum of 50 data points will be collected <br />per transact, using point transact methods. Each transact will serve as a sample unit. <br />Points will be collected using a stationary optical sighting device to maximize <br />reproducibility and precision. In multiple layers of vegetation, first hits will be recorded <br />for total vegetation cover, while subsequent "hits" will be used to calculate relative <br />vegetation species cover. For bond release sampling, sufficient numbers of samples will <br />be collected to reach sample adequacy. <br />1l (~ <br />