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EXHIBIT J - VEGETATION INFORMATION <br />The Last Chance Mine proposed permit area is about 40 percent composed of pi-on juniper <br />community. Major plant species include pinon pine (Pious edulis), Utah juniper (Juniperus <br />osteosperma), one-seed juniper (Juniperus monosperma), Wyoming big sagebrush (Artemisia <br />tridentada wyomingensis), and mountain mahogany (Cercocarpus montanus). Washes and <br />slopes have a higher percentage of juniper cover, while hilltops have more sparse vegetation. <br />Some open patches have a higher percentage of grasses and forbs. Approximately 45 percent of <br />the proposed permit area is open meadow with sage and grassland. About 15 percent of the area <br />bare ground or trails throughout scattered pinon juniper clusters due to current recreational use <br />and past mining activities. (Map J-1) <br />From a weed survey conducted in May of 2009, populations of Russian Knapweed (Centaurea <br />repens), whitetop (Cardaria draba) and Musk Thistle (Carduus nutans) was found interspersed <br />with sagebrush to total about 3.3 acres in the southwest portion of the project area. Of those 3.3 <br />acres, about 0.3 acres included musk thistle plants were located near the trail on the northeastern <br />edge of the Russian knapweed population (Map J-1). Typically there are some cheatgrass <br />(Bromus tectorum) populations in the disturbed areas along with field bindweed (Convolvulus <br />arvensis). Soil disturbance associated primarily with cattle grazing, plus some mining activities <br />may promote the spread of invasive noxious weeds. The application of an aggressive weed <br />management plan approved by the BLM at the Last Chance project area is recommended to: 1) <br />prevent the invasion and expansion of noxious weeds and 2) ensure the establishment of <br />desirable plant communities upon rehabilitation of the site. See also field notes in Appendix F-1. <br />The carrying capacity for livestock on this site is less than 5 AVM's, minimal because of the low <br />amount of understory growth and low development of soil. <br />The aerial photographic basemaps (see maps C-2 and C-4) and photographs in Appendix A <br />provide a visual representation of the Last Chance site. <br />Last Chance Mine - April 2009 <br />J-1