2010-07-15_REPORT - M1988044 (2)

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Overall the bottomland vegetation in 2009 was in far better condition than it was at the end of the 2008 growing season. Leaf wilt was not seen and tree vigor and condition appeared to have recovered to a normal condition. The Corps of Engineers has now removed Exclosures 3, 4, and 5 from the requirement for sampling, as these areas have achieved the height and density expectations. Those are still required to be monitored photographically though and watched closely for any notable changes in condition. The fences will remain in place for now on these exclosures. Sampling and quantitative analysis is still required on Exclosures 1 and 2 as they have not achieved the expected goals yet. STATUS REPORT FOR CURRENT YEAR MAPS: Following is a list of the maps that have been updated. The maps provided with this report are intended to replace the previous map. Original maps that are not updated therefore become the current year map. V?N' Operation Status Map: Shows last year's disturbance areas, new disturbance areas, and status of all disturbed areas. This map shows status after the 2009 technical revision that limits the extent of operations. (Note: the South Lowland area is not included on the map. However, no changes occurred there that were not previously described or are updated in the description in this report.) TONNAGE OF MATERIALS MINED: 57,651.87 in 2009/2010 (56,299.84 in 2008/2009) COMPLIANCE WITH ACREAGE LIMITATIONS: The inventory format used in the table below is derived from the acreage accounting table included in the newly amended Reclamation Permit. So long as the acreage value shown in Line 9 and 10 is a positive value the terms of the acreage limitations in the lease are in compliance. If the value in Line 10 is negative then, at the minimum, appropriate action must be taken to immediately change the status of suitable land so Line 10 is at least zero and preferably a positive number. At this time there are about 56 acres of available disturbance that could be used if needed. With sand demand so low and not predicted to change greatly in the near future there is not much chance a great deal of that acreage will be used. From the accounting it is apparent that the amount of Land Board affected land increased in the last year by about 2.5 acres. Nearly all of that increase occurred with stripping new land adjacent to the active pit in the new lease area with the rest being accounted for in an accumulation of very small differences that occur when the areas are measured and scaled to produce the final acreage values. Over the winter most of the material was removed from the older permit area as the demand was for structural fill. But in the spring activity shifted back to the amendment area. This process of using already disturbed areas for lower quality products like structural fill is preferable to increasing disturbance in undisturbed areas within the new lease boundary. It is considered to be a preferred environmental management approach to fully utilize existing disturbances rather than creating new disturbances to obtain a product that is available from existing disturbed land. Status report for 2009 due July 15, 2010 Page 3 of 11