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4.6 WILDLIFE MITIGATION <br />Mining and reclamation activities will unavoidably have varying degrees of short <br />term effects on all wildlife that use the proposed permit and mine plan area. <br />Physical displacement, traumatic death, loss of food, loss of cover, and retreat <br />from noise and activity will all directly result to some extent from continued <br />mining activities. Indirect results from increased human populations with the <br />accompanying increase in traffic volumes, recreational use of rural areas and <br />residential development will also be detrimental to wildlife. <br />Another and more complex effect will result from changes in habitat. For exam- <br />ple, following perennial seeding, young and early successional vegetation will <br />provide somewhat different niches for wildlife to exploit. These changes will <br />promote shifts in wildlife species composition. These changes are expected to <br />gradually reverse and the premine species composition to reestablish as vegeta- <br />tion communities mature. <br />The most important mitigation measure for wildlife will be the achievement of <br />successful reclamation of the affected areas. Wildlife are opportunists that <br />will readily repopulate available suitable habitat. Therefore, although indivi- <br />dual animals may be lost or displaced as habitat is temporarily destroyed during <br />mining, they should rapidly repopulate if appropriate food and cover are reestab- <br />lished. Thus the major emphasis of the wildlife mitigation program will be the <br />reestablishment of appropriate and suitable food and cover on reclaimed areas and <br />all actions taken should ultimately protect and accomplish this purpose. <br />While certain temporary mitigative measures may help limit the extent of impact <br />to members of certain species, these measures will in the long run have little if <br />any effect on populations, species composition, or use of the area. For example, <br />an imposed speed limit of 10 miles per hour in the proposed permit area might <br />prevent 20 rabbits a year from being killed by vehicles. However, when mining <br /> <br /> <br />4-147