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Vegetation <br />The vegetation at the Marr permit area is described as a sagebrush steppe. Big sagebrush <br />(Artemisia tridentata) predominates most areas, although alkali sagebrush (Artemisia longaloba) <br />communities are found. Absolute cover at the site ranges from 35 to 45 percent. Sagebrush and <br />rabbitbrush make up 60 percent of the relative cover while forbs and grasses equally split the <br />remainder. Phlox is the predominant forb and wheatgrasses are the major grasses. Productivity <br />ranges from 450 to 750 pounds per acre. <br />The loadout was built on fill, which was imported to raise the surface above the <br />meadowland/marsh community. Carex is the predominant species of the community. <br />Production was measured at 2,784 pounds per acre. Vegetation covered 83 percent of the site, <br />with 78 percent of that vegetation being sedges. <br />Wildlife <br />Extensive inventories of wildlife in or near the Marr permit area are documented in Table 33-39 <br />of the permit application. The accompanying discussion is found on pages 779-86aa through <br />779-104. Mule deer, antelope, Richardson ground squirrels, sage grouse, and golden eagles are <br />likely to be seen at the mine area, while Canadian geese, mallards, and pintails can be readily <br />observed from the loadout. No critical habitats have been identified within the permit area, <br />although a large wintering ground for a sage grouse lek is located two miles west of the Marr <br />Mine, and antelope frequently winter in the bottom of Bush and Williams Draw. A lone cow <br />moose was observed once within the permit area in 1992. <br />No threatened or endangered species occupy the permit area, although bald eagles are frequently <br />observed on the road between Walden and the mine. State-listed threatened and endangered <br />species found in North Park include the Johnny darter, white pelican, American peregrine falcon, <br />and greater sandhill crane. The Johnny darter has been reported in the Canadian, Illinois, and <br />Michigan Rivers. The white pelican and greater sandhill crane are occasional migrants along the <br />Illinois River near the loadout. The American peregrine falcon is found west of the permit area <br />in the mountains of the Park Range. The Marr Mine operations will have an insignificant impact <br />on threatened and endangered species. <br />DESCRIPTION OF THE OPERATIONS AND RECLAMATION PLANS <br />Kerr Coal Company opened the Marr Mine in 1974. The mine is located ten miles east of <br />Walden, Colorado, in Jackson County. The mine lies west and southwest of the Canadian River <br />on the east side of North Park, with a permit area covering approximately 1,600 acres (measured <br />from Map 2). The Marr loadout facility is adjacent to the Union Pacific Railroad southeast of <br />Walden. The facility was constructed on fill in the wetlands of the Illinois River and <br />encompasses nine acres. <br />11