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A total of 27 plant taxa were observed in this reference area (Table Al). Current annual herbaceous <br />production across the area averaged 760.3 pounds per acre in 2009 with perennial grasses and annual <br />grasses the dominant categories (Table 3). Ground cover in the Sagebrush Reference Area (Table 1 and <br />Chart 1) consisted of 48.4% live vegetation, 2.6% rock, 37.2% litter, and bare soil exposure of 11.9%. <br />Perennial cover across the unit averaged 39.6% (82% relative cover) with annual and biennial cover <br />averaging 8.8% (18% relative cover). Dominant taxa were Griffith's wheatgrass (Agropyron aibicans), <br />big sagebrush, cheatgrass, and prairie junegrass, with 11.1%, 9.7%, 6.0%, and 4.3% average cover, <br />respectively. With regard to diversity, the Sagebrush Reference Area exhibited three perennial grasses <br />with between 3% and 50% relative cover (Table 2). Total relative cover for all forbs excluding noxious <br />weeds in the Sagebrush reference area was 4.7%. <br />CEDAR CREEK ASSOCIATES, Inc. Page 12 Colowyo Coal Company <br />2009 Phase III Bond Release Evaluation