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9.3 New Dryland Pasture Reference Area 2000 <br />Consequently, WFC proposed a new reference area (in combination with the rangeland <br />reference area) within the fenced perimeter of the nearby Montrose County owned and <br />operated Hopkins Field Airport, where grazing was prohibited. CDMG approved this <br />combined rangeland /dryland pasture reference area at the airport in 2000 after conducting <br />a field inspection of the area and reviewing vegetation data submitted in bond release <br />application SL -07. This combined rangeland /dryland reference area at the airport was <br />approved in Permit Renewal RN -04. This reference area is known as the 2000 Reference <br />Area and is shown on the map of Map 22 -2. <br />9.4 New Dryland Pasture Reference Area 2005 <br />In 2004, early scoping work by Hahn Environmental Consultants indicated the combined <br />rangeland /dryland pasture reference area at the airport contained too many shrub species <br />for making a valid comparison with the reclaimed dryland pasture areas on NH1 and NH2. <br />Consequently, in 2005 WFC proposed to separate the dryland pasture reference area <br />from the combined area by establishing a new dryland reference on 6.8 acres <br />approximately 20 feet east of the combined area. (A 20 -foot strip of land separates the <br />two areas because it has been used as a roadway.) CDMG required a study to verify the <br />proposed separate dryland reference area was statistically similar to the combined <br />reference area. TR -53 established the separate dryland reference in 2005, with the <br />former combined area to continue to serve only as the rangeland reference area. Map <br />22 -2 shows the general locations of all previous and current reference areas and also <br />shows the detailed location of the current separate rangeland and dryland reference <br />areas. Attachment 2.04.10 -3 is the report on the comparison study done by Bio -Logic <br />Environmental for the 2000 and 2005 in- airport reference areas. The report conclusion <br />states that "because total cover and production at the two sites are very similar, and the <br />sites are similar in other respects, the New Airport Reference Area appears to be an <br />acceptable reference area for the dryland pasture type ". This area is now known as the <br />2005 Reference Area. <br />REVISED 11 Nov 09 Tab 22 -18 <br />