2010-12-08_PERMIT FILE - C1981008 ‎(11)‎

• Permit No: C1981008
• IBM Index Class Name: Permit File
• Doc Date: 12/8/2010
• Doc Name: NRCS Prime Farmland Evaluation Letters
• Section_Exhibit Name: Section 2.04.9 Attachment 2.04.9-6
• Media Type: D
• Archive: No

•
Definition of Prime Farmland; Levels of Soil Survey; Similar Soils
United states Department of Agriculture
o MRCS
Na0r A Reeaxces Cor servnlfon Service
102 Par Place
Montrose. CO 81401
97024" 07DMCE
[e-mail]
Feb. 11, 2008
•
At the request of Jim Boyd, District Conservationist out of Norwood Colorado, I would like to
address the following topics; 1) Definition of prime Farmland. 2) Levels of Soil Survey 3)
Similar Soils. These topics are related to aproject that would involve reclamation of possible
Prime Farmland after a mining operation.
1)'Me attached document defines Prime Farmland and gives the criteria for designation. In the
report "Order One Soil Survey" for New Horizon Mine, March 1998 by Intermountain Resource
Inventory Inc, James Irvine author, there is a statement on page 14 that was quoted from the
document "Colorado Important Farmland Inventory" that I would bite to address. In the
Colorado Important Farmland Inventory document, it states that prone Farmland designation in
Colorado would not be given to any soil with a pH of over 7.4(see page 3 item 4 of this
document). This statement, in the same document, does not agree with the statement on page 2
item 3 for the national requirements for prune farmland. If the criteria of pH 7.4 were applied,
then it would eliminate over 90 percent of the soils currently designated prim farmland on the
west slop%, of Colorado. According to the statement from the National Soil Survey Handbook
developed for Sort Survey and the Natural Resource Conservation Service, the designation of
Prime Farmland is a tool developed by NRCS (NSSH 657.1) for the purpose of "the nation needs
to know the extent and location of the best land for producing food, feed, fiber..." If one
examines the soil survey that contains the soils information for the area in question, imp unit
Bax fine sandy loam, 1 to 3 percent slopes is designated as prime farmland in the accompanying
table (see attached) -
In order to discover in depth the apparent discrepancy in the document "Colorado Important
Farmland Inventory ", I contacted the M06 regional Soil Survey Office in Lakewood Colorado
who has oversight of this soil survey. I was informed in my conversation with the staff located
there of two things concerning this statement and document. First, the statement on page 3, item
4 was in error and should read 8.4. Secondly, the document in question (Colorado Important
Farmland Inventory was put together sometime around 1980 and is now rendered obsolete. That
any and all determinations for Prim Farmland would tie directly back solely to the national
criteria
2) Levels of Soil Survey were developed to best meet the needs for soils information.of the
present and foreseeable future needs for resource management. Soil surveys in Colorado have,
to my knowledge, been conducted using two levels of soil survey (level 2 and level 3). Levels of
soil survey are determined by use and can be found in the Soil Survey Manual (Agricultural
Handbook 18 (USDA)) on pages 47 -56. In this book it lists the 24 Order of Soil Survey for
"agricultural" and the 3' order for "range". It also states on pages 55-56 that there may be two
orders of soil survey mapping within a survey area. On page 48 it states that 1" order survey is
for "very intensive (i.e_ experimental plots, individual building sites) ". Keep this statement in
mind as we discuss similar soils. Based upon Soil Survey Manuel directives and information
that the area under consideration was in agriculture at the time, it is probably safe to conclude
that the Barx soil in the area was mapped at an order 2 intensity of examination.
M Equal OPPwWft Provide and E.Vi.W
Revised September 2010 (PR06) Attachment 2.04.9 -6 -5