Laserfiche WebLink
interception is used to calculate total cover values. Additional interceptions will be used <br />to calculate relative cover of indivi ua annrspecies and lifeforms. The quantitative <br />cover data also provides the basis for analysis of species composition. <br />Herbaceous Production <br />Herbaceous production will be estimated by the harvest method. One herbaceous <br />production plot will be located and randomly oriented at the end of each cover transect. <br />Additional herbaceous quadrats will be located randomly as described above. <br />Herbaceous production plots will be 0.50 square meters in area. All current year above <br />ground live herbaceous plant biomass will be clipped within the 0.50 square meter <br />quadrat. Perennial grasses, annual grasses, and annual, biennial, and perennial <br />herbaceous forbs will be clipped and bagged together to represent total herbaceous <br />production. Succulents, suffrutescent, and woody plants will not be sampled. Production <br />material will be air dried until weights vary by no more than 0.1g. <br />Woody Plant Density <br />It is anticipated that woody plants will comprise the most variable of the vegetation <br />parameters to be sampled in 2011, given the relatively small area of the reclaimed sites. <br />Generally, we employ a 50 square meter belt transect run parallel to and on each side of <br />the cover transect line. In anticipation of the patchy nature of woody plant growth, we <br />propose to increase the size of the woody plant transects. Initially, we propose 200 <br />square meter woody plant transects (4 meters wide on each side of the cover transect). If <br />site conditions indicate that this size will not adequately sample the woody plants in the <br />reclaimed areas, we propose to increase the transect size as necessary. In the most <br />adverse situation, we propose to conduct as census of woody plants within each sample <br />area. <br />Species Composition <br />Species composition information will be derived from quantitative vegetation cover data. <br />Relative cover information provides a basis for evaluation of the importance of each <br />encountered plant species and lifeform. <br />Sample Numbers/Sample Adequacy <br />Sample adequacy will be calculated for total vegetation cover, total herbaceous <br />production, and woody plant density. For the purposes of this study, vegetation cover (all <br />sites), herbaceous production (Phase III eligible sites only), and woody plant density <br />(Phase III eligible sites only) sampling will be undertaken to sample adequacy. A <br />minimum of fifteen samples per parameter will be taken. Parameters are to be tested at <br />the 90% confidence level. Calculated minimum sample numbers and standard deviations <br />are reported as an indication of variability of the sampled parameters.