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GCC Rio Grande, Inc. — Pueblo Cement Plant and Limestone Quarry Exhibit E <br />establishment and development. Drill seeding will be performed using equipment designed for rangeland <br />plantings. Till or no till drills may be used for this planting method. No till drills will be the preferred <br />equipment for drill planting seed when inter - seeding is performed to enhance or augment reclamation <br />plantings with substandard rates of seedling establishment in areas where this occurs. To the extent <br />possible, drill seeding will be performed along the contour to minimize potential soil erosion. <br />Selection of Seeding Methods <br />Broadcast seeding may be used to plant any of the seed mixtures. It is the preferred planting method for <br />the rangeland seed mixture and the augmentative shrub /tree mixture. Either broadcasting or drill seeding <br />may be used for the temporary cover seed mixture and the cover crop. Drill or no -till seeding methods are <br />the preferred planting method for the stabilization seed mixture. <br />Drill seeding methods may also be used to plant any of the seed mixtures. Drill seeding may be used in <br />combination with broadcast seeding to enhance the effectiveness of the stabilization seed mixture. In <br />areas where concentrated surface water runoff flows may be experienced, drilling seed perpendicular to <br />the direction of flow serves to promote the integrity of grass linings in channels, promote their stability <br />and improve water filtration characteristics. Additionally, drill and broadcast seeding may be used in <br />combination in order to simultaneously plant seeds with similar planting depth requirements. When <br />drilling and broadcasting are used in combination the seed mixture must be divided into sub - mixtures <br />with similar planting requirements. <br />Irrigation <br />Irrigation will not be used to establish seed mixtures. The use of suitable soil materials for subsoil and <br />topsoil reconstruction, the placement of water harvesting features throughout reclamation areas, and the <br />use preferential use of native plant species adapted to the site is expected to promote the germination and <br />establishment of adequate vegetation covers on lands disturbed by proposed mining operations. The cost <br />and detrimental side effects of irrigating rangeland outweigh the benefits of irrigating. <br />WEED MANAGEMENT <br />Rio Grande will develop and implement a weed inspection and integrated pest management ( "IPM ") <br />program to control noxious and targeted weeds identified by Pueblo County Weed Control District. <br />Annual weed inspections with an IPM program utilizing cultural, mechanical, chemical and biologic <br />weed control methods will be used to effectively control weed populations in the reclamation and within <br />the mining facility areas. <br />VEGETATION MONITORING <br />Monitoring the germination and growth of seed mixtures will be performed to ensure that adequate <br />vegetation stands are timely established that are capable of meeting their intended purposes and that <br />permanently reclaimed lands are developing vegetation communities capable of meeting final vegetation <br />bond release requirements. Three types of monitoring will be used to track vegetation development <br />including: germination and establishment, interim monitoring and final vegetation bond release <br />monitoring. <br />Germination and establishment monitoring will be conducted towards the end of the first full growing <br />season after planting. This monitoring will be performed to assess the adequacy of seedling germination <br />and establishment. Areas where vegetation germination and establishment are adequate and inadequate <br />Revised June 29, 2011 <br />E -11 <br />Exhibit E — Reclamation Plan <br />