2011-12-21_PERMIT FILE - M2011033 (2)

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Site Description 6.3.2 EXHIBIT "B" 6.3.2 The Site Description for the Corkle Construction #2 Gravel Pit is as follows (a) Description of the vegetation and soil characteristics: The pit area has been disturbed. Following are soils and vegetation descriptions. • Vegetation Description: The vegetation description is taken from the Jackson County Area, Colorado, 1981 soil survey, National Cooperative Soil Survey, USDA, SCS (Survey). The Survey lists two range sites for the area to be reclaimed. One is the "Dry Mountain Loam" and the other is the "Valley Bench" range site. The Dry Mountain Loam range site is described as follows: Dry Mountain Loam range site This range site is the most extensive in the Area. This site consists of moderately deep and deep, well drained soils. The surface layer is moderately coarse textured to medium textured. Slope ranges from 0 to 25 percent, but it is mostly 2 to 15 percent. Permeability is mostly moderate to moderately rapid, and available water ca- pacity is low to high. Winter is extremely cold, and summer is cool. Annual precipitation is 9 to 18 inches; about two - thirds of this normally falls during the grow- ing season. The potential plant community is 15 percent stream - bank wheatgrass, 10 percent sheep fescue, 10 percent muttongrass, 8 percent pine needlegrass, 5 percent Letterman needlegrass, 3 percent Sandberg bluegrass, and 5 percent junegrass, bluebunch wheatgrass, squir- reltaii, and Nevada bluegrass. The grasses form a sparse stand beneath an open stand of big sagebrush, which makes up 15 percent of the community. Bitter - brush makes up 5 percent of the community, and low rabbitbrush makes up 3 percent. The community is also 3 percent lupine, 3 percent pussytoes, 3 percent aster, 3 percent fleabane, 2 percent yarrow, 2 percent blue- bells, 1 percent buckwheat, 1 percent phlox, and 3 per- cent fringed sage, snakew eed, and other forbs. The high proportion of grasses in the potential com- munity makes this site suitable for grazing cattle. Heavy grazing by cattle causes grasses, such as blue - bunch wheatgrass, sheep fescue, pine needlegrass, 5