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• meet CMLRD Rules and Regulations that state: "All aeeas affected by surface coal mining <br />operations shall be restored in a timely manner: (1) to conditions that ate capable of supporting <br />the uses which they were capable of supporting before any mining; or (2) to higher of better <br />uses ..." (4.16.1(1),(2). While mitigation of impacts to vegetation resources will be facilitated by <br />application of best current technology, limitations on the degree of successful mitigation will <br />result because of inherent long-term successional time frames and ecological chazactetistics of <br />regional native vegetation. <br />The revegetation plan has been developed initially with herbaceous production emphasized <br />over development of large woody plants. This was done after cazeful consideration of wildlife <br />habitat needs in the general area and how the postmine reclaimed landscape and plant <br />communities would integrate with the undisturbed land forms, vegetation communities, and <br />habitat surrounding the perntit area. Again, successional time frames and the required land <br />form stabilization practices play important roles in the type of vegetation initially established <br />on the reclaimed landscape. The herbaceous vegetation necessary for quick and long-term <br />stabilization is highly competitive and will dominate for a considerable period of time before <br />woody covet predominates again. <br />• As detailed in Tab 4, Land Use, livestock grazing has been the historic most intensive land use <br />of the permit azea. Since the surface ownership of the permit azea is, Eor the most pazt, private <br />(see Tab 3, Adjudication File), the postmine surface control will neazly all be private. Thus, <br />because of economics, ownership, and ranching as a major industry in the azea, the primary <br />postmine Land use will revert to livestock grazing. The tevegetation plan has been developed to <br />restore this use. These practices will concentrate on stabilization and Eotage resources while <br />backfdling and grading practices will provide topographic diversity and stockwater <br />developments. These practices will concurrently satisfy the needs of wildlife as well. Livestock <br />grazing will encourage reestablishment of native diversity and woody plant density (see the <br />1989 Revegetation Monitoring Report Eor the Seneca II Mine, Wadge Pasture grazing <br />discussion). <br />A common range improvement/rehabilitation practice is the reduction or elimirtation of woody <br />plants in areas used by livestock. This allows plant growth resources to be directed towards the <br />herbaceous component, thus increasing total useable forage production for livestock. It also <br />. improves accessibility and utilization by removing dense and many times impenetrable thickets <br />of brush. Colorado Division of Wildlife (CDOW) personnel agree that these dense shrub <br />communities could be thinned or "opened up" using various means including mining, thus <br />5 <br />Revised 1199 <br />