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9.c) Staff Report-TransitionAreaPlanMemoCouncil 8 19 14Memorandum To: Scandia City Council Copies To: Kristina Handt, City Administrator Brenda Eklund, Clerk Reference: Reclamation Plan Amendment— Transition Area Project No.: 15485.001 From: Sherri Buss, RLA AICP, Routing: Planner Date: August 13, 2014 Background The conditions for reclamation of the Zavoral Mine site require that Tiller transplant 100 White Pine trees that are currently growing on portions of the site that will be mined, to the Phase I reclamation area on the site. The conditions required that 80% of the transplants survive or be replaced with the same or other species, in consultation with the City. Tiller proposed the tree planting in its Reclamation Plan for the Zavoral Site. The goal for the transplanting was to create a "transition area" between the area to be reclaimed with native prairie plantings and the existing woodland/forested edges on the site. During the review of the Annual Operating Permit for 2014 for the Zavoral Mine, Tiller noted that their efforts to transplant White Pine trees from areas that will be mined to reclamation areas on the site were not successful in 2013 due to the rocky soils on the site. They indicated that similar efforts to replace the transplants were not likely to be successful due to the soil conditions. The Council requested that City staff, Washington Conservation District (WCD) staff, and the National Park Service (NPS) staff review the reclamation efforts with Tiller staff at a site visit in 2014, and report to the Council on a preferred option for reclamation in the Transition Area to address the issues related to the transplant failure. City staff, WCD staff, NPS staff and Tiller representatives met at the Zavoral Site on May 19, 2014. The group discussed the site issues and approaches for reclamation that could be successful given the site conditions. Tiller's representatives used the group's consensus recommendations from that discussion to develop a proposed plan for managing the Transition Area on the site. The recommendations are summarized in the Zavoral Reclamation Plan: Proposed Transition Area Development document, attached. The Reclamation Plan that was reviewed for the EIS and adopted as part of the Conditional Use Permit recognized that the Reclamation Plan might need to be modified based on unforeseen conditions or outcomes that could occur during reclamation, and called for an "adaptive management" approach that would allow for modifications in the plan if some elements of the plan did not meet the intent and goals for reclamation. Tiller is proposing that the City approve An employee owned company promoting affirmative action and equal opportunity 444 Cedar Street, Suite 1500 Saint Paul, MN 55101 651.292.4400 tkda.cam TKDA Memorandum To: Scandia City Council Copies To: Kristina Handt, City Administrator Brenda Eklund, Clerk Reference: Reclamation Plan Amendment— Transition Area Project No.: 15485.001 From: Sherri Buss, RLA AICP, Routing: Planner Date: August 13, 2014 Background The conditions for reclamation of the Zavoral Mine site require that Tiller transplant 100 White Pine trees that are currently growing on portions of the site that will be mined, to the Phase I reclamation area on the site. The conditions required that 80% of the transplants survive or be replaced with the same or other species, in consultation with the City. Tiller proposed the tree planting in its Reclamation Plan for the Zavoral Site. The goal for the transplanting was to create a "transition area" between the area to be reclaimed with native prairie plantings and the existing woodland/forested edges on the site. During the review of the Annual Operating Permit for 2014 for the Zavoral Mine, Tiller noted that their efforts to transplant White Pine trees from areas that will be mined to reclamation areas on the site were not successful in 2013 due to the rocky soils on the site. They indicated that similar efforts to replace the transplants were not likely to be successful due to the soil conditions. The Council requested that City staff, Washington Conservation District (WCD) staff, and the National Park Service (NPS) staff review the reclamation efforts with Tiller staff at a site visit in 2014, and report to the Council on a preferred option for reclamation in the Transition Area to address the issues related to the transplant failure. City staff, WCD staff, NPS staff and Tiller representatives met at the Zavoral Site on May 19, 2014. The group discussed the site issues and approaches for reclamation that could be successful given the site conditions. Tiller's representatives used the group's consensus recommendations from that discussion to develop a proposed plan for managing the Transition Area on the site. The recommendations are summarized in the Zavoral Reclamation Plan: Proposed Transition Area Development document, attached. The Reclamation Plan that was reviewed for the EIS and adopted as part of the Conditional Use Permit recognized that the Reclamation Plan might need to be modified based on unforeseen conditions or outcomes that could occur during reclamation, and called for an "adaptive management" approach that would allow for modifications in the plan if some elements of the plan did not meet the intent and goals for reclamation. Tiller is proposing that the City approve An employee owned company promoting affirmative action and equal opportunity Scandia City Council Zavoral Site Reclamation Plan Page 2 August 19, 2014 the attached plan for the Transition Area as an amendment to the Reclamation Plan, consistent with the "adaptive management" approach discussed in the approved Reclamation Plan. Original Reclamation Plan and Proposed Plan The original reclamation plan called for the complete clearing and grading of the Transition Area, and then replanting with the transplanted White Pines and a native seed mix. After the White Pine transplants failed to survive, Critical Connections Ecological Services (CCES), working on behalf of Tiller, surveyed the transition area in June, 2014 to gather more detailed info on the current quality of the plant communities in that location than the surveys that they obtained when they wrote the original Reclamation Plan. The re -assessment found that there are already a significant number of native trees in the transition area, including White Pines, Quaking Aspens, White and Red Oaks, and other species. There are also some native species in the understory plants in the area, as well as a variety of non-native species such as Buckthorn. The ecologists evaluation of the area suggested that the area does not require complete clearing in order to meet the goals of creating a transition zone, and instead another approach could be used. That approach is discussed in detail in the Proposed Transition Area Development document, and summarized as follows: Identify desirable trees and shrubs that will be saved in the transition area Identify the invasive and weedy shrub species for removal Identify the areas that are overgrown where additional shrubs should be selectively removed to create a more diverse planting Remove the invasive shrub species and thin the trees and shrubs as needed to remove over -abundant species and unhealthy trees to create openings and pockets for new plantings Use herbicide applications to remove non-native and invasive species from the ground layer Reintroduce appropriate native shrub species into the openings in the transition area by planting Seed native species into the ground layer Manage the area by watering, mulching, mowing and targeted herbicide applications to control weeds, to meet the performance measures identified in the CUP conditions for reclamation Cost Comparison and Benefits of the Proposed Approach Tiller estimated that the cost of transplanting the White Pines as required by the CUP would be $5,250. They estimate that the cost of the proposed plan will be approximately $9,120. Benefits to the proposed approach include the following: Leaving the existing native species in place, selective removal of non -natives and unhealthy trees, and replanting in the openings will create a more gradual transition in the area that may result in a more diverse and natural appearance than clear cutting and replanting. The reclamation goals may be met more quickly than if the area is clear cut and replanted. 1 Scandia City Council Zavoral Site Reclamation Plan Page 3 NPS and Staff Recommendations NPS and City staff reviewed the proposed plan for the they reviewed the Transition Area Development Plan, forward to seeing the plan put into action. August 19, 2014 Transition Area. NPS staff stated that that it looks good, and the NPS looks The NPS and City staff recommend that the Council accept the Proposed Transition Area Development plan as an amendment to the Reclamation Plan for the Zavoral Mine and Reclamation Project. The amendment should require that the revised plan meet the same performance goals as the original reclamation plan conditions. Request for Council Action Staff recommend that the Council review the proposed Transition Area Development Plan, and accept the plan as an amendment to the approved Reclamation Plan for the Zavoral Mine and Reclamation Project. 1