Reconnaissance Study Area 



A reconnaissance study area, which corresponds roughly with the bound- 

 aries of McCone County and Montana Department of Fish and Game hunting dis- 

 trict 650, is the largest of the study areas. As implied by the name, this 

 area was studied in less detail than the others. Data gathering in this 

 area was directed toward: 



1) Defining critical sites, primary use areas, or major biota in the area 

 such that any later changes in study area boundaries would not make 

 the general baseline results inappropriate; 



2) Setting the context for study of the areas more intensively studied; 

 and 



3) Providing a baseline for plant siting and assessment of impacts 

 associated with the coal conversion facility or transportation re- 

 lated to coal mining and coal conversion. 



Throughout this report, the term study area refers to the reconnaissance 

 study area. 



OBJECTIVES OF THE VEGETATIVE BASELINE STUDY 



The goal of this baseline study was to collect sufficient information 

 describing the vegetation of the study area so that changes in vegetation 

 can be detected, and further baseline and monitoring studies can be expe- 

 ditiously carried out. This information which will eventually be used to 

 evaluate the impacts of the proposed development, was derived from data 

 collected by: 



Characterizing the vegetation of the area in a manner that serves the 

 maximum number of needs and most concisely conveys information about 

 the vegetation of any portion in the study area (Classification of 

 vegetation into community types most nearly meets this requirement 

 and other objectives, including the requirements of the Department of 

 State Lands); 



Characterizing the average sites associated with the various community 

 types ; 



Comparing the community types with respect to species diversity; 



Mapping the vegetation of the study area and the range condition of 

 the proposed mine area; 



Determining the productivity of the major community types of the 

 proposed mine area; and 



Listing all plant species found in the study area and identifying 

 any rare or endangered plants. 



