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Vantage to Pomona Heights Chapter 4 <br />230 kV Transmission Line Project FEIS Environmental Consequences <br /> <br /> PAGE 4-27 <br />corridor. Impacts from the proposed Project are similar to those described above for Nuttall’s sandwort. <br />With the implementation of RDFs described above and the assumption that potential occurrences would <br />be spanned and avoided, Project construction, operation, and maintenance activities could impact <br />individuals or habitat (moderate impact), but would not contribute a trend toward federal listing. <br />Kalm’s Lobelia <br />Kalm’s lobelia is a BLM Strategic and Washington Endangered species. Kalm’s lobelia occurs from <br />Newfoundland to Pennsylvania, west to British Columbia, and Colorado to Hudson Bay and the southern <br />Mackenzie District. In Washington, it occurs in Yakima County. Within the region, Kalm’s lobelia is <br />known from one population occupying approximately 92 acres. WNHP data indicates that one Kalm’s <br />lobelia occurrence intersects Route Segment 3b for 0.3 mile. Kalm’s lobelia has been documented along <br />the Columbia River near Alkali Canyon Creek and Borden Springs. The primary threats to this species <br />include habitat degradation from livestock, weedy species and altering the flow of the natural spring <br />(WNHP and BLM 2005). Impacts from the proposed Project are similar to those described above for <br />Nuttall’s sandwort. With the implementation of RDFs described above and the assumption that potential <br />occurrences would be spanned and avoided, Project construction, operation ,and maintenance activities <br />could impact individuals or habitat (moderate impact), but would not contribute a trend toward federal <br />listing. <br />4.2.4.10 Route Segment 3c <br />General Vegetation <br />Construction of Route Segment 3c would result in the long-term disturbance to approximately 59.5 acres <br />of land (Table 4.2-4). Over three-quarters of the disturbance (49.6 acres) would occur in areas classified <br />as sagebrush/perennial grassland. The remaining disturbance would occur in areas classified as annual <br />grassland (3.8 acres), rabbitbrush/annual grassland (2.4 acres), riparian/wetland (0.3 acre), <br />sagebrush/annual grassland (2.8 acre), and rock/basalt cliff (0.6 acre). Short-term disturbance would occur <br />to approximately 22.0 acres of vegetation. General vegetation impacts are similar to those described <br />above for Route Segment 1a/NNR-1. Disturbance would be minimized by RDFs described above that are <br />designed to reduce impacts to vegetation resources. RDFs include using existing public roads to access <br />structure sites, minimizing blading and disturbance to plant communities, revegetating following <br />construction, and implementing a Noxious Weed and Invasive Plant Management Plan. Refer to Section <br />2.3 - Required Design Features Common to Action Alternatives for a complete list and description of <br />RDFs. <br />Impacts for Route Segment 3c are anticipated to be: 9.2 miles of no identifiable, 6.0 miles of low, and <br />10.1 miles of moderate. <br />Special Status Species and Priority Habitats <br />No federally listed plant species are known to occur along Route Segment 3c. WNHP data on special <br />status plant occurrences indicate that Route Segment 3c intersects awned halfchaff sedge, Columbia <br />milkvetch, gray cryptantha, hairy bugseed (Corispermum villosum), and Hoover’s desert-parsley. These <br />locations include large buffers, so it is difficult to accurately determine whether these occurrences truly <br />intersect the ROW corridor. In addition, the following species are within one mile of Route Segment 3c: <br />annual sandwort, beaked spike-rush, caespitose evening-primrose, Columbia cress (Rorippa columbiae), <br />fuzzytongue penstemon (Penstemon eriantherus var. whitedii), Geyer’s milkvetch, Great Basin gilia, <br />Piper’s daisy, Nuttall’s sandwort, Snake River cryptantha (Cryptantha spiculifera), Wanapum crazyweed <br />(Oxytropis campestris var. wanapum), and Wormskiold’s northern wormwood. <br />Ninety-nine percent (179.8 acres) of federal lands within this route segment were surveyed for special <br />status plants; however, the majority of Route Segment 3c is comprised of non-federal land (308.7 acres)