Twenty-Fourth Annual Meeting and Symposium of the Desert Tortoise Council, March 5-8, 1999
Abstracts

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is characterizing the suitability of Yucca Mountain in Nye County, Nevada as a potential monitored geologic repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. The DOE is committed to reclaiming lands disturbed by characterization activities and has initiated a habitat reclamation program. This program has included research investigations, interim reclamation (i.e., efforts to maintain topsoil viability prior to final reclamation), and final or permanent revegetation of disturbed sites. Reclamation feasibility studies were conducted from 1992 to 1997 and focused on several aspects of reclamation including establishment techniques by direct seeding and transplanting, water management techniques, and emergence success of several native plant species. Research also has included assessment of herbivory effects on shrub establishment, and use of soil amendments to increase establishment success. Promising techniques from these studies have been implemented during both interim and final reclamation. The selection of proper plant materials and reclamation techniques have been shown to play an important role in revegetation efforts at Yucca Mountain.