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Resource Type
The plow-in pipeline approach caused the least grassland disturbance, resulting in a fescue-bluegrass vegetation community that had the fewest non-native species, the best rough fescue recovery, and the greatest similarity to undisturbed natural grassland. The trenching and topsoil-strip sites caused more disturbance, resulting in a wheat grass community that was very different from undisturbed grassland.
Regardless of pipeline construction technique, the undisturbed sites overall had more native grass, less bare ground (more moss/lichen), more litter, and less wheat grass than the ROW sites