The research that has been carried out on N at Westar has been essential to determine the ability of the reclaimed sites to survive once management practices are terminated. It has been established that N is not accumulating in the litter on the soil surface but substantial amounts are being recycled by decomposition processes. A large proportion of the plant N is present in the plant roots; where it should be for a stable, self-sustaining plant system to develop. The labelled fertilizer study

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... as shown that in the older reclaimed sites, only a small portion of the N in the plant comes from the fertilizer and most of it comes from supplies accumulated in the soil. This suggests that present management practices at Westar are successfully creating plant/soil systems on their high elevation reclaimed sites which recycle sufficient nutrients to meet the needs of plant growth.