Wallowa- Whitman National Forest

Transcription

1 United States Department of z:::z=;; Agriculture USDA Forest Service Wallowa- Whitman National Forest Wallowa Mountains ice 201 East 2nd Street P.O. Box 905 Joseph, OR /2210 Date: November 26,2014 File Code: Dear Project Reviewer, This letter describes the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest's proposal to authorize livestock grazing within the Big Sheep Divide Rangeland Analysis area. The Big Sheep Divide Rangeland area includes four livestock grazing allotments: Bear Gulch, Big Sheep, Carrol Creek, and Divide, all of which are located in the Wallowa Valley Ranger District. The Forest Service invites you to participate in the development of this analysis by responding to this letter and visiting with our staff as the analysis progresses. Location The Big Sheep Divide Range Analysis area is located approximately 16 miles east of Enterprise, Oregon and encompasses 46,506 acres. There are 2,909 acres of private land within the project area and the remainder is on National Forest System lands (see map 1). The Big Sheep Divide Range Analysis area is within lands ceded by the Nez Perce Tribe in Purpose and Need The purpose of this project is to implement the direction of the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan) by providing grazing on National Forest System lands where suitable. This analysis is being prepared to determine under what management strategies the Forest Service should continue to authorize livestock grazing in the four allotments identified in this project. The needs for this project are to: Allow grazing on suitable lands, as directed by Congress, where consistent with other multiple use goals and objectives Contribute to the economic and social well-being of communities that depend on range resources for their livelihood by providing opportunities for economic diversity and stability The final assessment of the Big Sheep Divide Range Analysis project area will provide guidance to move rangelands within the project area toward desired resource conditions. Caring for the Land and Serving People Printed on Recycled Paper

2 Proposed Action The conditions within the Big Sheep Divide Range Analysis project area are evaluated based on direction in the Forest Plan. The proposal would authorize grazing, management, and proposed actions as described below. The proposed action is the same as the current management condition. Information Acres (NF/PVT) Bear Gulch Big Sheep 8,964 NF 259 PVT 18;787 NF 1760 PVT Carrol Creek 1,100 NF 890 PVT Divide 14,746 NF Authorized Permit Type Private - Private Private #of Units 5 0- Type 5 Cow Icalf Cowvcalf - 6 lcow Icalf 6 Cowl calf Permitted Number ~ Head Months Duration 4/ /16-11/10 7/1- ro/31 4/16-6/30 11/1-12/31 5/ /1-12/31 4/25-5/20 6/1-7/31 11/1-12/15 4/25-5/20 6/1-7/31 11/1-12/15 6/11-10/20 0 Nf=National Forest System Lands PVT=Private Land Bear Gulch - Bear Gulch is grazed by cows with calves between April 16 and November 11 each year. The planned use of the allotment is 852 head months, where 1 head month equals one cow/calf pair for one month. Private land grazed in conjunction with the allotment allows an additional 131 head months of use by cows with calves during the same period. Bear Gulch allotment is 5 pastures of which about 9000 acres are National Forest ~ _S ystern lands.and 260- acres.are.private. ownership.- paldih-gs-g-a-tgb.-:f'ly-es-i-le-ne-spalding-i-ij--- --and listed fish or designated critical habitat for listed fish species are known to exist either within or adjacent to the Bear Gulch. Big Sheep - Big Sheep is grazed by cows with calves between April 16 and December 31 each year. The planned use of the allotment is 1881 head months. Private land grazed in conjunction with the allotment allows an additional 404 head months of use by cows with calves during the same period. Big Sheep allotment is 5 pastures of which about 18,800 acres are National Forest System lands and 1,760 acres are private ownership. Spaldings catchfly (Silene Spaldingii) and listed fish or designated critical habitat for listed fish species are known to exist either within or adjacent to the Big Sheep. Carrol Creek - Carrol Creek is grazed by cows with calves between April 25 and July 31 and November 1 to December 15 each year. The planned use of the allotment is 169

3 head months. Private land grazed in conjunction with the allotment allows an additional 353 head months of use by cows with calves during the same period. Carrol Creek allotment is 6 pastures of which about 1,100 acres are National Forest System Lands and 890 acres are private ownership. Listed fish or designated critical habitat for listed fish species are known to exist either within or adjacent to the Carrol Creek. A fence is proposed to be constructed east of Big Sheep Creek in the Big Sheep Riparian pastures to distribute cattle away from Big Sheep Creek and salmon habitat. Divide - Divide is grazed by cows with calves between June 11 and October 20 each year. The planned use of the allotment is 976 head months. Divide allotment is 6 pastures of which about 14,500 acres are National Forest System Lands. Listed fish or designated critical habitat for listed fish species are known to exist either within or adjacent to the Divide. An upland spring near Salt Creek is proposed for development to reduce impacts to the ground water dependent ecosystem and aid in cattle distribution. The enclosure in Carrol Creek on the Divide is proposed to be increased in size to enclose the entirety of the meadow. Common to all s - Assessment and inventories of the Rangeland condition revealed that past management practices (homesteading, farming, grazing and timber management) have altered rangeland condition. However, current monitoring indicates that overall, the allotments are in a satisfactory condition, with the exception of a few focused areas of concern. Possible Issues There are several possible issues that are related to the proposed grazing action that the environmental analysis will assess, including the effects of grazing on: Introduction and spread of invasive weeds Listed fish species and habitat Listed plant species and habitat Potential Alternatives In addition to the proposed action, a no grazing alternative will also be analyzed in detail. Other alternatives may be developed to respond to concerns identified by the public and resource specialists as the analysis proceeds. Decision to be Made Based upon the interdisciplinary analysis presented in the environmental assessment, the District Ranger will determine the management strategies under which the Forest Service should continue to authorize livestock grazing on the Bear Gulch, Big Sheep, Carrol Creek and Divide s to meet the intent of the Forest Plan. Timeline for the Analysis The Big Sheep Divide Rangeland Analysis is anticipated to be completed in the summer of 2015 and implemented at the beginning of Share your Comments

4 The Forest Service encourages those of you who are interested in this project to become involved in the planning process by providing us with your comments on this proposal and visiting with our staff. Please submit written comments to: Wallowa-Whitman National Forest, Wallowa Mountains ice Attention: Kris Stein Big Sheep Divide Rangeland Analysis PO Box 905 Joseph, Oregon submit comments by telephone, or for more information about the project, please contact Shawn Mork at (541) Please submit your comments by January 3,2015. Comments provided, and the name and address of the person providing the comments, will become a matter of public record. Thank you for reviewing this proposal, and participating in this analysis. Sincerely, Isl Kris Stein KRIS STEIN District Ranger

5 /' I 'lmlaiij!iiiflrvlibilman Nafioo;ail iferes liiilhiflvicinit ' ow0reg00l <w.~c,fbsidra. Alletments ~:c! J~~ r.tig ( r::jl BEAR GULCH P SHEEP CARROL CREEK tj~~jd::::e T.4 S. J,~ l'l' R. 45 E. ~O OMOE Pmare i " Private land-waived ~ / /" R41E. Map 1. Vicinity map of BSDRA analysis area in relation to the state of Oregon, and the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest.