Idaho Panhandle National Forests

Transcription

1 United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service Idaho Panhandle National Forests St. Joe Ranger District 222 S. 7 th St. Suite 1 St. Maries, ID (208) File Code: 1950 Date: January 12, 2016 Dear Friends and Neighbors of the St. Joe Ranger District: The St. Joe Ranger District of the Idaho Panhandle National Forest is considering a proposal to harvest timber in the 2015 Marble Creek Fire Area, located within the Daveggio and Boulder Creek Drainages (Sec. 6 and 7, T44N, R4E, BM) in Shoshone County, Idaho. This project, Marble Fire Salvage, is located approximately ten miles southwest of Avery, Idaho near Daveggio Knob (see attached maps; pp. 5 and 6). I am interested in any specific comments you may have regarding this project. The following sections include the background, proposed action, and purpose and need applied in the development of the Marble Fire Salvage project. Background The Marble Creek Fire was started, on August 10, 2015, by lightning near Daveggio Knob in the Marble Creek drainage. This Fire burned during a period with abnormally dry fuel conditions, as significant drought conditions persisted over most of northern Idaho. The fire burned 3,235 acres and was controlled on November 10, The Marble Creek Fire occurred on lands of mixed ownership, including: National Forest System lands (NFS) (1,224 acres); State of Idaho lands (986 acres); and high-value private industrial timber lands (1,025 acres) managed by Hancock Forest Management, Potlatch Corporation, and Molpus Timberlands Management. Proposed Action The Forest Service is proposing salvage/sanitation timber harvest on 173 acres of forest that experienced low-, moderate-, and high-fire severity during the 2015 Marble Creek Fire event. Of the 173 acres of proposed timber harvest, 36 acres were previously designated as old growth forest. Due to fire severity in the old growth stands they: (1) may no longer meet old growth criteria in accordance with Old-Growth Forest Types of the Northern Region (Green et al. 2011); (2) may be dead and dying stands that do not meet criteria for old growth; and (3) are included in the 173 total acres above for harvest. If determined to meet minimum criteria for old growth these stands will be immediately excluded from the proposed harvest. Caring for the Land and Serving People Printed on Recycled Paper

2 Figure 1: Aerial view of Marble Creek Fire on 9 September, 2015 All timber would be harvested using a ground-based harvest system following current best management practices (BMP) and 2015 IPNF Forest Plan Forestwide Direction guidelines (e.g., ground-based equipment operations limited to slopes < 40%). Treatments would remove dead and dying trees, while maintaining surviving long-lived, early-seral, fire adapted tree species (e.g., western larch). Mountain hemlock will be left standing where they do not pose a safety concern, and to provide over-story structure and potential habitat. Harvested areas would be replanted with early-seral, long-lived species (e.g., western larch and western white pine). Approximately 0.5 mile of temporary road would be constructed to facilitate harvesting operations; there would be no stream crossings. After harvest units are planted, all temporary road would be decommissioned and seeded for re-vegetation. We expect to complete the harvest in the summer of Activity fuels would be burned and units planted in Purpose and Need The project is needed to capture the economic value of remaining forest product in the project area; protect the health and safety of workers and the public; and to re-forest suitable portions of the landscape affected by the 2015 Marble Creek Fire. The project is on general forestlands suitable for timber production, and follows the desired conditions and standards as defined in the 2015 IPNF Forest Plan for Management Area (MA) 6 lands. As stated in the 2015 Forest Plan, in this area, vegetation management activities have a dominant role in affecting the composition, structure, and pattern of vegetation. These management activities trend the vegetation towards the desired conditions. Although natural ecological process and disturbances are still present, they are influenced more by human activity (MA-DC-VEG-01). 2

3 Categorical Exclusion (CE) The preliminary analysis of this proposal indicates it falls into a category of actions that may be excluded from documentation in an environmental assessment (EA), or environmental impact statement (EIS). It is has been determined that the Marble Fire Salvage project meets the following categorical exclusion: Salvage of dead and/or dying trees not to exceed 250 acres, requiring no more than ½ mile of temporary road construction. The proposed action may include incidental removal of live or dead trees for landings, skid trails, and road clearing. Other Information (36 CFR 220.6(e)(13)) Stands that meet criteria for old growth or are allocated for old growth management will not be proposed for treatment. Public access in the area would not change. The project is not in any congressionally designated areas or research natural areas. Preliminary analysis and surveys indicate the project would not affect threatened, endangered, or sensitive species; floodplains, wetlands, or municipal watersheds; American Indian religious or cultural sites; or archaeological sites or historical properties or areas. Comments I invite your comments on this proposal. I am the responsible official for this project, and I will consider all public comments before making a decision. Submitted comments should provide specific facts, along with supporting reasons, which you believe should be considered in reaching a decision. Please send written comments to: Matthew A. Davis District Ranger Marble Fire Salvage St. Joe Ranger District 222 S 7 th Street, Suite 1 St. Maries, ID Oral comments must be provided at my office during normal business hours, via telephone or in person, or if during non-business hours, must be at an official agency function (such as a public meeting), which is designed to elicit public comment. All comments must be submitted by February 11 th Electronic comments may be submitted to comments-northern-idpanhandle_stjoe@fs.fed.us. The subject line must contain the name of the project: Marble Fire Salvage. 3

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