CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION WORKSHEET: RESOURCE CONSIDERATIONS

Transcription

1 CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION WORKSHEET: RESOURCE CONSIDERATIONS Operations Lower Snake WUI Dillon Ranger District White River National Forest Description of the Proposed Action Vegetation management activities include clearcutting, commercial thinning, pre-commercial thinning and pile burning. Treatment units have been identified with the help of local stakeholders through a collaborative process. Table 1: Proposed Treatment Units Unit Number Prescription Logging Method Area Acres (+/- 10%) 101 Clearcut with Leave Tree Ground Based Mechanical Tenderfoot Mountain Clearcut with Leave Tree Ground Based Mechanical Tenderfoot Mountain Clearcut with Leave Tree Ground Based Mechanical Tenderfoot Mountain Clearcut with Leave Tree Ground Based Mechanical Tenderfoot Mountain Clearcut with Leave Tree Ground Based Mechanical Tenderfoot Mountain Clearcut with Leave Tree Ground Based Mechanical Tenderfoot Mountain 34.2 Total Tenderfoot Mountain Treatments Clearcut with Leave Tree Ground Based Mechanical Frey Gulch Clearcut with Leave Tree Ground Based Mechanical Frey Gulch Clearcut with Leave Tree Ground Based Mechanical Frey Gulch Clearcut with Leave Tree Ground Based Mechanical Frey Gulch Coppice Clearcut Hand Frey Gulch Hand Crews Lop & Pre-commercial Thinning Scatter / Pile & Burn Frey Gulch Hand Crews Lop & Pre-commercial Thinning Scatter / Pile & Burn Frey Gulch Hand Crews Lop & Pre-commercial Thinning Scatter / Pile & Burn Frey Gulch 18.9 Total Frey Gulch Treatments Coppice Clearcut Ground Based Mechanical Montezuma Road Coppice Clearcut Hand Montezuma Road 8.4 Total Montezuma Road Treatments Coppice Clearcut Ground Based Mechanical Keystone Gulch Coppice Clearcut Ground Based Mechanical Keystone Gulch 9.7 LOWER SNAKE WUI - OPERATIONS 1

2 Unit Acres Prescription Logging Method Area Number (+/- 10%) 208 Coppice Clearcut Hand Keystone Gulch Patch Clearcut Keystone Gulch 215.2* 301 Commercial Thinning Keystone Gulch 35.9* 302 Patch Clearcut Keystone Gulch 114.5* 302 Commercial Thinning Keystone Gulch 19.1* Total Keystone Gulch Treatments Ground Based Mechanical Clearcut with Leave Tree /Hand Swan Mountain Road Clearcut with Leave Tree Hand Swan Mountain Road Clearcut with Leave Tree Hand Swan Mountain Road Clearcut with Leave Tree Hand Swan Mountain Road Clearcut with Leave Tree Hand Swan Mountain Road Clearcut with Leave Tree Hand Swan Mountain Road Clearcut with Leave Tree Hand Swan Mountain Road 3.0 Total Swan Mountain Road Treatments Total Treatment Acres Total Proposed Project Area 1,572.4 *These acres represent the portion of the unit that would be treated using the described silviculture treatment under the project activities. The total number of acres within units 301 and 302 total 1,099. Implementation Methods Ground Based Mechanical Ground based machinery would be used to harvest trees and remove them from the stand. Conventional logging equipment typically includes harvesters, rubber tired skidders, stroke de-limbers, chippers/grinders, chip vans and log trucks. Trees may be processed (limbed and cut to length) in the forest or at a landing, provided all design features for fuel loading and coarse woody retention are adhered to. The Forest Service would encourage the utilization of slash for biomass. Helicopter Yarding The majority of Keystone Gulch is too steep for conventional ground based operations. Therefore, helicopter yarding could be used as an option to transport trees felled by chainsaw crews to landings. Landings would be located along the Keystone Gulch Road and on the Keystone Resort road system. An alternative to helicopter yarding would be to hand fell proposed treatment areas and pile and burn limbs and small diameter trees. Hand Treatments Hand felling would consist of crews with chainsaws to fell trees. The units selected for this treatment method are areas that contain lodgepole pine, but have features that limit the use of ground based machinery, such as steep slopes (greater than 40%), limited access, and wetland areas. Limbs and small diameter trees (<8.0 diameter) would be piled and burned to reduce flashy fuel accumulations. In some cases, tree boles may be pulled out of the stand using winches, cut into firewood and carried out of the stand or cable yarded. In these units a small amount of ground based machinery may be used to treat LOWER SNAKE WUI - OPERATIONS 2

3 vegetation (such as cutting trees, piling slash, chipping, skidding) if a site visit indicates that doing so would not be contradictory to requirements specified in the White River Forest Plan or project design features. Residual fuel loading would meet requirements specified in the design features. In precommercial thinning units, cut trees would either be lopped and scattered or piled for later burning by the Forest Service. Required Design Features The following design features are required to ensure compliance with the regulatory framework for this resource and/or to reduce the risk of adverse impacts to this resource. A description is provided as to when, where and how the design feature should be applied and/or what conditions would trigger the need to apply the design feature. 1. For public safety during helicopter operations (units 301 and 302), treatment units and areas under helicopter flight paths would be closed to the public using a special closure order. This would affect Keystone Gulch Road (FSR 175), and portions of the Keystone Aqueduct Trail (FDT 1029) and the West Ridge Trail (FDT 176). Press releases, signage, barricades, existing gates, and on the ground personnel would be used to inform the public and implement the closure. Anticipated Effectiveness: Anticipated to moderately effective. During active helicopter operations, Forest Service personnel may be needed at the gate on FSR 175 to ensure compliance with mountain bikers and hikers. Cause-Effect Relationship One issue identified by the public was that helicopter logging was noisy and may affect recreation and wildlife in the project area. The Biological Evaluation and Biological Assessment analyzed the effects of helicopter logging on wildlife in the area. The Recreation report prepared for the Lower Snake WUI discloses that closures associated with the project may impact recreational users and cause them to seek alternate areas that offer similar recreational experiences. This analysis strictly deals with the noise created by helicopters during logging operations. The area adjacent to Keystone Gulch is subject to a variety of common noises associated with an active resort community. Construction projects, home construction, home re-modeling, and ski area resort improvements are all common adjacent to the project area. A KMax helicopter is the most efficient helicopter used for heavy payloads at elevations near 9,000 feet. The KMax would be the helicopter of choice and is the helicopter widely used at high elevations in Colorado. Sounds from any source that are undesirable, extraneous or interferes with ones hearing can be considered noise. Noise is considered a human health concern as it can interfere with speech communication and hearing. Unwanted noise varies by individuals and is often subjective. An individual s response or reaction to noise is influenced by the type of noise, the sensitivity of the LOWER SNAKE WUI - OPERATIONS 3

4 individual to noise, the area around the individual in relation to the noise and the time of day. Other factors may also be present. Sound is measured in decibels on the A-weighted scale (dba) and is 1 based on a logarithmic scale to account for the wide range of audible sound intensities. Under the logarithmic scale for sound (and noise), a 10-dBA increase would increase sound intensity by 10 times; a 20-dBA increase would increase sound intensity by 100 times. As a result, methods have been developed for weighting the sound frequency spectrum to approximate the response of the human ear. The dba scale is widely used for environmental noise assessments because of its relative convenience and accuracy in correlating with people s judgments of what constitutes noise. 1 Typical A-weighted sound and noise levels associated with common activities or situations are shown in Table 1. Table 1. Typical A-weighted sound and noise levels associated with common sound Noise (Source: CEQ 1970.) Noise Level (dba) Source ft. 150 (CEQ 1970.) Firearms, jet engine 140 (CEQ 1970.) Jackhammer 130 (CEQ 1970.) Auto 3 ft. 120 (CEQ 1970.) Chipper Hass LFPDC#58 Gas lawnmower, snowblower 106 (CEQ 1970.) Heavy 50 ft. 90 (CEQ 1970.) Helicopter (in 500 ft.kmax 82 4 Swanson 20ft LFPDC# LFPDC#58 Freeway 50 ft. 70 (CEQ 1970.) Light automobile 50 ft. 60 (CEQ 1970.) Normal 15 ft. 50 (CEQ 1970.) Moderate rainfall 50 (CEQ 1970.) Living room 40 (CEQ 1970.) Soft 15 ft. 30 (CEQ 1970.) Broadcasting studio 20 (CEQ 1970.) Threshold of hearing 0 (CEQ 1970.) OSHA Standard (i) (l) requires hearing protection to be worn when sound levels exceed certain limits (generally, a daily average of 85 or 90 decibels, depending on the circumstances). 1 EIS for Previously Issued Oil and Gas Leases in the White River National Forest, Preliminary Draft, Some Measured Levels of Noise Produced by Logging Equipment in 1998, August 7, 2003 Louisiana Forest Products Development Center Working Paper #58 4 Reference from KMax noise comparison chart LOWER SNAKE WUI - OPERATIONS 4

5 A noise comparison in of a KMax helicopter in Table 1 shows that the 82 decibel reading for a Kmax Helicopter is lower than heavy truck traffic (90 decibels) and higher than freeway traffic (70 decibels). The table shows the KMax decibel reading significantly lower than a gas lawnmower (106 decibels), chainsaw ( decibels) and automobile horn (120 decibels) noise. Skidders and log loaders have decibel readings of approximately decibels at full throttle. Helicopter noise from any one point in the project area would fluctuate due to the distance of the individual hearing the noise and the constant movement of the helicopter. There would be a higher duration of noise near landing locations as more helicopter time would be spent at those locations hovering. The loudest noise from helicopter operations would be referred to as rotor chop. Rotor chop tends to increase in intensity and fade as the helicopter s position (angle and distance) changes relative to the individual hearing the noise. Noise duration during daylight hours is cyclical and dependent upon flight conditions and fueling operations. Flight time between treatment areas and landings would be typically 1 to 5 minutes, depending on the distance of the flight. Helicopters refuel approximately every hour of flight time. A refueling period could last minutes. This cycle could continue from sunup to sundown, but is limited to pilot flight time of no more than 8 hours. Consistent with helicopter noise, associated logging activity noise such as chainsaws, skidder, chipper, log loader and logging trucks/chip vans would be present. Chainsaw activity would be concentrated in cutting units and skidder, log loader, chipper, log truck/chip vans would be concentrated at the landing areas. Chippers, if used, would have the highest noise output at 120 Decibels. Individuals near the landing areas would experience a higher level of noise than those farther away. The noise effects for helicopter yarding and associated activities are local and short term in nature and would not be significant to the human environment. Regulatory Framework The proposed action has been reviewed and is determined to be in compliance with the management framework applicable to this resource. The laws, regulations, policies and Forest Plan direction applicable to this project and this resource are as follows: White River National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan The 2002 White River National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan does not provide standards and guidelines for noise and safety for project level activities. Extraordinary Circumstances Following are the resource conditions that should be considered in determining whether extraordinary circumstances related to a proposed action warrant further analysis and documentation in an EA or an EIS: LOWER SNAKE WUI - OPERATIONS 5

6 1) Federally listed threatened or endangered species or designated critical habitat, species proposed for Federal listing or proposed critical habitat, or Forest Service sensitive species; 2) Flood plains, wetlands, or municipal watersheds; 3) Congressionally designated areas, such as wilderness, wilderness study areas, or national recreation areas; 4) Inventoried roadless areas or potential wilderness areas; 5) Research natural areas; 6) American Indians and Alaska Native religious or cultural sites; and 7) Archaeological sites, or historic properties or areas. No extraordinary circumstances need to be considered for this resource. LOWER SNAKE WUI - OPERATIONS 6