Twins Project Scoping Report

Transcription

1 Twins Project Scoping Report Table of Contents Page I. Introduction 1 II. Purpose of and Need for Action 1 A. Landscape Ecosystem/Management Indicator 4 Habitat B. Spatial Patterns 6 C. Additional Wildlife Habitat Management 7 D. Fuel Reduction 8 E. Forest Products 9 F. Forest Health 9 Ill. Proposed Action 10 A. Development of the Proposed Action 10 B. Proposed Action 11 Attachments 1. Landscape Ecosystem Objectives and Management Indicator Habitats 2. Roadless Areas 3. List of Proposed Stands and Treatments 4. Description of Treatments 5. Twins Proposed Action Map 6. Operational Standards and Guidelines Twins Scoping Report i

2 I. Introduction The purpose of the Twins Project is to implement the Superior National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan or FP). The proposed activities are intended to move the Twins Project Area from its existing condition toward the desired conditions described in the Forest Plan. The proposed activities would manage forest vegetation composition, structure and spatial patterns. Proposed activities include: Creating young forest stands with regeneration harvests Creating stands with two ages with regeneration harvests Improving stand structure and within-stand diversity with intermediate harvests and interplanting Restoring stand conditions without harvest, such as: - Planting long-lived tree species to enhance riparian areas - Mechanically preparing sites to plant and reforest areas Reducing fuel hazards in wildland urban interface areas Constructing temporary roads to access units and obliterating the roads when activities are complete The Twins Project Area is located in Cook County about fifteen miles northwest of Grand Marais, MN. Activities would be on National Forest System lands within Township 62 North, Ranges 1 and 2 West, and Range 1 East, Township 63 North, Ranges 1 and 2 West, and Range 1 East. The Twins Project Area encompasses 41,272 acres, of which 27,616 acres are National Forest System land. The Vicinity Map (Figure 1) shows the general location of the Twins Project Area. If a decision is made to implement these activities, the proposed actions would be implemented beginning in Implementation of the primary treatments would occur over five years. II. Purpose of and Need for Action An interdisciplinary team (IDT) of natural resource specialists compared the Twins Project Areas existing conditions with desired conditions and objectives in the Forest Plan through an analysis called the Twins Mid-level Assessment. This Assessment considered all resources (vegetation, recreation, wildlife, watershed, etc.) and recommended possible opportunities and management actions from individual resource specialists to move the project area toward Forest Plan desired conditions. The District Ranger chose to address forest vegetation management as the primary purpose and need for this project. The Forest Plan divides the Superior National Forest outside the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) into ten management areas. Chapter 3 of the Forest Plan includes the desired conditions, objectives, standards, and guidelines for each Management Area (MA). The Twins Project Area overlaps two Forest Plan Management Areas; the northern half of the project area is in the General Forest Management Area Twins Scoping Report 1

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4 (Forest Plan (FP) p. 3-6) and the southern half is in the General Forest- Longer Rotation Management Area (FP pp. 3-10, 3-11). The Twins Project Area Vicinity Map (Figure 1) also displays these two management areas. The desired condition of the vegetation in these management areas is similar in the following aspects: Forests in this management area are largely a mosaic of tree groupings of different ages and heights. A variety of stand sizes, shapes, crown closures, age structures, and interspersions occur. Forest health is maintained and management investments are protected to sustain the productivity of the area. To maintain or restore vegetation communities, natural disturbances to the landscape are mimicked through management activities such as timber harvest and management-ignited fires. Fire is also used as a tool to prepare sites for regenerating new forests and to reduce woody fuel that could cause wildfires. A full range of silvicultural practices is used. The differences in the desired conditions for the two Management Areas are: General Forest: Larger patch sizes are emphasized, especially those patches associated with young, even-aged vegetative conditions. The forest has a fairly continuous canopy and frequent openings of various sizes up to 1,000 acres. Forest vegetation communities are managed with practices that mimic ecosystem processes, mainly stand replacement disturbance. Compared to the General Forest - Longer Rotation MA, there is more even-aged management. Over the course of the planning period, vegetation will be managed to generally represent young to mature (0 to 150 year old) vegetative growth stages. General Forest Longer Rotation: Some larger patch sizes would occur within this area, although those associated with young, even-aged vegetative conditions would be less frequent than in the General Forest MA. The forest in the General Forest Longer Rotation MA differs from the General Forest MA in that a greater emphasis is placed on managing for older and larger trees. Forest vegetation communities are generally managed with practices that mimic less severe stand maintenance disturbance, along with some management practices that mimic stand replacement disturbance. Compared to the General Forest MA, there is more uneven aged and partial cut harvesting resulting in more uneven aged and multi-aged forests. When clearcutting is used in this management area, it is often done at longer rotation ages. Over the course of the planning period, vegetation will be managed to generally represent young to old (0 to 250 year old) vegetative growth stages. Twins Scoping Report 3

5 The interdisciplinary team considered the desired vegetation conditions for each management area along with other Forest-wide desired conditions and direction. The current vegetation conditions in the Twins Project Area do not meet Forest Plan desired conditions for landscape ecosystems, spatial patterns, wildlife habitat, fuel reduction and forest products. The differences between the existing and desired conditions were used to develop the purpose and need for this project. A. Landscape Ecosystem and Management Indicator Habitats The purpose of the Twins Project is to maintain and promote native vegetation communities that are diverse, productive, healthy, and resilient by moving the vegetation component toward Landscape Ecosystem and Management Indicator Habitat objectives described in the Forest Plan (O-VG-1, FP p. 2-23). The Twins Project Area is primarily in the Mesic Birch-Aspen-Spruce-Fir (MBA) Landscape Ecosystem (LE) (77%) and the Lowland Conifer Landscape Ecosystem (9%). The Twins Project Area represents 7% of the total Forestwide Mesic Birch-Aspen-Spruce-Fir LE. Of the approximately 21,500 acres in the Mesic Birch-Aspen-Spruce-Fir LE, about 14,000 are Management Indicator Habitat 4 (aspen-birch, mixed aspen-conifer). Red pine and jack pine forest types are only small potions (3%) of the ecosystem. White pine forest type only accounts for 7% of the Mesic Birch-Aspen-Spruce-Fir LE but this is a higher percentage than the landscape ecosystem-wide average of 3%. Currently, the largest age class in the Twins Project Area is years (40%). Attachment 1 includes tables that compare the age class and composition of the Twins Project Area with Forestwide landscape ecosystem objectives. Opportunities to move the existing condition of the Twins Project Area closer to the desired condition are highlighted below. Create young age class in MBA LE Young age class historically has been and today continues to be an important component of the Mesic Birch-Aspen-Spruce-Fir LE. It provides habitat needs for various species such as browse for moose and deer (young aspen/birch) or nesting and feeding habitat for Landscape Ecosystems (LE) are ecological areas characterized by their dominant vegetation communities and patterns, which are a product of local climate, glacial topography, dominant soils, and natural processes, such as succession, fire, wind, insects, and disease (Forest Plan p. 2-55). Vegetation composition, age class, tree species diversity, and management indicator habitat objectives are specified for each landscape ecosystem on the Superior National Forest. Management Indicator Habitat (MIH) represent the habitats used by a wide variety of native species, including management indicator species, game species, and a majority of Regional Forester s Sensitive Species that are part of that habitat. Management indicator habitats provide a means of monitoring and evaluating the effects of actions on biotic resources, including specific species, communities, habitats and interrelationships among organisms. Managing for these objectives is a key component of providing for the full diversity of desired wildlife habitats. migratory birds. The young age class (0 to 9 years) objective for Mesic Birch-Aspen- Spruce-Fir LE is 10% forest-wide in the first decade (FP p. 2-70). All of the acres in the 0-9 age class at the beginning of the decade will move out into an older age class by the end the decade. Currently, forest-wide there is 5% in the young age class and in the Twins Project Area, there is 8%, predominately in the southern portion of the project area. The Maple Hill Project (analyzed in 2008 and decided in 2009) will also create young age class in the Twins Scoping Report 4

6 southern portion of the Twins Project Area. Even so, by 2014, there will only be 6% in the young age class. There is an opportunity within the project area to increase the component of young, upland, deciduous forest (MIH 2) and young aspen-birch forest (MIH4) (D-WL-3, FP p and Table MBA-4, FP p. 2-72). Figure 2: Example of a mature aspen-birch stand in the Twins Project Area. Figure 3: Example of a mature lowland conifer stand in the Twins Project Area Create young age class in Lowland Conifer LE Young age class has been a component of the Lowland Conifer Landscape Ecosystem however to a lesser extent than in the upland landscape ecosystems. The young age class (0 to 9 years) objective for Lowland Conifer Landscape Ecosystem (in the MBA LE) is 2% forest-wide in the first decade (FP p. 2-76). All of the acres in the 0-9 age class at the beginning of the decade will move out into an older age class by the end the decade. Currently, forest-wide and in the Twins Project Area, there is less than one percent in the young age class. There is an opportunity within the project area to increase the component of young lowland forest (Management Indicator Habitat 9). Maintain and increase white pine and create multi-aged stands Forest Plan objective O-WL-32 states increase amount of white pine to amounts more representative of natural communities by planting or naturally regenerating white pine in white pine forest types and in other upland deciduous, mixed and conifer forest types. Because of its long life and large size, white pine provides important structural diversity in the forest and is used by many wildlife species. For example, mature white pine is used by eagles (a sensitive species) and osprey as nest trees. Twins Scoping Report 5

7 Forest Plan objectives also include developing and maintaining more multi-aged stands and uneven-aged stands across the forest (D-VG-6b, FP p. 2-22). These types of stands would promote old growth characteristics, an integral part of the ecosystem. The Twins Project Area has a higher than average percentage of stands typed as white pine (7%); additionally there is a white pine component, individual trees or groups of trees, scattered throughout many other stands in the area. However, young white pine rarely becomes established under current conditions. In the long term, without treatment, some of these stands will lose the pine component through disease, windthrow and old age, and balsam fir will eventually become established in the understory. There is a need to establish pine regeneration in the understory to promote multi-age and old growth characteristics and to perpetuate pine in the future. Removing blister rust infected trees from white pine stands can improve the health of the stand and provide growing space for pine regeneration. Maintain or increase jack pine Jack pine is a pioneer species and without disturbance (harvest or wildland fire) jack pine stands will succeed to spruce-fir. Landscape ecosystem objectives for Mesic Birch-Aspen- Spruce-Fir LE call for 4% in jack pine and currently there is 3%. To maintain this species component, it is necessary to harvest and regenerate old jack pine stands before they succeed to spruce-fir and before they stop producing seed. The northern and western portions of the Twins Project Area have drier, sandier soils suitable for jack pine forest. Currently many of these sites are balsam fir and there is an opportunity to restore these areas to jack pine. Maintain birch Paper birch is declining in the Twins Project Area (and across much of the Superior National Forest). Over 70% of the birch in the project area is over 80 years old, the age at which birch declines in vigor and ability to regenerate. In many of these stands balsam fir is increasing in the understory and without treatment the stand would likely succeed to balsam fir with a small birch component. The birch forest is an integral part of the Mesic Birch- Aspen-Spruce-Fir LE and there is a need to treat (disturb) the older birch stands to regenerate them. B. Spatial Patterns According to the Forest Plan, the desired condition of vegetation spatial landscape patterns is the restoration of diversity in size, shape, and distribution of forest patches (D-VG-7b and c, FP p. 2-22). Restoring diversity of forest patches would gradually re-establish conditions that more closely emulate landscape scale patterns which would result from natural disturbances and other ecological processes. The Twins Project Area is in Spatial Zone 3 (FP p. 2-25). Forest Plan direction for Spatial Zone 3 is: strive to minimize the decrease in acres and numbers of patches of mature or Patch A forest patch is defined as a group of forest stands of similar ages that may be made up of different forest cover types. older upland forest in patches greater than 300 acres. Age and composition objectives will be considered the primary drivers of forest condition in this zone. When determining which large upland mature patches will be retained, take into consideration the contribution of Twins Scoping Report 6

8 BWCAW acres and other unmanaged lands within the same ecological setting and proximity (O-VG-24, FP p. 2-27). Additional Forest Plan direction includes: Increase average size of temporary forest openings. Reduce amount of forest edge created through vegetation management activities, while still retaining a range of small patches and edge habitat (O-VG-21, FP p. 2-26). Create larger patches of young forest stands Some of the spatial landscape patterns (such as the size of young patches) in the Twins Project Area are smaller than what would result from natural disturbances. This is primarily as a result of smaller harvest units in the last 10 to 20 years. As described under Management Area direction, the desired upland patches in the General Forest MA (the northern portion of the project area) will typically be larger than those in the General Forest Longer Rotation. Larger young patches would then provide for larger future mature/old patches. C. Additional Wildlife Habitat Management Desired conditions for wildlife are addressed both through wildlife management direction and through direction for other physical and biological resources. This is because the amount, quality, distribution, and ecological function of terrestrial and aquatic habitats are largely dependent on the environmental conditions of: vegetation, watersheds and riparian areas, soil resources, natural disturbances, and other ecological processes (FP, p. 2-28). This project moves conditions towards Forest-wide desired quality and quantity of habitat for Management Indicator Habitats (MIH) and Management Indicator Species (MIS). Objectives for Management Indicator Habitats are tied to landscape ecosystem objectives and are discussed under section A. In addition to the landscape-level wildlife habitat management, there are opportunities in the Twins Project Area to manage habitat at a localized scale as described below. Promote species and structural diversity in stands The Mesic Birch-Aspen-Spruce-Fir LE objectives include restoring within-stand diversity of tree species to conditions that are more representative of native communities (FP p. 2-71). Desired tree species to increase diversity in the Twins Project Area are white pine, jack pine, red pine, white spruce and white birch. The Twins Project Area has many suitable sites for growing white pine, a Management Indicator Species. This longer-lived species is important for wildlife habitat. Structural diversity within stands is also important for quality wildlife habitat. Structural diversity can be enhanced through creation of multi-aged stands or by retaining trees, clumps of trees or patches of trees in treatment areas. Forest Plan direction includes providing structural diversity in vegetation management areas (D-VG-6, FP p. 2-22). Encourage longer lived species in riparian areas Forest Plan direction encourages favoring long-lived tree species such as white pine, red pine and white spruce to benefit both lake and stream riparian and aquatic habitat conditions (FP p. 2-8, D-WS-10, FP p. 2-11, and O-WS-3, -4, and -5, FP p. 2-12). Promote future bald eagle nest sites within known and potential eagle territories and habitat (O-WL-16, FP p. 2- Twins Scoping Report 7

9 31). Riparian habitat surveys indicate that there are opportunities to increase long-lived species in riparian areas. D. Fuel Reduction Reduce hazardous fuels in areas of concern There is a need to reduce the volume, concentrations and proximity to existing structures of hazardous fuels in order to reduce fire behavior of potential wildland fire. There is a potential for unwanted wildland fire to occur and cause damage to values within the project area. The Forest Plan desired condition is one in which accumulations of natural and activity fuels are treated to enhance ecosystem resiliency and maintain desired fuel levels (D- ID-4, FP p. 2-19). In order to meet that desired condition the Forest Plan gives guidance to treat areas of highest fire risk (based on Fire Regime and Condition Class) to minimize effects of unwanted wildland fire (O-ID-3, FP p. 2-19). The Twins Project Area is part of the Two Island Wildland Urban Interface (WUI). The Two Island Wildland Urban Interface was identified as an area in need of fuels treatments for fire prevention improvements the Cook County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Wildland Urban Interface are areas where flammable wildland fuels are adjacent to homes and communities. Fuel hazards are the amount of dead and down material in an area that contribute to the ignition and spread of a fire. Fire risk is the probability of a fire occurring in an area and the risk that poses to values such as structures, recreation sites, and sensitive species. Where high risk coincides with fuel hazard, the probability of fire with undesirable effects is more likely. (CWPP). The Cook County Wildfire Protection Plan was developed by government agencies and local communities to cooperatively plan for fire prevention and protection. The fuel hazard and risk assessment documented an accumulation of hazardous fuels within the Twins Project Area. The fuel hazard primarily occurs in older stands of aspen and birch where overstory trees are dying and collapsing; where the mature balsam fir component has fallen and died; and where thick, regenerating balsam fir is providing an increasing volume of fuel below the existing mature canopy (Figure 4). Balsam fir is of particular concern as a fuel hazard due to its high flammability and its ladder-fuel position in the understory. The combination of understory and overstory fuel loading creates a continuous fuel path for fire to spread from the ground into the canopy, creating high severity crown fires. High intensity fires would decrease firefighter effectiveness to suppress fires and could also increase the chance of losing ecosystem components such as species composition, stand age. The area is of highest concern from a fuel hazard and fire risk perspective is around Kemo, West Twin, and Pine Lakes. The values at risk include structures on private property, a State campground on West Twin Lakes. There is an extensive area of fuel hazards to the west of these structures. Fires typically burn from south to north and southeast to northwest. Therefore, a fire in this area could impact any of the homes around Kemo, West Twin, and Pine Lakes. Twins Scoping Report 8

10 Figure 4: Dense balsam fir understory from a stand in the Twins Project Area, E. Forest Products Provide sustainable timber products The desired condition is the amount of commercial timber sales available for purchase is at a level that is sustainable over time. Mills operating in northern Minnesota can depend on a consistent level of timber harvest on the National Forest (D-TM-1, FP p. 2-20). An additional objective is to provide harvest material to supply sawmills, veneer mills, paper mills, and mills constructing engineered wood products (hardboard, particleboard, oriented strand board, etc.). Also provide posts, poles, and logs for log home construction (O-TM- 1, FP p. 2-20). Vegetation management in the Twins Project Area has the opportunity to provide wood products (including biomass) for businesses and mills in northern Minnesota. Approximately 2,000 acres of forest within the Twins Project Area have been identified as needing some type of treatment in order to improve stand health and enhance growth, balance age class distribution or species composition, improve wildlife habitat, and reduce fuels in Wildland Urban Interface areas. These acres are also suitable for commercial timber harvest at this time (at the right age, basal area, percent crown closure, etc.). Treatments to meet the other project objectives could be accomplished through the sale of marketable wood products, including tops of trees for biomass. Timber harvesting on the suitable forestland within the project area would meet the needs of sustaining a healthy forest and providing an economic opportunity to local communities. F. Forest Health Improve productivity of stands with low tree stocking The forest cover (trees) in some upland stands is undergoing heavy mortality as a natural part of aging. Typically, regeneration of shade tolerant species such as balsam fir begins establishing itself in the understory as the overstory dies. However, in a patch of stands on the western edge of the project area, regeneration is not occurring as the overstory is falling over. This area is predominately shrubs with few trees; these stands need management to reestablish tree species. Forest Plan objectives are to reestablish adequately stocked stands Twins Scoping Report 9

11 to maintain forest continuum (D-VG-7, FP p. 2-22) and address timber management objectives where there is adequate ecological representation of brush species (O-VG-12, FP p. 2-24). Ill. Proposed Actions A. Development of the Proposed Action Once the interdisciplinary team and District Ranger determined the need for action (purpose and need), the interdisciplinary team considered what actions to take and where to take them to meet the needs identified. There is a multitude of ways to accomplish the objectives. Each treatment method has different effectiveness and causes different effects to other resources. Where possible, it is desirable for a proposed treatment to accomplish multiple objectives. The interdisciplinary team sought the combination of treatments that they felt best accomplishes the objectives while minimizes adverse affects. The following are some items the interdisciplinary team considered while developing the proposed action. The area with the highest need for fuels concern is around Kemo, Pine, and Twins Lakes. This area has year old birch and aspen in which the overstory trees are dying. The interdisciplinary team considered treating this area to accomplish multiple objectives of reducing fuel hazard, creating young age class, managing large patches and regenerating birch-aspen for wildlife habitat. Members of the interdisciplinary team met with landowners in this area and members of the Cook County Wildfire Protection committee to discuss how to cooperatively reduce fuel hazards across all ownerships. While inventorying the forest, a large area on the northwest side of the project area was found that had few trees of any age. Based on the low volume and the ecological need to retain the few remaining trees, these stands were not proposed for harvest. However the team felt it important to restore the productivity of this area through reforestation. About 6,000 acres in the project area around Ball Club Lake are in the Brule Lake - Eagle Mountain Roadless Area identified in the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule (RACR). Since that time the rule has been subject to a number of lawsuits across the country that have rescinded or reinstated the RACR. On May 28, 2009, the Secretary of Agriculture reserved authority for approving harvesting or road building in RACR inventoried roadless areas for one year. The interdisciplinary team did not propose any treatments in the RACR area. See Attachment 2 for more information on roadless areas. The majority of project area overlaps two Lynx Analysis Units (LAU); LAU 39 occurs in the southern half of the project area and LAU 40 occurs in the northern half. Much harvesting has occurred, or will be occurring (through the Maple Hill Project) in the southern portion of Twins Project Area in Lynx Analysis Unit 39. As a result of the harvesting, the amount of change in suitable lynx habitat is approaching the 15% maximum set in Forest Plan standard S-WL-1 (FP p. 2-30) for a ten year period. To protect lynx habitat and meet this Forest Plan standard, the interdisciplinary team limited the proposal for creating young age class in Lynx Analysis Unit 39. Twins Scoping Report 10

12 Through ongoing wildlife monitoring, an active goshawk territory was found in 2008 in mature forest south of Pine Mountain Lake. This area is part of an upland mature patch of about 2,400 acres. While developing the proposed action the interdisciplinary team considered ways to maintain the canopy of the upland mature forest patch containing Pine Mountain Lake and Musquash Lake to retain goshawk habitat. The interdisciplinary team collaborated with and reviewed data from Minnesota Department of Natural Resources specialists. The primary reason for collaboration was to coordinate forest management activities that would occur across ownership boundaries and to share resources. In particular, one area discussed was units , and These stands are white pine and aspen forest type and a portion of these stands are adjacent to a white pine stand the state is managing for old growth. The treatments proposed for these units will enhance the old growth characteristics by retaining some of the canopy, introducing fire into the area, creating a multi-age pine stand and increasing the area with a white pine component. Representatives from 1854 Authority (who represent Grand Portage and Bois Fort Bands of the Lake Superior Chippewa) were contacted and offered the opportunity to collaborate but were not available during the given timeframe. B. Proposed Action This section summarizes what activities are being proposed. More detailed information on what is being proposed can be found in the different attachments. Reviewing all of the information will provide a more complete picture what is being proposed. Attachment 3 lists the specific treatments proposed for each stand. Attachment 4 gives a definition for each of the treatment types. Attachment 5 shows the location of the proposed treatments. Attachment 6 lists the Operational Standards and Guidelines that apply to all units. Operational Standards and Guidelines, based on the Forest Plan and Minnesota Forest Resource Council Guidelines, are an integral part of the proposal and are designed to minimize adverse effects. The summaries of treatment acres provided in Table 1 and 2 are based on the primary treatment type. The acres listed are based on the acres in our vegetation database for each stand proposed for treatment. Acres that would actually be implemented would be less (by 25% or more) because of further refinement of stand boundaries and operable areas during implementation. Depending on the content of public comments and further analysis, the team may recommend additional stands be proposed for treatments in management alternatives. All stands recommended for treatment would fit within the context of the Twins Project Purpose and Need, Forest Plan direction, and agency regulations. The summary in Table 1 emphasizes the outcome of the proposed vegetation management actions based on the objectives identified in the Purpose and Need. In Table 1, acres are counted more than once because treatments often accomplish more than one objective. Twins Scoping Report 11

13 Secondary treatments such as preparing sites for reforestation or reforestation activities (planting and seeding) are shown in the list of specific stand treatments (Attachment 3). A description of each treatment type, such as shelterwood 30 cut, can be found in Attachment 4. Table 1: Summary of Acres Proposed to Meet Objectives in Purpose and Need Objective Acres 1 A. Landscape Ecosystem and Management Indicator Habitats Create young age class in the Mesic Birch-Aspen-Spruce Fir LE Acres of clearcut with reserves, seed tree cut, shelterwood 30 cut, and mechanical site preparation ( as primary treatment) 1780 Create young age class in Lowland Conifer LE Acres of clearcut 42 Maintain and increase white pine and create multi-aged stands Acres of uneven age harvest in red or white pine forest types 163 Acres of white pine regeneration Maintain or increase jack pine Acres of jack pine regeneration Maintain birch Acres of birch regeneration B. Spatial Patterns Create larger patches of young forest stands Acres of large young patches greater than 100 acres 1343 Number of large young patches greater than 100 acres 7 C. Additional Wildlife Habitat Management Promote species and structural diversity in stands Acres of white pine regeneration Acres of jack pine regeneration Acres of birch regeneration Acres of interplanting 618 Acres of shelterwood 30 cut, shelterwood with reserves cut, selection cut 463 Acres of uneven age harvest in white pine 163 Encourage longer lived species in riparian areas Acres of underplanting in riparian areas 169 D. Fuel Reduction Reduce hazardous fuels in area areas of concern Acres of understory fuel reduction (as primary treatment) Acres of harvest with fuel reduction E. Forest Products Provide sustainable timber products Million Board Feet (MMBF) MMBF F. Forest Health Improve stocking of poorly stocked stands Acres of mechanical site preparation (as primary treatment) Acres are summarized from stand acres. Actual treatment acres would be less. 2 Regeneration includes acres of species regenerated as a forest type or a component of a different forest type. 3 Calculation of MMBF is based on estimated treatment acres which would be less than stand acres. A summary of the proposed acres of each treatment type is shown in Table 2. The acres shown are counted only once and can give a picture of the total acres proposed for treatment. The ten primary treatment types are grouped into four broad treatment Twins Scoping Report 12

14 categories. The Proposed Action Map (Attachment 5) uses these categories to display the spatial arrangement of treatments. Even-aged treatments such as clearcut with reserves, seed tree, and shelterwood would create young forest in the 0-9 age class. The majority of trees would be removed; however, some trees would not be cut and would be left standing for wildlife, riparian, scenery, and other resource purposes. Un-even aged treatments such as shelterwood with reserves cut and selection cut would improve conditions for regeneration and maintain the existing age class of the stand. In these treatments, about fifty percent of a stand would be harvested. The intermediate harvest type used in the Twins Project would be thinning. The stand proposed for thinning is a red pine plantation with tightly spaced trees. Thinning would remove about 30 percent of the trees, improving growing conditions for the remaining trees. It would not result in new regeneration in the stand. Even-aged, uneven-aged and intermediate harvests would result in commercial wood products. Restoration activities would improve growing conditions for desired trees. There would be no harvest prior to the treatments and any existing overstory would remain intact. Underplanting is proposed in riparian stands to promote long lived tree species. Where underplanting is the primary treatment type, there would be no mechanical treatment prior to the planting but there may be hand scarification of area where a seedling is planted. Mechanical site preparation (followed by planting) is proposed in stands with minimal live standing trees remaining. Based on the low volume and the ecological need to retain the few remaining trees, these stands were not proposed for harvest. Some of the proposed harvesting listed in Table 2 would reduce hazardous fuels. However additional treatment is proposed in other high risk areas where harvest is not appropriate. These stands are not at rotation age or are not on lands suitable or feasible for timber harvest or there are other ecological reasons for retaining the overstory. In these areas understory fuel reduction would only occur, as shown in Figure 5 and Figure 6, in the understory of the stands. In some cases, long lived species may be underplanted after the fuel reduction treatment. Figure 5: An example of a stand before understory fuel reduction treatment. Figure 6: An example of the same stand after understory fuel reduction treatment. Twins Scoping Report 13

15 Table 2: Summary of Proposed Action by Treatment Type Treatment Description Acres Creating young forest through even-aged harvest treatments Clearcut with Reserves 1474 Seed-Tree Cut 69 Shelterwood Cut 30 with Reserves 86 Creating or maintaining two or more age classes through uneven age harvest Shelterwood Cut with Reserves 244 Selection Cut 141 Improving stand conditions through intermediate harvest treatments Thinning 17 Restoring stands through a variety of non-harvest activities Underplant 94 Understory Fuels Reduction 56 Mechanical Site Preparation 284 Release 61 Total of all Treatment Types 2526 Road access would be needed to proposed harvest units. Possible road locations are shown on the Proposed Action Map, which is Attachment 5. About 12 miles of temporary road would be constructed. All temporary roads would be obliterated using the following actions where appropriate: Culverts and temporary bridges will be removed. Stream crossings will be returned to a more natural state by returning the crossing to the approximate original contour and by stabilizing the crossing banks through revegetation. Original drainages will be reopened and water diversions from roadbeds will be provided. Water bars will be constructed on temporary roads or skid trails in areas with steep slopes. Areas at risk for erosion will be seeded. Windrows of slash or rock along temporary roads will be flattened or spread out. Where available nearby small balsam and spruce will be transplanted into road bed and one cubic yard of rocks (embedded 1/3 of their depth), stumps, and slash will be randomly placed on the visible part of the road to ensure that passage does not seem feasible and is not attempted. Cuts and fills will be re-contoured to pre-road condition. At the access point off the main road, the original ditch will be restored. About 0.5 miles of snowmobile trail would be used as access to treatment units. Once the treatments were complete, the trail tread would be restored. About 0.5 miles of unclassified roads would be used as temporary access. A decision on whether to decommission or convert the unclassified roads to system roads or trails will be made in the Forest-wide Travel Management Project. The Travel Management decision is expected in November 2009, prior to completion of the Twins Environmental Assessment. About 2.7 miles of special use roads would be used for access. Twins Scoping Report 14