United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service Huron-Manistee National Forests Mio Ranger District 107 McKinley Road Mio, MI 48647 989-826-3252 (Voice) 989-826-6073 (Fax) Dial 711 for relay service (TTY) File Code: 1950 Date: June 12, 2015 Dear Concerned Citizen, The US Forest Service is offering an opportunity to comment on the Warbler Road KW Project on the Mio Ranger District of the Huron-Manistee National Forests. Proposed Project Location The project area includes sites in Mentor Township, Oscoda County, Michigan. The legal descriptions of the project area are: T25N, R3E, Sections 3, 4, 5, 8, 9 and 10. T26N, R3E, Sections 27, 28, 29, 31, 32, 33 and 34. A project map is enclosed or may be viewed online at: http://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=46462 Background High intensity prescribed burning for jack pine regeneration is only considered when significant manmade and natural barriers help control the fire from escaping. A combination of several different projects from 1992 until present, coupled with the unplanned 1999 ATV and 2012 Little Mack Lake wildfires has created that unique set of conditions and resulted in the proposed Warbler Road KW Project. See attached map for recent wildfires. Several stands within the project area containing northern red oak were thinned in the 1992. Red maple was removed from these stands to improve growing conditions for the remaining oak overstory. However, red maple is an aggressive shade tolerant sprouting species. The thinned stands are now in need of secondary treatment to suppress red maple reproduction in the understory and establish an oak understory. The F-32 project, signed in 2012 authorized a variety of treatments including prescribed fire and spot herbicide application to suppress red maple reproduction. The 1999 ATV wildfire consumed approximately 800 acres within the project area. This fire area regenerated with enough jack pine to support a small number of Kirtland s warblers. However, census surveys have indicated Kirtland s warblers are no longer nesting in this fire scar primarily due the size, age, and density of jack pine trees within the burn area. The Mack Lake/McKinley Ecosystem Management Project authorized the Tower North and South clearcuts in 2008 for creation of Kirtland s warbler (KW) habitat. Those timber sales were sold in 2013 and 2012 respectively. The little Mack Lake Fire in April of 2012 consumed approximately 820 acres of jack pine immediately to the west of the Tower clearcuts. The Little Mack Lake Fire did not consume an isolated 50 acre stand of jack pine immediately adjacent to the Mack Lake Subdivision. The 2013 Mack Lake Wildlife and Fuels CE authorized Caring for the Land and Serving People Printed on Recycled Paper
use of high intensity, stand replacement fire to remove the 50 acres of fuel and create additional KW habitat. This prescribed fire, called the Maple Ridge Prescribed fire, was successfully implemented in May, 2014. The combination of several different projects and two wildfires has led to a situation where use of high intensity fire to manage jack pine is feasible. The following manmade and natural barriers will serve as the majority of the control features for the proposed high intensity prescribed burning. 1. Mack Lake on the south side of the proposed prescribed burning 2. 2012 Little Mack Lake fire scar on the west side of the high intensity burn unit 3. Tower clearcuts on the northeast perimeter of the high intensity burn unit authorized from the 2008 Mack Lake /McKinley project 4. 1999 ATV fire to the northeast of the high intensity burn unit 5. Scheduled prescribed burning to the north of the high intensity burning from the 2012 F- 32 project decision If you wish to see additional information or maps on the Mack Lake/McKinley Project, F-32 Project, or Mack Lake Wildlife and Fuels project please visit the listed websites or contact the Mio Ranger Station. F-32 Project http://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=33906 Mack Lake Wildlife and Fuels Project http://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=40252 Mack Lake/McKinley Project, not available on the web, contact the Mio Ranger Station Purpose and Need of Proposed Project Field review of the proposed project area by Forest Service personnel indicates a need to improve undesirable resource conditions. The purpose of this project is to move the project area toward the desired future condition set forth in the Forest Plan, Management Areas 4.2 and 4.2KW. The project objectives are to: 1. Create breeding habitat for the endangered Kirtland s warbler. Forest Plan objectives include creating 1,600 acres of breeding habitat per year in order to assist in the recovery of this endangered species. The Forest has created approximately 1,100 acres per year over the last decade. The Kirtland s warbler is a conservation dependent species. Without continual creation of breeding habitat the species population would begin to decline. 2. Create early successional habitat for sensitive species, game, and non-game species. Open and young forests provide habitat for species that use open lands, such as whitetailed deer, wild turkey, pollinators, and dusted skipper butterflies. As these jack pine forests grow to approximately five feet tall, habitat is provided for Kirtland s warbler followed by spruce grouse when the trees reach 20 feet tall. 3. Reduce fuel loading to protect public and firefighter safety and restore fire into a fire adapted jack pine ecosystem. The Mack Lake basin has a long history of dangerous stand replacement crown fires. The exclusion of fire only serves to increase fuel loading making the inevitable fires more intense and dangerous. Jack pine and oak are fire adapted tree species. Wildfire is one of the primary ways jack pine and oak regenerates. Use of prescribed fire is the most ecologically sound way to regenerate jack pine and oak.
4. Conduct timber stand improvement by suppressing red maple reproduction in oak stands and stimulating oak regeneration. The Project s northern red oak stands will eventually succeed to red maple. Northern red oak has more desirable wood properties and provides better mast for wildlife. A low to moderate prescribed burn would reduce red maple seedlings and saplings. Fire would also stimulate suppressed oak regeneration and prepare seed bed for additional oak recruitment. Proposed Project Actions 1. Conduct 338 acres of high intensity burning to reduce hazardous fuels and regenerate jack pine to produce Kirtland s warbler habitat (Warbler Road). 22 acres of the burn block will be thinned prior to the burn. 2. Roller chop and plant 283 acres of jack pine within the 1999 ATV fire perimeter and fillin plant up to 338 acres, if needed, within the Warbler Road burn block. The planted jack pine will provide Kirtland s warbler habitat. 3. Thin and prescribe burn 48 acres of jack pine to serve as a fire control feature for the proposed high intensity burn block. 4. Create and maintain 78 acres of wildlife openings for early successional habitat for sensitive species, game, and non-game species. 5. Approve a 3,822 acre Maximum Manageable Area (MMA) for prescribed burning to provide greater flexibility in controlling the proposed prescribed burns. 6. Conduct low to moderate intensity burning on 1,640 acres for the following objectives Timber stand improvement by suppressing red maple in oak stands and stimulating oak regeneration Reduce fuels to control spotting and surface fire spread from adjacent/nearby high intensity burn blocks Site preparation for roller chopping and planting of jack pine for Kirtland s warbler habitat A proposed action may be categorically excluded from documentation in an environmental impact statement or environmental assessment if there are no extraordinary circumstances and if the actions are within one of the categories identified by the Chief of the Forest Service in Forest Service Handbook (FSH) 1909.15, Chapter 30, Sections 31.1 or 31.2. This project fits the criteria for categorical exclusion. The proposed actions fall into the categories described in FSH 1909.15, Chapter 30, Section 31.2 - Category of Action for Which a Project or Case File and Decision Memo Are Required, Categories 5, 6 &12. Category 5: Regeneration of an area to native tree species, including site preparation which does not involve the use of herbicides or result in vegetation type conversion. Category 6: Timber stand or wildlife habitat improvement activities that do not include the use of herbicides or do not require more than 1 mile of low standard road construction. Category 12: Harvest of live trees not to exceed 70 acres, requiring no more than ½ mile of temporary road construction. Preliminary review of the proposed action indicates it will not impact wetlands or floodplains, congressionally designated areas, Research Natural Areas, threatened, sensitive or endangered species, designated critical habitat, or religious or cultural sites. This will be verified during field surveys and reviews by District specialists and documented in their reports. This project is
similar to previous timber stand and wildlife habitat improvement projects on the Huron- Manistee National Forests where no adverse direct, indirect, or cumulative effects are known to have occurred. If this project is authorized, implementation would begin no sooner than the fall of 2015 with completion over a period of approximately 5 years. For additional information regarding this proposed action, contact Joe Alyea, U.S. Forest Service, 107 McKinley Rd., Mio, MI 48647, (989) 826-3252 x3356. Comments Comments on the project will be considered in reaching a final decision. Comments may be submitted to the Mio Ranger Station, 107 McKinley Rd., Mio, MI 48647 (M-F, 8-4:30), or by phone at 989-826-3252, or fax 989-826-6073. E-mail comments to: comments-eastern-huronmanistee-mio@fs.fed.us (Email attachments must be readable by Microsoft Office or Adobe Acrobat). Include (1) name, address, telephone number, name of organization represented and title; (2) title of document on which the comment is being submitted (Warbler Road KW Project); and (3) specific facts and supporting reasons that you believe we should consider in reaching a final decision. Please submit your comments by July 16, 2015. This project is not subject to objection before the decision is made, or appeal afterward, due to laws enacted in early 2014. Therefore, this project is not subject to administrative review. Copies of the final decision (Decision Memo) will be mailed to people who submit comments, or who request a copy. Comments received in response to this project will become a matter of public record 1. Sincerely, /s/ Steven A. Goldman STEVEN A. GOLDMAN District Ranger 1 Comments received in response to this solicitation, including names and addresses of those who comment, will be considered part of the public record and will be available for public inspection. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or familial status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA s target center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-w, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Ave. SW, Washington DC 20250-9410 or call 202-720-5964 (voice or TDD).