Six Rivers National Forest, Mad River Ranger District, CA; Buck Mountain Vegetation and Fuel Management Project EIS, 2878-2881 [2011-884]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
• Forest Service

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 11 (Tuesday, January 18, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2878-2881]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-884]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Six Rivers National Forest, Mad River Ranger District, CA; Buck 
Mountain Vegetation and Fuel Management Project EIS

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: The Six Rivers National Forest (Six Rivers NF) will prepare an 
Environmental Impact Statement to disclose the impacts associated with 
the following proposed actions:
    1. Fuel reduction would occur and be located along corridors 
primarily on strategically placed ridges, along highly traveled roads 
and within isolated stands near private property. Treatment would 
consist of thinning trees less than 8'' diameter breast-height (DBH) 
and removing brush within treatment areas. Commercial biomass would be 
a by-product of this treatment. Fuel treatments would augment on-going 
road brush treatment projects funded by the Community Wildfire 
Protection Plan (CWPP) located in the northwest corner of the project 
area.
    2. All previously managed plantations would be treated, either with 
commercial thinning or timber stand improvements (TSI). Both treatments 
are designed to reduce stand density, decrease competition and improve 
growing space for residual trees. Commercially thinned plantations 
would consist of thinning trees greater than 8'' DBH. Plantations 
without a commercial saw-log component (TSI) would consist of thinning 
trees less than 8'' DBH and reducing brush. Commercial biomass would be 
a by-product of TSI treatments.
    3. Off-site ponderosa pine plantations would be thinned to promote 
growth of naturally occurring tree species.
    4. Douglas-fir/tanoak plantations would be thinned, and most of the 
planted pine within these plantations would be removed, while a portion 
of the hardwood component would be maintained.
    5. Pure stands of Douglas-fir would be thinned to increase growing 
space for overstocked early seral stands. Stands that once contained a 
significant black oak component would be thinned to encourage black oak 
regeneration.
    6. Douglas-fir and white fir stands with viable oak and pine would 
be thinned to reduce overall stand density, and trees that compete with 
healthy hardwoods and pines would be removed to increase their 
viability and promote their regeneration.
    7. All treatments would maintain tree species mix of hardwoods and 
conifers.

[[Page 2879]]


DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received 
by March 3, 2011. The draft environmental impact statement is expected 
August 2011 and the final environmental impact statement is expected 
November 2011.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Buck Mountain Project Team, Mad 
River Ranger District, 741 State Highway 36, Bridgeville, CA 95526. 
Comments may also be sent via facsimile to (707) 574-6273. Electronic 
comments, in acceptable plain text (.txt), rich text (.rtf), or Word 
(.doc) may be submitted to comments-pacificsouthwest-six-rivers-mad-river@fs.fed.us. Please insure that ``Buck Mountain Project'' occurs in 
the subject line.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Individuals who use telecommunication 
devices for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay 
Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern 
Time, Monday through Friday.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    The Forest Service is proposing the Buck Mountain Vegetation and 
Fuel Management Project to accelerate late-successional forest 
characteristics, reduce excessive fuel loading, and improve and restore 
forest ecosystem health. The Buck Mountain planning area encompasses 
approximately 14,396 acres, of which 10,058 acres are National Forest 
System (NFS) lands. The project would treat approximately 2,062 acres 
of NFS lands. Treatment would consist of: (1) Commercially harvesting 
timber stands under 130 years old, through thinning on approximately 
613 acres of natural stands, 389 acres of plantations and 44 acres of 
oak restoration; (2) non-commercial timber stand improvement on 788 
acres of previously managed stands; and (3) stand alone fuels 
treatments on 1,228 acres, primarily located along strategically 
located roads and ridge tops.
    The proposed project would take place within the Upper Van Duzen 
watershed on NFS lands administered by the Mad River Ranger District in 
Humboldt County and Trinity County, California. The legal location 
includes portions of the following townships: Township 1 North, Range 5 
East; Township 1 North, Range 6 East; Township 1 South, Range 6 East; 
and Township 1 South, Range 5 East, Humboldt Baseline and Meridian.
    (1) The majority of the Buck Mountain Planning Area occurs within 
the Eel River Late-Successional Reserve (LSR). A Forest-wide Late 
Successional Reserve Assessment (LSRA, 1999) determined that this area 
of the LSR was deficient in late-successional habitat. Portions of the 
LSR were previously privately owned and heavily harvested. Extensive 
stands of plantations exist that do not provide suitable habitat for 
late successional species such as the northern spotted owl. The LSRA 
identified this area as needing density management and fuel reduction 
treatments to develop and protect late-successional habitat. Management 
opportunities exist in conifer stands that are in the tanoak, Douglas-
fir and white fir series that are either old plantations or natural 
stands that are less than 130 years old. They are characterized 
generally as overstocked with high fuel loadings.
    (2) The majority of the planning area occurs within the Wildland 
Urban Interface (WUI) areas for the communities of Mad River and 
Dinsmore as well as residences along the Van Duzen River in Trinity 
County and Humboldt County.
    (3) Oak woodland communities historically comprised a much greater 
percentage of the landscape than today. In 1855 approximately 36% of 
the North Fork of the Eel River watershed, a component of LSR 307, was 
composed of oak woodland communities, and currently it is about 6%. 
Evidence within the Buck Mountain Planning Area suggests a similar 
decline in oak woodland communities. Oak communities have greater 
native grass and forbs species diversity than adjacent conifer forests 
and provide greater forage habitat for deer populations than adjacent 
vegetation communities. Additionally, grasses and forbs mature later in 
the summer beneath oak communities, which can extend the availability 
of forage and reduce the rate of spread of wildfire.
    (4) The Van Duzen River Watershed Analysis (Van Duzen River WA, 
1998) had determined that current road densities were too high within 
the Van Duzen watershed and the Eel River LSR. The LSR as a whole had 
been evaluated to have 3.1 miles of roads per square mile. Road density 
within the project area on Federal lands is even higher, at 3.6 miles 
per square mile. Reducing the road density within the project area 
would reduce sediment levels and benefit aquatic habitats. 
Decommissioning (should opportunities exist) would help accomplish 
this.

Management Areas

    The Mad River Ranger District is managed under the Six Rivers 
National Forest Land Resource Management Plan (LRMP). The National 
Forest Service portion of the planning area has two management area 
allocations:
    Management Area 8--Special Habitat (9,612 acres): The majority of 
the planning area consists of this management area. Special habitat 
within the planning area consists of the Eel River Late-Successional 
Reserve (LSR). This management area is intended to provide a core of 
relatively undisturbed habitat for plants and animals associated with 
mature and old growth forests. The management emphasis and goal is to 
protect and enhance late-successional habitat (LRMP, IV-34, 35).
    Management Area 17--General Forest (446 acres): A small portion of 
the planning area is within this management area. General Forest 
includes forested land where commercial timber management is expected 
to occur. Examples of allowable silvicultural activities include timber 
harvest, reforestation, conifer release, pre-commercial thinning, and 
forest pest management. The primary goals are to produce a sustained 
yield of timber, contribute younger seral stages to the vegetation 
mosaic of the forest, and conserve key components of functional habitat 
for mature and old growth-associated species (LRMP IV-63).

Required Consultations

    The LRMP requires consultation with potentially affected Native 
American Tribes as part of the Forest's Native American trust 
responsibilities. Consultation was initiated with the Bear River Band 
of Rohnerville Rancheria, the Table Bluff Reservation-Wiyot Tribes and 
the Round Valley Indian Tribes in the late fall of 2009. There were no 
concerns expressed. The Forest Tribal Relations Specialist will 
complete Tribal consultation beyond the initiation phase.
    Consultation with the Regional Ecosystem Office (REO) is required 
because of the proposed cutting of trees greater than 20'' DBH in this 
planning area. Early consultation has been initiated by the REO. The 
REO LSR working group agreed with the rationale for exceeding the 20'' 
DBH cut limit, and a finalized formal exemption is pending. It would be 
granted prior to the issuance of the Record of Decision (ROD) once the 
LSR working group determined that implementing the project's 
silviculture prescriptions would meet the objectives of Late 
Successional Reserves under the Northwest Forest Plan.
    The Endangered Species Act requires consultation with the United 
States Fish

[[Page 2880]]

and Wildlife Service (FWS) regarding any proposal that may affect a 
Federally listed threatened or endangered species. We will work closely 
with this agency through the Forest Level I wildlife biologist to 
fulfill consultation requirements for listed and proposed species.
    The Endangered Species Act requires consultation with the United 
States National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) regarding any proposal 
that may affect a Federally listed threatened or endangered marine 
species. We will work closely with this agency through the fisheries 
biologist to fulfill consultation requirements for listed and proposed 
species.
    The Clean Water Act requires Forest level consultation with the 
North Coast California Water Quality Control Board (NCCWQCB) to assure 
that basin plan standards for water quality are met by the proposal. 
This consultation will begin soon after preliminary Best Management 
Practices and project design features have been identified.

Late-Successional Reserve Management

    Silvicultural prescriptions for the proposed treatment units in 
stands no older than 80 years conform to the criteria documented in the 
Forest-wide LSR Assessment. The Regional Ecosystem Office LSRA 
memorandum dated March 3, 2000 sanctioned proposed treatments of stands 
between 80 and 130 years old within LSRs on the Six Rivers NF, but it 
would require a non-significant Forest Plan amendment.
    The REO acknowledged the case-by-case need to exceed the 20'' DBH 
diameter cut limit requirement that would be needed to be met for the 
project to be exempt from further REO review. The proposal includes 
treatment of stands that would require the cutting of trees greater 
than 20'' DBH to effectively meet LSR objectives. This proposal 
warranted consultation with the REO. A tentative verbal agreement has 
been issued allowing the proposal to proceed. A written memorandum 
sanctioning the proposal will be drafted once the preferred alternative 
is issued and issued before the ROD is signed.

Purpose and Need for Action

    There is a need in the Buck Mountain Planning Area to manage 
vegetation and fuel in select conifer stands, oak woodlands and shrub 
fields for the purpose of achieving the following objectives:
     Accelerate the development of late-successional habitat 
characteristics in plantations and in early to mid-mature natural 
stands (up to 130 years old).
     Improve the health of conifer and oak woodland 
communities, increase their resiliency to wildfires and disease 
outbreaks, restore species diversity and reduce stand densities in 
overstocked stands.
     Minimize wildfire threat to local communities in strategic 
locations, along travel routes and near private residential property by 
reducing fuel buildup in stands in the WUI where stand conditions have 
high amounts of surface and ladder fuels.
    In fulfilling the objectives listed above, there are opportunities 
to provide commodities in the form of timber, biomass, and fuelwood. 
All commercial activities and by-products would be incidental in 
achieving the desired outcomes stated in the purpose and need. There is 
also an opportunity to reduce open road densities in the planning area 
for watershed and late-successional habitat health.

Management Opportunities To Meet the Purpose and Need

    To meet the purpose and need, the Six Rivers National Forest 
proposes to manage vegetation and treat fuel loadings on approximately 
3,062 acres of National Forest System lands administered by the Mad 
River Ranger District. Potential treatment opportunities include the 
following:
     1,046 acres of commercial harvest in plantations, natural 
stands up to 130 years old and oak woodlands. Silvicultural treatments 
would include commercial thinning, oak release, and thinning/sanitation 
cutting. Ground skidding, skyline cable, and helicopter logging methods 
may be employed, as dictated by cost efficiency and resource protection 
needs. Potential harvest yield is about 4.5 to 5.5 MMBF.
    Activities associated with commercial harvesting include use of 
existing roads, skid trails, and landings, activity fuel treatments, 
and road maintenance/minor reconstruction along haul routes. New skid 
trails and landings would be needed in some areas to facilitate harvest 
activities. Harvest activity fuel treatments may involve a combination 
of mechanical techniques (biomass utilization, chipping, yarding tops, 
machine piling/burning), manual techniques (hand piling/burning and 
lop/scatter to 18'' or less depth), and prescribed burning.
    Approximately 6.0 miles of temporary road may be needed to perform 
these treatments. Approximately 3.8 miles would use existing road beds 
(old logging roads and illegal woodcutting roads). Approximately 2.2 
miles would be newly constructed temporary roads. No new system road 
construction is anticipated. Temporary roads would be decommissioned 
after project completion.
     788 acres of timber stand improvement (TSI) in plantations 
and young natural stands. Silvicultural treatments include non-
commercial thinning and release and commercial biomass utilization. As 
with commercial harvesting, activity fuel treatments would also be 
prescribed.
     46 acres of stand-alone fuel reduction in early to mid-
mature seral natural stands. Prescribed treatments include small tree 
cutting, mastication, road-side chipping, prescribed fire, hand piling, 
biomass/fuelwood utilization, raking/windrowing, lop and scatter to 
18'' or less depth and machine piling.
     1,182 acres of fuelbreak construction along strategic 
travel routes and ridges. Prescribed treatments within 300 feet on 
either side of selected roads, which are outside of commercial harvest, 
TSI, and stand-alone fuel reduction units, may include one or several 
of the following: Small tree cutting, mastication, roadside chipping, 
prescribed burning (underburning and jackpot burning), hand piling/
burning, lop/scatter to 18'' or less depth and machine piling.
     Hauling of commercial timber products on State Highway 36, 
County Roads 511 and 512 and Forest Service System roads within the 
planning area. Felling and removal, where appropriate, of hazard trees 
along haul routes.
     Decommissioning of non-essential existing roads outside of 
the proposed treatment areas may be included in the design of this 
project to reduce road density as part of the restoration of late-
successional habitat and watershed conditions.

Proposed Action

    Most of the project area is located within a LSR. Proposed fuel and 
harvest units were chosen based on criteria that would meet two 
objectives of LSRs: (1) Protecting existing and potential late-
successional habitat from catastrophic loss due to wildfire or disease 
and/or bug outbreak from overstocked stand conditions, and (2) 
Accelerating development of late-successional habitat. The proposed 
action is designed to meet the project's purpose and need while 
satisfying the standards and guidelines of the LRMP. The Buck Mountain 
Vegetation and Fuel Management Project would treat vegetation in the 
following ways:
     Fuel reduction would be located along corridors primarily 
on strategically placed ridges, along highly traveled roads and within 
isolated

[[Page 2881]]

stands near private property. Treatment would consist of thinning trees 
less than 8'' DBH and removing brush within treatment areas. Commercial 
biomass would be a by-product of this treatment. Fuel treatments would 
augment on-going road brush treatment projects funded by the Community 
Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) located in the northwest corner of the 
project area.
     All previously managed plantations would be treated, 
either with commercial thinning or timber stand improvements (TSI). 
Both treatments are designed to reduce stand density, decrease 
competition and improve growing space for residual trees. Commercially 
thinned plantations would consist of thinning trees greater than 8'' 
DBH. Plantations without a commercial saw-log component (TSI) would 
consist of thinning trees less than 8'' DBH and reducing brush. 
Commercial biomass would be a by-product of TSI treatments.
     Off-site ponderosa pine plantations would be thinned to 
promote growth of naturally occurring tree species.
     Douglas-fir/tanoak plantations would be thinned, and most 
of the planted pine within these plantations would be removed, while a 
portion of the hardwood component would be maintained.
     Pure stands of Douglas-fir would be thinned to increase 
growing space for overstocked early seral stands. Stands that once 
contained a significant black oak component would be thinned to 
encourage black oak regeneration.
     Douglas-fir and white fir stands with viable oak and pine 
would be thinned to reduce overall stand density, and trees that 
compete with healthy hardwoods and pines would be removed to increase 
their viability and promote their regeneration.
    All treatments would maintain tree species mix of hardwoods and 
conifers.
    Maps and tables detailing the proposed action can be found at 
https://www.fs.fed.us/r5/sixrivers/.
    In addition, maps will be available for viewing at:
    Mad River Ranger District, 741 Highway 36 (28 miles east of 
Bridgeville), Bridgeville, CA 95526; phone: 707-574-6233.

Responsible Official

    Thomas Hudson, District Ranger, Mad River Ranger District, 741 
Highway 36, Bridgeville, CA 95526.

Nature of Decision To Be Made

    The responsible official will decide whether to adopt and implement 
the proposed action, an alternative to the proposed action, or take no 
action.

Scoping Process

    This notice of intent initiates the scoping process, which guides 
the development of the environmental impact statement. It is important 
that reviewers provide their comments at such times and in such manner 
that they are useful to the agency's preparation of the environmental 
impact statement. Therefore, comments should be provided prior to the 
close of the comment period and should clearly articulate the 
reviewer's concerns and contentions. Comments received in response to 
this solicitation, including names and addresses of those who comment, 
will be part of the public record for this proposed action. Comments 
submitted anonymously will be accepted and considered; however, those 
who only submit anonymous comments will not have standing to appeal the 
subsequent decision under 36 CFR part 215.

    Dated: January 11, 2011.
Tyrone Kelley,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 2011-884 Filed 1-14-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-P