Land Management Plan Direction for Old-Growth Forest Conditions Across the National Forest System, 88042-88048 [2023-27875]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
• Forest Service

[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 243 (Wednesday, December 20, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 88042-88048]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-27875]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Land Management Plan Direction for Old-Growth Forest Conditions 
Across the National Forest System

AGENCY: Forest Service, Department of Agriculture.

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

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SUMMARY: The United States Department of Agriculture (Department) is 
proposing to amend all land management plans for units of the National 
Forest System (128 plans in total) to include consistent direction to 
conserve and steward existing and recruit future old-growth forest 
conditions and to monitor their condition across planning areas of the 
National Forest System. The intent is to foster the long-term 
resilience of old-growth forest conditions and their contributions to 
ecological integrity across the National Forest System. This notice 
initiates a scoping period on a

[[Page 88043]]

preliminary proposed action and advises the public that the Department 
is preparing an environmental impact statement to evaluate the effects 
of amending the 128 land management plans.

DATES: Comments are most valuable to the Department if received by 
February 2, 2024. The proposed action and draft environmental impact 
statement are expected in May 2024 and will be accompanied by a 90-day 
comment period, and the final environmental impact statement is 
expected in January 2025.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted using the following methods: 
Online (preferred): Individuals and entities are encouraged to submit 
comments via webform at https://cara.fs2c.usda.gov/Public//CommentInput?Project=65356.
    Mail: Hardcopy letters must be submitted to the Director, Ecosystem 
Management Coordination, 201 14th Street SW, Mailstop 1108, Washington, 
DC 20250-1124.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jennifer McRae, Planning Team Leader, 
at 202-791-8488. Individuals who use telecommunication devices for the 
deaf and hard of hearing (TDD) may call the Federal Relay Service at 
800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Forest Service, an agency of the U.S. 
Department of Agriculture, is responsible for managing the land and 
resources of the National Forest System to provide for multiple-use and 
sustained-yield of products and services. The Forest and Rangeland 
Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (88 Stat. 470 et seq.), as 
amended by the National Forest Management Act of 1976 (90 Stat. 2949 et 
seq.; 16 U.S.C. 1601-1614), requires land management plans for all 
units of the National Forest System. Regulations to implement the 
National Forest Management Act are set forth at 36 CFR 219.

Background

    On April 22, 2022, President Biden issued Executive Order 14072 
Strengthening the Nation's Forests, Communities, and Local Economies. 
Section 2 of the Executive Order (E.O.) recognizes the distinctive role 
that Federal forest lands play in sustaining ecological, social, and 
economic benefits throughout the nation and calls particular attention 
to the importance of mature and old-growth forests on Federal lands for 
their role in contributing to nature-based climate solutions by storing 
large amounts of carbon and increasing biodiversity, mitigating 
wildfire risks, enhancing climate resilience, enabling subsistence and 
cultural uses, providing outdoor recreational opportunities, and 
promoting sustainable local economic development.
    Section 2(b) \1\ of the E.O. required the Department to inventory 
mature and old-growth forest conditions on National Forest System 
lands, which the Forest Service completed an initial draft of in April 
2023 (Mature and Old-Growth Forests: Definition, Identification, and 
Initial Inventory on Lands Managed by the Forest Service and Bureau of 
Land Management, https://www.fs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/mature-and-old-growth-forests-tech.pdf). The initial inventory was conducted 
by applying working definitions of old-growth and mature forest 
conditions for over 200 regional vegetation types to Forest Inventory 
and Analysis field plot data. Definitions and inventories have been 
established for forests exhibiting old-growth conditions, but mature 
forest conditions had not previously been ecologically defined in a 
consistent manner at a national scale. This initial inventory resulted 
in the Forest Service identifying an estimated 24.7 million acres of 
old-growth forest conditions and 68.1 million acres of mature forest 
conditions representing 17 and 47 percent, respectively, of the 144.3 
million acres of forested National Forest System lands.
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    \1\ Executive Order 14072 also applies to the Bureau of Land 
Management but this notice of intent applies to National Forest 
System lands only.
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    Section 2(c)(ii) of the E.O. directed the Department, following 
completion of the initial inventory, to analyze threats to inventoried 
mature and old-growth forests on National Forest System lands, 
including threats from wildfires and climate change. Like the 
inventory, the initial threat analysis was national in scale and 
presents an initial compilation and summation of threats associated 
with wildfire, fire exclusion, insects and disease, extreme weather, 
climate and temperature, drought, tree cutting, roads, land use 
allocation, and wildland urban interface. In the analysis, the term 
``threat'' indicated a change in forest structure resulting in a 
reclassification of the forest condition but not necessarily a loss of 
ecological function and integrity.
    Initial analysis from that ongoing effort indicates several key 
findings that informed this proposed action. The initial analysis found 
that mortality from wildfires is currently the leading threat to mature 
and old-growth forest conditions, followed by insects and disease. The 
analysis found that tree cutting is now a relatively minor threat 
compared to climate amplified disturbances such as wildfire, insects 
and disease. However, past management practices, including timber 
harvest and fire suppression, contributed to current vulnerabilities in 
the distribution, abundance, and resilience of old-growth forest 
characteristics.
    The amount and distribution of mature forests across the National 
Forest System suggest that these lands have the inherent capability to 
sustain old-growth forest conditions into the future. This proposed 
amendment is intended to create a consistent approach to manage for 
old-growth forest conditions with sufficient distribution, abundance, 
and ecological integrity (composition, structure, function, 
connectivity) to be persistent over the long term, in the context of 
climate amplified stressors. The amendment establishes a set of 
national plan components and direction for geographically informed 
adaptive implementation strategies that promote the long-term 
persistence, distribution, and recruitment of old-growth forest 
conditions across the National Forest System.
    The proposed action recognizes the role of old-growth forest 
conditions in contributing to ecological integrity. It also recognizes 
that there are significant ecosystem and geographic differences that 
would require the development of geographically informed adaptive 
management strategies, in collaboration with the public and through 
consultation with Tribes and Alaska Native Corporations. The proposed 
amendment includes direction to integrate Indigenous Knowledge and 
respect for the ethic of reciprocity and responsibility to future 
generations and directs land managers to advance co-stewardship, 
recognizing the importance of general trust responsibilities, treaty 
rights, and cultural, religious, and other tribal interests and 
practices. The proposed amendment provides a framework for strategic 
conservation, and proactive stewardship and management, to mitigate 
risks across a range of forest conditions to both maintain and 
intentionally develop old-growth forest conditions, where feasible 
given climate impacts, and within the context of the multiple-use 
mandate that guides management of the National Forest System.
    Given the key threat that rapidly changing wildfire disturbances 
pose to national forest ecosystems and watersheds and the old-growth 
forests therein, this proposed action is intended to complement the 
Department's continued focus on, funding, and

[[Page 88044]]

implementation of the Forest Service's Wildfire Crisis Strategy. 
Providing consistent national direction that recognizes the beneficial 
role that functional old-growth forest conditions play in enhancing 
forest resiliency to wildfire further strengthens efforts to abate the 
wildfire crisis. The proposed action also recognizes the importance of 
strategic conservation and proactive stewardship for wildfire 
resilience efforts, including science-based vegetation treatments and 
restoring prescribed fire in fire-adapted ecosystems, for the long-term 
retention and future recruitment of old-growth forest conditions.
    Focusing on the intentional management, conservation, and 
furtherance of old-growth across the National Forest System via a 
national amendment to land management plans is also warranted given the 
longstanding commitment demonstrated by the Forest Service to manage 
old-growth forest conditions for multiple values including ecosystem 
diversity, habitat, recreation, aesthetics, and water quality. For 
several decades, it has been the agency's position that decisions 
concerning the management of old-growth forest conditions will be made 
in the development and implementation of land management plans, 
including plan direction that provides for a succession of young and 
mature forests into old-growth forests. Current data has identified 
approximately 2,700 land management plan components, across nearly all 
128 individual plans, which provide direction on the management, 
conservation, or monitoring of old-growth forest conditions across the 
National Forest System. The proposed amendment builds on those existing 
plan components and promotes consistency in old-growth management, 
conservation, and recruitment efforts.
    This proposed action was informed by public feedback received on 
the Climate Resilience Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) the 
Forest Service initiated in April 2023 (88 FR 24497). The ANPR gave the 
public an opportunity to provide input on how the Forest Service should 
respond to the changing climate through forest management activities 
and possibly future policies. It included the following two questions:
    1. How might the Forest Service use the mature and old-growth 
forest inventory together with analyzing threats and risks to determine 
and prioritize when, where, and how different types of management will 
best enable retention and expansion of mature and old-growth forests 
over time?
    2. Given our current understanding of the threats to the amount and 
distribution of mature and old-growth forest conditions, what policy, 
management, or practices would enhance ecosystem resilience and 
distribution of these conditions under a changing climate?
    The Forest Service received 92,000 comments in response to the 
ANPR, representing nearly 500,000 respondents. Many responses included 
feedback on the appropriate conservation and management of mature and 
old-growth forest conditions, reflecting a diversity of perspectives. 
In developing this proposed action, the Department identified some 
potential areas of agreement, including:
    1. Land management plans, the forest planning process, and National 
Forest Management Act implementing regulations (36 CFR 219 ``planning 
regulations'') provide useful and durable mechanisms and frameworks for 
the furtherance of mature and old-growth conservation and management 
objectives.
    2. Old-growth forest conditions have distinct, unique, and special 
ecological, cultural, and social values and contribute to ecological 
integrity. There is value in the long-term presence and resilience of 
old-growth forest conditions on the National Forest System.
    3. Old-growth forest conditions exist in a dynamic landscape, and 
changes in the distribution and abundance of old-growth forest 
conditions related to disturbance and climate amplified stressors, 
including mortality from persistent drought, rapidly changing wildfire 
disturbance regimes, insects and disease, and encroachment pressures 
from urban development are likely to occur.
    4. There is concern over climate amplified disturbance impacts that 
pose a threat to the persistence of old-growth forest conditions on the 
National Forest System lands, and an understanding that current 
management practices may benefit from consistent direction to reduce 
vulnerabilities and increase resilience to stressors.
    5. There are differences in threats and conditions in different 
regions and ecosystems across the National Forest System that will 
require additional consultation with Tribes and Alaska Native 
Corporations and place-based collaboration to develop geographically 
informed adaptive management strategies. For example, in July 2023, the 
Secretary of Agriculture appointed a Federal Advisory Committee to 
guide related work in the Pacific Northwest to develop a climate 
informed amendment for the national forests of the Northwest Forest 
Plan.
    6. Management must be science-based, including Indigenous Knowledge 
as a source of best-available scientific information.
    7. Management direction should enable co-stewardship and recognize 
the importance of trust responsibilities, treaty rights, and cultural, 
religious, and other tribal interests and eco-cultural practices 
associated with old-growth forest conditions.
    8. Consistent and effective monitoring of current and future old-
growth forest conditions over time would better inform adaptive 
management.
    9. Good examples of proactive stewardship and management direction 
and monitoring can be drawn from recent tribal co-stewardship 
agreements, Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Partnership 
projects, land management plans, and implementation of other programs.
    10. Nationally consistent direction for conserving, stewarding and 
recruiting old-growth forest conditions is connected to and should 
complement related Forest Service policy and direction, including the 
Wildfire Crisis Strategy and Climate Adaptation Plan.
    The Department believes that reaffirming, at a national scale, the 
commitment to maintaining and developing old-growth forests conditions 
across the National Forest System is prudent and warranted, and best 
advanced at this time via amendment of land management plans. As noted, 
abundances of mature forest condition across National Forest System 
lands suggest an inherent capability of these ecosystems to sustain 
old-growth forest conditions into the future. Given climate amplified 
stressors, management actions must be guided by science, including 
Indigenous Knowledge, intentionality, and commitment to evaluate the 
effectiveness of strategies designed to further desired old-growth 
forest conditions.

Purpose of the Amendment

    The purpose of this amendment is to establish consistent plan 
direction to foster ecologically appropriate management across the 
National Forest System by maintaining and developing old-growth forest 
conditions while improving and expanding their abundance and 
distribution and protecting them from the increasing threats posed by 
climate change, wildfire, insects and disease, encroachment pressures 
from urban development, and other potential stressors, within the 
context of the

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National Forest System's multiple-use mandate.
    With consideration of the old-growth definition and initial 
inventory information, the initial threats analysis, comments the 
Forest Service received on the Climate Resilience ANPR, and an analysis 
of existing land management plan direction for old-growth management 
and conservation, the Department is proposing to amend all land 
management plans to establish consistent direction for old-growth 
forest conditions across the National Forest System. The proposed 
amendment establishes national intent to maintain and improve amounts 
and distributions of old-growth forest conditions within national 
forest ecosystems and watersheds so that old-growth forest conditions 
are resilient and adaptable to stressors and likely future 
environments.
    Standards are proposed to prevent degradation of old-growth 
conditions and to enable conservation and proactive stewardship within 
old-growth forest conditions to foster or increase resilience to 
disturbances and stressors that may have adverse impacts. Proactive 
stewardship includes ecologically appropriate management and 
recognition of when natural succession processes can support 
achievement of desired conditions. A guideline is proposed to encourage 
proactive stewardship to increase amounts and improve distributions and 
climate resilience of future old-growth forest conditions.
    The proposed action also includes a management approach to direct 
the development of a place-based strategy. The intent is for a unit or 
units to create a new Adaptive Strategy for Old-Growth Forest 
Conservation based on geographically relevant data or information, or 
adopt an already existing strategy that meets this intent, and include 
it as an appendix to either the broader scale monitoring strategy or in 
the biennial monitoring report. The Adaptive Strategy for Old-Growth 
Forest Conservation would not be a decision document representing final 
agency action--as a management approach, the strategy is ``other plan 
content'' that can be established or modified through an administrative 
change to enable adaptation, see 36 CFR 219.7(f)(2).
    This proposal is not intended to replace existing direction in 
plans but rather to add language that provides consistency across all 
plans. If existing plan direction provides more restrictive constraints 
on actions that may affect existing or potential old-growth forest 
conditions, those more restrictive constraints would govern. Additional 
purposes of this amendment are to:
     Establish a clear role for Indigenous Knowledge and tribal 
leadership in the proactive stewardship and furtherance of old-growth 
forest conditions on the National Forest System lands.
     Establish a National Old-Growth Monitoring Network to 
track trends and distribution patterns in old-growth for inventory, 
evaluation, assessment, and adaptive management purposes.
     Facilitate the development of geographically informed 
adaptive strategies for old-growth forest conservation to support the 
effective implementation of this amendment and enable co-stewardship 
with Tribes and Alaska Native Corporations and collaboration with 
States, local governments, industry partners, and public stakeholders.

Need for Change

    In preparing an amendment, the responsible official shall base an 
amendment on a preliminary identification of the need to change the 
plan (36 CFR 219.13(b)(1)). The need for change is to create a 
consistent set of national plan components and direction for the 
development of geographically informed adaptive implementation 
strategies for the long-term persistence, distribution, and recruitment 
of old-growth forest conditions across the National Forest System; to 
provide for consistent and effective monitoring of old-growth forest 
characteristics to inform adaptive management; and to more clearly 
recognize and incorporate Indigenous Knowledge and tribal rights and 
interests in managing for old-growth forest conditions.
    The proposed amendment focuses on interrelated topic areas, 
including:

 Improving conservation of old-growth forest conditions
 Improving durability, resilience, and resistance to fire, 
insects and disease within old-growth forest conditions across the 
National Forest System
 Strengthening the capacity of existing and future old-growth 
forest conditions to adapt to the ongoing effects of climate change
 Addressing concerns about future durability, distribution, and 
redundancy of old-growth forest conditions
 Incorporating Indigenous Knowledge into planning, project 
design, and implementation to achieve forest management goals and help 
meet general trust responsibilities
 Establishing a National Old-Growth Monitoring Network
 Providing direction for geographically informed adaptive 
management strategies

Preliminary Alternatives

    This notice of intent initiates the official scoping process, which 
guides the development of the environmental impact statement. Written 
comments received in response to this notice will be analyzed to 
further develop the proposed action and to identify potential 
significant issues for developing alternatives to the proposed action. 
A no-action alternative, which represents no change to existing 
management direction, will be analyzed in addition to the proposed 
action and will serve as the baseline for the comparison among action 
alternatives. Consistent with 36 CFR 219.16(a)(2), there will be a 90-
day comment period for additional input when the proposed action and 
draft environmental impact statement are released.

Lead and Cooperating Agencies

    The Forest Service will prepare the environmental analysis in 
compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act and operate as 
the lead agency for this amendment. State agencies and Federally 
recognized Tribes and Alaska Native Corporations are invited to 
indicate interest in participating as a cooperating agency.

Responsible Official

    The responsible official for this amendment is the Secretary of 
Agriculture.

Nature of the Decision To Be Made

    The Secretary will decide whether and how to amend all National 
Forest System land management plans.

Substantive Provisions

    When proposing a land management plan amendment, the planning 
regulations (36 CFR 219), as amended, require the responsible official 
to identify in this notice what part of the substantive requirements 
(219.8 through 219.11) will govern this amendment process. These are 
the requirements likely to be directly related to the amendment based 
on the purpose of the amendment or the effects of the amendment (36 CFR 
219.13(b)(5)). The Secretary's initial determination, subject to 
change, is that the following sections of the specific substantive 
requirements within 219.8 through 219.11 are directly related to the 
plan direction being added by the amendment and therefore will apply 
within the scope and scale of the amendment.

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    36 CFR 219.8(a)(1)--Terrestrial and aquatic ecosystem integrity 
(including associated analytical considerations in 219.8(a)(1) (i 
through vi).
    36 CFR 219.8(a)(1 and 2)--Watershed integrity, water quality, and 
soils.
    36 CFR 219.8(a)(3)--Riparian areas.
    36 CFR 219.8(b)--Social and economic sustainability, including the 
analytical requirements of 219.8(b)(1 through 6).
    39 CFR 219.9(a)(2) Ecosystem diversity.
    36 CFR 219.9(b) Ecological conditions for species (including 
threatened, endangered, proposed or candidate species and potential 
species-of-conservation-concern).
    36 CFR 219.10(a) Ecosystem services and multiple use (including 
analytical requirements 1 through 10).
    36 CFR 219.10(b)(1)(i) Recreation settings, opportunities, access, 
and scenic character.
    36 CFR 219.10(b)(1)(ii) Cultural and historic resources.
    36 CFR 219.10(b)(1)(iii) Areas of tribal importance.

Scoping Process--Submitting Comments

    This notice of intent begins the scoping process, 36 CFR 220.4(e). 
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be considered and 
guide the development of the draft environmental impact statement. The 
Department is requesting comments on the proposed action, including any 
modifications or additional language, potential alternatives, and 
identification of any relevant information, studies, or analyses 
concerning impacts that may affect the quality of the environment. The 
Department does not anticipate that the proposed action will require 
any permits or other authorizations.
    It is important that reviewers provide their comments at such times 
and in such manner that they are useful in the 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.
    Specific written comments should be within the scope of the 
proposed action, have a direct relationship to the proposed action, and 
include supporting reasons for the Secretary to consider. Comments 
received in response to this solicitation, including names (and 
addresses, if included) of those who comment, will be part of the 
public record for this proposed action.

Objection Process Information

    The proposed action is not subject to the 36 CFR 219 subpart B 
objection process, in accordance with 36 CFR 219.51(b).

Preliminary Proposed Action

    The following is a description of the Department's proposed action 
to address the interrelated concerns identified in the Need for Change 
section above. The proposed action consists of plan components and 
other plan content that would be added to all land management plans. 
Existing plan components in all plans would remain in effect, and if 
existing plan components are more restrictive, the more restrictive 
direction would govern.
    The Department seeks to amend the following land management plans: 
Region 1--Beaverhead-Deerlodge, Bitterroot, Clearwater, Custer-
Gallatin, Dakota Prairie Grassland, Flathead, Helena-Lewis and Clark, 
Idaho Panhandle, Kootenai, Lolo, Nez Perce; Region 2--Arapaho-
Roosevelt-Pawnee, Bighorn, Black Hills, Grand Mesa-Uncompahgre-
Gunnison, Medicine Bow, Nebraska, Pike-San Isabel-Cimarron-Comanche, 
Rio Grande, Routt, San Juan, Shoshone, Thunder Basin, White River; 
Region 3--Apache-Sitgreaves, Carson, Cibola Mountains, Cibola 
Grasslands, Coconino, Coronado, Gila, Kaibab, Lincoln, Prescott, Santa 
Fe, Tonto; Region 4--Ashley, Boise, Bridger-Teton, Caribou, Challis, 
Curlew Grasslands, Dixie, Fishlake, Humboldt, Manti-La Sal, Payette, 
Salmon, Sawtooth, Targhee, Toiyabe, Uinta, Wasatch-Cache; Region 5--
Angeles, Cleveland, Eldorado, Inyo, Klamath, Lake Tahoe Basin, Lassen, 
Los Padres, Mendocino, Modoc, Plumas, San Bernardino, Sequoia, Shasta-
Trinity, Sierra, Six Rivers, Stanislaus, Tahoe; Region 6--Colville, 
Crooked River National Grassland, Deschutes, Fremont, Gifford Pinchot, 
Malheur, Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie, Mt. Hood, Ochoco, Okanogan, Olympic, 
Rogue River, Siskiyou, Siuslaw, Umatilla, Umpqua, Wallowa-Whitman, 
Wenatchee, Willamette, Winema; Region 8--Chattahoochee-Oconee, 
Cherokee, Croatan, Daniel Boone, El Yunque, Francis Marion, George 
Washington, Jefferson, Kisatchie, Land Between the Lakes, National 
Forests in Alabama, National Forests in Florida, National Forests in 
Mississippi, Nantahala-Pisgah, National Forests in Texas, Ouachita, 
Ozark and St. Francis, Sumter, Uwharrie; Region 9--Allegheny, 
Chequamegon-Nicolet, Chippewa, Finger Lakes, Green Mountain, Hiawatha, 
Hoosier, Huron-Manistee, Mark Twain, Midewin Tallgrass Prairie, 
Monongahela, Ottawa, Shawnee, Superior, Wayne, White Mountain; Region 
10--Chugach, Tongass.
    The following would be added to each land management plan: a 
statement of distinctive roles and contributions, one goal, one 
management approach, four desired conditions, one objective, four 
standards, one guideline, and plan monitoring requirements. For general 
descriptions of plan components and other plan content, see 36 CFR 
219.7(e) and (f).

Proposed Plan Components and Other Plan Content To Add to Each Land 
Management Plan

Statement of Distinctive Roles and Contributions--
    The National Forest System plays a distinctive and key role in 
providing the nation with benefits related to national forests and 
grasslands within the broader landscape, including old-growth forest 
conditions. Old-growth forests are dynamic systems distinguished by old 
trees and related structural attributes. Old growth typically differs 
from other stages of stand development in a variety of characteristics, 
including the presence of old trees, variability in canopy structure, 
patchiness, and development pathways depending on disturbance regimes 
and resulting patterns. The structure and composition of old-growth 
forests is highly place-based and can range from old, multi-layered 
temperate coniferous forests with high amounts of dead wood in the form 
of standing snags and coarse wood to old, single-storied pine forests 
or oak woodlands with open canopy structure and fire-maintained herb 
and litter dominated understories.
    Old-growth forest conditions support ecological integrity and 
contribute to distinctive ecosystem services--such as long-term storage 
of carbon, increased biodiversity, improved watershed health, and 
social, cultural, and economic values. Old-growth forests have place-
based meanings tied to cultural identity and heritage; local economies 
and ways of life; traditional and subsistence uses; aesthetic, 
spiritual, and recreational experiences; and Tribal and Indigenous 
histories, cultures, and practices. For millennia, Tribal and 
Indigenous practices have maintained resilient forest structure and 
composition of forests that harbor high structural and compositional 
diversity, with particular emphasis on understory plants and fire-
dependent wildlife habitat.

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Goal--
    1. Interpretation and implementation is grounded in recognition and 
respect of tribal sovereignty, treaties, Indigenous Knowledge and the 
ethic of reciprocity and responsibility to future generations. 
Implementation should enable co-stewardship, including for cultural 
burning, prescribed fire, and other activities, and should occur in 
consultation with Tribes and Alaska Native Corporations to fulfill 
treaty obligations and general trust responsibilities.
Management Approach--
    1. Adaptive Strategy for Old-Growth Forest Conservation:
    (a) Within two years, in consultation with Tribes and Alaska Native 
Corporations and in collaboration with States, local governments, 
industry partners, and public stakeholders, create or adopt an Adaptive 
Strategy for Old-Growth Forest Conservation based on geographically 
relevant data or information to:
     Effectively braid place-based Indigenous Knowledge and 
Western science to inform and prioritize the conservation and 
recruitment of old-growth forest conditions through proactive 
stewardship.
     Identify criteria used to indicate conditions where plan 
components will apply.
     Prioritize areas for the retention and promotion of old-
growth forest conditions, based on threats, stressors, and 
opportunities relevant to the plan area.
     Establish target milestones for management specific to the 
plan area, to support progress toward the desired conditions of this 
amendment.
     Develop additional proactive climate-informed stewardship, 
conservation, and management approaches as needed to effectively 
achieve the desired conditions, standards, and guidelines in the 
amendment.
     Identify a program of work and partnerships that can 
support effective delivery of the plan monitoring requirements to 
inform adaptive management.
     Provide geographically relevant information about threats, 
stressors, and management opportunities relevant to the ecosystem of 
the plan area to facilitate effective implementation.
    (b) One or more units may create a joint Adaptive Strategy for Old-
Growth Forest Conservation. An already existing strategy or other 
document may also be used if it meets this intent.
    (c) Include the Adaptive Strategy for Old-Growth Forest 
Conservation as an appendix to either the broader scale monitoring 
strategy or the biennial monitoring report, see 36 CFR 219.12. Units 
should use this strategy to inform priorities. The strategy may be 
periodically updated (36 CFR 219.13(c)) to reflect new information and 
monitoring results.
Desired Conditions--
    1. The amount and distribution of old-growth forest conditions are 
maintained and improved relative to the existing condition over time, 
recognizing that old-growth forest conditions are dynamic in nature and 
shift on the landscape over time as a result of succession and 
disturbance.
    2. Proactive stewardship, including for retention and recruitment, 
along with natural succession, foster an increasing trend in the 
amount, representativeness, redundancy, and connectivity of old-growth 
forest conditions such that future conditions are resilient and 
adaptable to stressors and likely future environments.
    3. Carbon stored in old-growth conditions contributes to the long-
term carbon storage, stability, and resiliency of forest carbon across 
the National Forest System.
    4. The long-term abundance, distribution, and resiliency of old-
growth conditions contribute to the overall ecological integrity of 
ecosystems and watersheds.
    Objective--
    1. Within ten years, at the unit level, at least one landscape 
prioritized within an Adaptive Strategy for Old-Growth Forest 
Conservation will exhibit measurable improvements in old growth desired 
conditions as a result of retention, recruitment, and proactive 
stewardship activities and natural succession.
Standards for Management Actions Within Old-Growth Forest Conditions--
    1. Vegetation management activities must not degrade or impair the 
composition, structure, or ecological processes in a manner that 
prevents the long-term persistence of old-growth forest conditions 
within the plan area.
    2. (a) Vegetation management in old-growth forest conditions must 
be for the purpose of proactive stewardship, to promote the 
composition, structure, pattern, or ecological processes necessary for 
the old-growth forest conditions to be resilient and adaptable to 
stressors and likely future environments. Proactive stewardship 
activities shall promote one or more of the following:
    i. amount, density and distribution of old trees, downed logs, and 
standing snags;
    ii. vertical and horizontal distribution of old-growth structures, 
including canopy structure;
    iii. patch size characteristics, percentage or proportion of forest 
interior, and connectivity;
    iv. types, frequencies, severities, patch sizes, extent, and 
spatial patterns of disturbances;
    v. return of appropriate fire disturbance regimes and conditions;
    vi. successional pathways and stand development;
    vii. connectivity and the ability of native species to move through 
the area and cross into adjacent areas;
    viii. ecological conditions for at-risk species associated with 
old-growth forest conditions;
    ix. the presence of key understory species or culturally 
significant species or values;
    x. species diversity, and presence and abundance of rare and unique 
habitat types associated with old-growth forest conditions; or
    xi. other key characteristics of ecological integrity.
    b) Exceptions to this standard may be allowed if the responsible 
official determines that actions are necessary:
    i. to reduce fuel hazards on National Forest System land within the 
wildland-urban interface to protect a community or infrastructure from 
wildfire;
    ii. to protect public health and safety;
    iii. to comply with other statutes or regulations;
    iv. for culturally significant uses; or
    v. in cases where it is determined that the direction in this 
amendment is not relevant or beneficial to a particular forest 
ecosystem type.
    In granting an exception, the responsible official must include the 
rationale in a decision document.
    3. Vegetation management within old-growth forest conditions may 
not be for the primary purpose of growing, tending, harvesting, or 
regeneration of trees for economic reasons. Ecologically appropriate 
harvest is permitted in accordance with standards 1 and 2.
    4. Exceptions to standards 2 and 3 may be granted by the Regional 
Forester in Alaska if necessary to allow for implementation of the 
Southeast Alaska Sustainability Strategy and the rationale must be 
included in a decision document.
Guideline--
    1. This guideline is intended to increase amounts and improve 
distributions and climate resilience of future old-growth forest 
conditions. It

[[Page 88048]]

applies to areas that do not currently meet old-growth definitional 
conditions but that have been identified in the Adaptive Strategy for 
Old-Growth Forest Conservation as a priority for the future 
contribution of the development of those conditions over time.
    For the purposes of fostering an increasing trend in the amount, 
representativeness, redundancy, and connectivity of old-growth forest 
conditions such that future conditions will be resilient and adaptable 
to stressors and likely future environments, landscape-level proactive 
stewardship activities should, within the scope of meeting other 
desired conditions, and characteristic of the ecosystem, be developed 
for the following priorities and purposes:
    (a) To provide landscape-level redundancy and representation of 
old-growth conditions such that loss due to natural disturbance events 
does not result in a loss or isolation of the old-growth conditions at 
the landscape scale.
    (b) To retain and promote the development of resilient old-growth 
conditions adjacent to existing old-growth forest conditions, including 
for the purposes of reducing fire hazard, altering potential fire 
spread or fire severity, or reducing potential insect or disease 
outbreak that may spread to adjacent old-growth forest.
    (c) To enhance landscape and patch connectivity in forest 
conditions between old-growth condition patches where connectivity is 
poor or old-growth patches are isolated.
    (d) To retain and promote the development of old-growth conditions 
where current conditions are likely to provide old-growth conditions in 
the shortest timeframe possible.
    (e) To retain and promote the development of old-growth conditions 
in watersheds, firesheds, or other relevant landscape units where 
existing amounts and distributions of old-growth conditions lack 
resilience and adaptability to stressors and likely future 
environments.
    (f) To retain and promote the development of old-growth conditions 
in areas of likely climate refugia that are projected to have the 
inherent capability to sustain old-growth conditions.
    (g) To promote climate adapted species assemblages in areas where 
changing climatic conditions are likely to alter current conditions and 
change species assemblages over time.
Plan Monitoring--
    The Chief of the Forest Service is responsible for establishing a 
National Old-Growth Monitoring Network for the purposes of informing 
the continued implementation and evaluating the effectiveness of this 
amendment, based on the initial inventory and remote sensing data and 
other sources of finer scale information. The National Old-Growth 
Monitoring Network will adapt to emerging inventory methods, regularly 
update the national inventory of mature and old-growth conditions, 
develop analytical processes to interpret trend information, and convey 
findings to the field as they relate to implementation of the 
amendment. Regions and units will collaborate with the Chief's Office 
on the development of approaches to identify old-growth forest 
conditions and for effectively verifying estimated abundances and 
distributions.
    For plan-level monitoring:
    1. Within two years, identify initial criteria indicating where 
these plan components will apply and include such identification in the 
biennial monitoring report or the broader scale monitoring strategy to 
be updated as conditions change.
    2. Within biennial monitoring evaluation reports, provide regular 
updates on actions taken pursuant to this amendment and provide updates 
on measurable changes in unit-level old-growth forest conditions when 
new information is available.
    3. Add the following questions and indicators to plan-level 
monitoring programs:
    a. Question: Are retention, development, and proactive stewardship 
activities implemented under the Adaptive Old-Growth Conservation and 
Management Strategy fostering an increasing trend in the amount, 
representativeness, redundancy, and connectivity of old-growth forest 
conditions on the unit?
    i. Indicator: Changes in trends in amounts and distributions of 
old-growth forest conditions on the unit.
    b. Question: Are vegetation management activities within old-growth 
forest promoting the desired composition, structure, pattern, and 
ecological conditions?
    i. Indicator: Changes in composition, structure, and patterns 
related to desired ecological conditions in areas affected by 
vegetation management.
    This proposed action and other related documents are available for 
comment on the project website at https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=65356. Additional information can be found on the Forest 
Service website for mature and old-growth forests at https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/old-growth-forests.

Thomas J. Vilsack,
Secretary of Agriculture.
[FR Doc. 2023-27875 Filed 12-19-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3411-15-P