Forest Service, USDA.
Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.
The USDA, Forest Service, will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) on a proposed action to maintain and restore forest health conditions within the 160,000-acre planning area known as Five Buttes Interface. The planning area is located approximately 50 miles south of Bend, Oregon, south of Wickiup Reservoir, east of the Cascade Crest, and west of State Highway 97. The area is a combination of public lands (90%), managed by the Deschutes National Forest, and private lands (10%). The alternatives will include the proposed action, no action, and additional alternatives that respond to issues generated through the scoping process. The agency will give notice of the full environmental analysis and decision making process so interested and affected people may participate and contribute to the final decision.
Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received by 30 days following the date that this notice appears in the
Send written comments to Phil Cruz, District Ranger, Crescent Ranger District, P.O. Box 208, Crescent, Oregon 97733.
Marcy Boehme, Environmental Specialist, Crescent Ranger District, P.O. Box 208, Crescent, Oregon 97733, phone (541) 433–3200. E-mail
In the mixed conifer dry plant association group the true fir component has increased dramatically in the last century. Because of the dry site conditions and the stand structure that provides ladder fuels from the ground to the crown, these stands are at the highest risk of being lost to a large-scale insect or disease attack or fire event. Large ponderosa pine and Douglas fir that would ordinarily be fire resistant are placed at risk because of increased competition with true fir and increased ladder fuels.
Across the landscape stands once dominated by large trees (greater than 21″ in diameter) have a steadily increasing amount of smaller trees. Due to these overstocked stand conditions and competition with younger, smaller trees, it is likely that the large tree component will continue to decline in these forests. High density understories consist mostly of true fir and lodgepole pine, while residual overstory trees are ponderosa pine, sugar pine, white pine, and Douglas fir. Not enough overstory trees of the right species exist to provide a seed source to adequately replace the larger trees that are being lost.
The decline in large-tree dominated stands affects habitat for the bald eagle and the northern spotted owl, species listed as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act. Habitat for both species has been reduced on the landscape by the Davis Fire, thereby increasing the importance of treatments that can help improve resistance of the large, old trees to insect and fire processes.
Fire exclusion has allowed wet areas and riparian zones in the planning area to experience encroachment by lodgepole pine to levels that significantly reduce the abundance and health of historic riparian vegetation.
The proposed action is designed to address opportunities for restoring ecosystems identified during watershed analysis and to implement the management strategy defined for the Davis LSR. Specifically, the purpose and need of the proposed action is to:
A draft EIS will be filed with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and available for public review by January, 2006. The EPA will publish a Notice of Availability (NOA) of the draft EIS in the
The comment period on the draft EIS will be 45 days from the date the EPA
The Forest Service believes, at this early stage, it is important to give reviewers notice of several court rulings related to public participation in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of a draft EIS must structure their participation in the environmental review of the proposal so that it is meaningful and alerts an agency to the reviewer's position and contentions [
To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the draft EIS should be as specific as possible. It is also helpful if comments refer to specific pages or chapters of the draft statement. Comments may also address the adequacy of the draft EIS of the merits of the alternatives formulated and discussed in the statement. Reviewers may wish to refer to the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for implementing the procedural provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act at 40 CFR 1503.3 in addressing these points.
In the final EIS, the Forest Service is required to respond to substantive comments received during the comment period for the draft EIS. The Forest Service is the lead agency and the responsible official is the Forest Supervisor, Deschutes National Forest. The responsible official will decide where and whether or not to think stands, salvage excess dead and dying lodgepole pine, and apply natural fuels treatments. The responsible official will also decide how to mitigate impacts of these actions and will determine when and how monitoring of effects will take place.
The Five Buttes Interface decision and the reasons for the decision will be documented in the record of decision. That decision will be subject to Forest Service Appeal Regulations (35 CFR part 215).