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MONARCH PASS VEGETATION MANAGEMENT PROJECT

The San Isabel National Forest is proposing to conduct vegetation management on National Forest System (NFS) lands in the Monarch Pass area including Monarch Ski Area on the Salida Ranger District, Chaffee

County, Colorado.

Project Development – Background

The Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project is within one of the Governor’s designated areas in Colorado for potential projects that reduce risk or extent of, or increase resilience to, insect and disease infestations. Section 8204 of the Agriculture Act of 2014 (Public Law 113-79) (also referred to as the Farm Bill) amended Title VI of the Healthy Forests Reforestation Act of 2003 (HFRA) (16 U.S.C. 6591 et seq.) to add Sections 602 and 603 to address qualifying insect and disease infestations on National Forest System lands. The Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture delegated authority to implement the provisions of the Farm Bill to the Chief of the Forest Service on March 6, 2014.

Section 602 provides, in part, the opportunity for Governors to request designation to areas in their State that are experiencing or at risk of insect or disease epidemic. Upon reviewing the States’ requests, the Chief designated approximately 45.6 million acres of National Forest System lands across 94 national forests in 35 States. Additional forests, not included in the original designation, have requested and received designation under Section 602; this includes the San Isabel National Forest.

Section 603 establishes a categorical exclusion for qualifying insect and disease projects in designated areas on National Forest System lands and may be used to carry out a collaborative restoration project. An insect and disease project that may be categorically excluded under this authority is a

project that is designed to reduce the risk or extent of, or increase the resilience to, insect or disease infestation in the area (HFRA, Sections 602(d) and 603(a)).

C O L L A B O R A T I V E P R O C E S S

Planning and development of the proposal was done through a

transparent collaborative process that included interested persons representing diverse interests.

These interested persons included local land/homeowners, private

business owners, recreation interest groups, local and state

government interests and utility companies. The Forest Service

Interdisciplinary Team assessed existing conditions and ability to

achieve Forest Plan goals for identified opportunity areas within the designated area. Through the use of this collaborative approach

interested persons assisted resource specialists in the

identification of issues, refinement of management options and areas,

as well as the development of treatment types to meet objectives.

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Photo 1 and 2. Spruce killed by spruce beetle near Monarch Ski area.

Project Purpose and Need

The purpose of the Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project is to reduce the extent of spruce beetle infestation, western balsam bark beetle infestation, improve forest resiliency to insect and disease infestations, reduce fuel loading, protect infrastructure and provide for firefighter and public safety in the Monarch Pass area. The need for the project is due to an ongoing insect infestation resulting in significant mortality of Engelmann spruce and subalpine fir trees as well as highly susceptible forest conditions to insect outbreaks in the area. The Monarch Pass

Vegetation Management Project encompasses 2,450 acres near the crest of Monarch Pass approximately 20 air miles west of Salida, Colorado. The predominant tree species on the site is Engelmann spruce, with a lesser component of subalpine fir and lodgepole pine and minor amounts of aspen and Douglas-fir.

Proposed Action

Sanitation and salvage would be the primary methods used on the 1,948 acres of spruce/fir and lodgepole pine forests. Sanitation is the removal of trees to improve stand health by stopping or reducing the actual or anticipated spread of insects and disease. Salvage is the removal of dead trees. Singletree and group selection treatments would be completed on area within the project that have little or no insect infestation or mortality. Single tree selection is a method where individual trees of all size classes are removed more or less uniformly throughout the stand, to promote growth of remaining trees and provide space for regeneration. Under the group selection method trees are removed and new age classes

established in small groups to regenerate and maintain a multiage structure. In this case groups may be as small as 3 – 5 trees up to 1 acre in size.

Prescribed fire in the form of pile burning may be utilized to reduce slash. Reforestation may also occur in harvested areas.

The spruce beetle epidemic is evolving each year with new trees and new stands being impacted. In order to meet the purpose and need of the Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project a flexible implementation strategy would be necessary. Stands and areas selected for the single tree and group selection methods that become infested with spruce beetle affecting 30 percent or more of the basal area of the mature overstory would be converted to sanitation and salvage. Singletree and group selection treatments are generally limited to removing no more than 25 – 30 percent of the pre-treatment basal area of a stand.

Additional Information

Preliminary review indicates this project falls within a category of actions established by statute for

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insect and disease infestation and is excluded from documentation in an Environmental Assessment (EA) or Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) per Section 603 of HFRA (16 U.S.C. 6591b). A proposed action may be categorically excluded from further analysis and documentation in an EA or EIS only if there are no extraordinary circumstances related to be proposed action. The resource conditions that should be considered in determining whether extraordinary circumstances related to a proposed action warrant further analysis and documentation in an EA or EIS are:

1. Federally listed threatened or endangered species or designated critical habitat, species proposed for Federal listing or proposed critical habitat, or Forest Service sensitive species;

2. Flood plains, wetlands, or municipal watersheds;

3. Congressionally designated areas, such as wilderness, wilderness study areas, or national recreation areas;

4. Inventoried roadless areas or potential wilderness areas;

5. Research natural areas;

6. American Indians and Alaska Native religious or cultural sites; and

7. Archaeological sites, or historical properties or areas.

The mere presence of one or more of these resource conditions in the project area does not preclude use of a CE. It is the existence of a cause-effect relationship between a proposed action and the potential effect on these resource conditions. If such a relationship exists, it is the degree of the potential effects of a proposed action on said resource conditions that determine whether an extraordinary circumstance exists. Preliminary resource conclusions are listed in Table 1.

The project was developed with design criteria to be consistent with forest plan standards and management area direction.

The Forest is now scoping this project. As the Responsible Official, I would like to solicit comments on the proposed action. Your feedback on this proposal will assist in refining project design criteria and identifying potential issues that may have not been raised during the collaborative process. Comments specific to

the proposed action that identify a cause-effect relationship are most helpful.

Please submit comments to the Salida Ranger District by electronic mail (email) to lcorbin@fs.fed.us with “Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project” in the subject line or send written correspondence to Salida Ranger District, Attn: Lisa Corbin, 5575 Cleora Road, Salida, CO 81201. Please include with all correspondence: the project name, your name/organization, and a return address. Your comments are appreciated and will be most helpful if received by June 9, 2017.

If you have additional questions or would like to be removed from this mailing list please contact Lisa Corbin or Alex Rudney, the project team leaders, at 719-539-3591. Additional information for this project is post at http://www.fs.fed.us/nepa/fs-usda-pop.php/?project=51694.

Sincerely,

Erin Connelly

Erin Connelly PSICC Forest and Grassland Forest Supervisor

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Table 1. Extraordinary Circumstances – Preliminary Conclusions

Resource Preliminary Conclusion

Federally listed, threatened or endangered species or critical habitat

Habitat for Canada lynx and boreal toads is known to occur in the area. No effect for boreal toads. May affect, not likely to adversely affect for Canada lynx.

Species proposed for listing No proposed or candidate species are present.

Forest Service sensitive species

May adversely impact individuals, but not likely to result in a loss of viability on the planning area, nor cause a trend to federally listing of sensitive plant, animal and aquatic species.

Flood plains, wetlands, or municipal watersheds

Riparian areas will be avoided with equipment and appropriate buffers applied as part of the design criteria and compliance with best management practices (BMPs).

Congressionally designated areas

There are no wilderness, wilderness study or National Recreation areas in the project area.

Inventoried roadless areas or potential wilderness areas or Research Natural Areas

The project is not within any of these areas.

Cultural sites; Archaeological or historic properties

Identified sites will be avoided through design features.

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication for program information (e.g. Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) please contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD).

USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

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Map 1: Monarch Pass Vegetation Management Project