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Bears Paw to Missouri River Breaks Planning Area Evaluation Report May 5, 2017

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Bears Paw to Missouri River Breaks Planning Area Evaluation Report May 5, 2017 Bears Paw to Missouri River Breaks Planning Area Evaluation Report May 5, 2017 U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management Havre Field Office 3990 US HWY 2 West Havre, MT 59501 Phone: (406) 262-2820 Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 3 Sequence of Events ....................................................................................................................................... 3 Planning Area Background ........................................................................................................................... 4 STANDARD #1: Uplands. ......................................................................................................................... 14 Background Information ......................................................................................................................... 14 Upland Sites ............................................................................................................................................ 14 STANDARD #2: Riparian and Wetland Areas .......................................................................................... 16 Background Information ......................................................................................................................... 16 Riparian and Wetland Areas in the Local Watershed ............................................................................. 17 STANDARD #3: Water Quality. ................................................................................................................ 19 Background Information ......................................................................................................................... 19 Water Quality in the Local Watershed .................................................................................................... 20 STANDARD #4: Air Quality. .................................................................................................................... 20 Background Information ......................................................................................................................... 20 Air Quality in the Local Watershed ........................................................................................................ 20 STANDARD #5: Providing Habitat for Native Plants and Animals .......................................................... 20 Background Information ......................................................................................................................... 20 Native Plant and Animal Populations and Habitats in the Local Watershed .......................................... 21 Grazing Management & Resource Conditions by Allotment ..................................................................... 22 Interdisciplinary Team Composition ........................................................................................................ 205 References ................................................................................................................................................. 206 Appendix A: Guidelines for Livestock Grazing Management ................................................................. 208 Appendix B: Noxious weeds and Invasive plants by Allotment ............................................................... 210 Appendix C: Standards Determination Table by Allotment ..................................................................... 211 Appendix D: Soils within the Planning Area ............................................................................................ 214 Page 2 Introduction This document is a compilation of land health assessments completed on public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in the Bears Paw to Missouri River Breaks (BPB) planning area. Public lands in the BPB planning area are located in Hill, Blaine, Chouteau, and Phillips Counties, in north central Montana and administered by both the Havre Field Office (HFO) and Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument (Monument) BLM offices. Land health assessments are typically completed at the watershed level. However, because grazing allotments do not follow watershed or administrative boundaries (HFO vs. Monument) a watershed level planning unit was not practical. Therefore, the BPB planning area boundaries were developed based on the feasibility and efficiency of natural resource and administrative management, similarity of vegetation, and allotment proximity. The BPB is primarily located within the Bullwhacker-Dog and Fort Peck Reservoir subbasins (north of the Missouri River), with a few small outlying areas located within the Middle Milk and Peoples subbasins. The BLM lands that comprise 28% of the total land base within the planning area were assessed and evaluated for conformance with rangeland health standards. If appropriate, opportunities for more efficient administration and management of BLM lands in the BPB (beyond land health standards) are also discussed in this document. The BLM lands included in this assessment are shown in Figure 1. The BLM is charged with maintaining the health of the land or making appropriate changes on the ground where land health standards are not being achieved. Title 43 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 4180 provides regulatory direction for integrating livestock grazing administration with Land Health Standards. In response to 43 CFR 4180.2 (b) the BLM in partnership with the Central Montana Resource Advisory Council developed five standards for rangeland health and fourteen grazing management guidelines that apply to lands administered by the Havre and Lewistown Field Offices. The following five standards are statements of physical and biological condition or degree of function required for healthy sustainable rangelands. Achieving or making significant progress towards these functions and conditions is required of all uses of public rangelands as stated in 43 CFR 4180.1. • Standard #1: Uplands are in proper functioning condition. • Standard #2: Riparian and wetland areas are in proper functioning condition. • Standard #3: Water quality meets Montana State standards. • Standard #4: Air quality meets Montana State standards. • Standard #5: Habitats are provided to maintain healthy, productive and diverse populations of native plant and animal species, including special status species. Guidelines for management of herbivory (including domestic animals and wildlife) are preferred or advisable approaches to ensure that standards can be met or that significant progress can be made toward meeting the standard(s). The grazing management guidelines presented in Appendix A are provided to maintain or improve resource conditions in upland and riparian habitats. In both riparian and upland habitats, these guidelines focus on establishing and maintaining proper functioning conditions. Conformance with these guidelines will be addressed in this document. Sequence of Events This report is the first in a series of three potential documents; the assessment and evaluation report, the authorized officer’s Determination of Standards and Conformance with Guidelines, and an environmental Page 3 document (usually an environmental assessment) which would propose and analyze the impacts of management alternatives necessary to address or correct identified resource concerns. From 2012 to 2016, the BLM collected resource information and inspected resource conditions on 116 grazing allotments in the BPB planning area. Historic information and previously collected resource data was used to prepare this synopsis of resource conditions of public lands within the planning area. This evaluation report discloses the existing condition of BLM lands within the BPB planning area, and analyzes and interprets the resource conditions relative to land health standards at an allotment level. Where evidence suggested land health standards were not being met, the Interdisciplinary Team (IDT) evaluated the causal factors. Management and/or infrastructure changes were included as applicable to improve resource conditions. If the determination document identifies existing livestock grazing management or level of use to be a significant causal factor for not achieving Standards or not making significant progress toward achievement, the authorized officer must take appropriate action as soon as practicable but no later than the beginning of the next grazing year (43 CFR 4180.1). The determination document also must state whether existing grazing management practices conform to the guidelines for grazing livestock on public land. Following preparation of the evaluation report and determination document, an environmental analysis must be prepared to identify and analyze the potential environmental effects associated with any proposed management changes. The proposed changes to current grazing management would be designed to make significant progress toward achieving land health standards or address other resource issues identified in the evaluation process. Changes may include modifying existing grazing permit terms and conditions (seasons of use, number of livestock, and levels of use), changes in grazing system, or infrastructure projects, and would be implemented by decision before the start of the next grazing year. This document does not constitute a decision, but provides the basis for
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