UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management Burns District Office Andrews/Steens Resource Area Finding of No Significant Impact January 13, 2010 Environmental Assessment OR-08-026-096 INTRODUCTION Andrews/Steens Resource Area, Burns District Bureau of Land Management (BLM), has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) to analyze potential effects of constructing facilities to modify public access and enhance public understanding of the Borax Lake Area. The Proposed Action is the result of a collaborative effort between BLM, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW), The Nature Conservancy (TNC) (landowner), based on the needs and objectives outlined as criteria for the delisting of the chub in the USFWS Borax Lake Chub Recovery Plan (1987), BLM's Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) Plan for Borax Lake, and ongoing monitoring conducted by various agencies. The project area is located in Andrews Management Unit (AMU) in the southern portion of Harney County, Oregon, near the town of Fields, approximately 115 miles south of Burns, Oregon (T. 37 S., R. 33 E., Sections 11 and 14). The specific project area is the section of Borax Lake Road within the Borax Lake Chub Critical Habitat Area. SUMMARY OF THE PROPOSED ACTION The Proposed Action is the construction of approximately 3,500 feet of post and cable type fence following the east side of Borax Lake Road and removal of 3.9 miles of fence within the Borax Lake ACEC. The new fence would use new steel cable and would utilize rock cribs and posts recovered from the fence removal project. Borax Marsh Road would be closed to unpermitted vehicle traffic from the intersection of Borax Lake Road and Borax Marsh Road to the northern boundary of the critical habitat. The road would remain available for landowner access, administrative, scientific, and special needs purposes. Pedestrian access points and a locking vehicle gate would be installed at the intersection. The proposed fence would not replace the existing fence that follows southwest corner of the ACEC boundary, rather the fence would augment the protections offered to chub habitat that the ACEC and critical habitat designations provide. Borax Lake Road near the intersection with Borax Marsh Road would be improved as necessary to provide parking for visitors. Widening would not exceed 12 feet in width beyond the existing roadway. Parking spaces would not be marked. Interpretive signs including a map would be installed in appropriate locations (to be determined by BLM, USFWS, ODFW, and TNC) near the fenceline describing the cultural, ecological, and geological features of the area. FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT Consideration of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) criteria for significance (40 CFR 1508.27), both with regard to context and intensity of impacts, is described below: Context The Proposed Action would have local impacts on affected interests, lands, and resources similar to and within the scope of those described and considered in the AMU/Steens Mountain Cooperative Management and Protection Area Proposed Resource Management Plan/Final Environmental Impact Statement (AMU/CMPA PRMP/FEIS). There would be no substantial broad societal or regional impacts not previously considered in the PRMP/FEIS. Intensity The CEQ's ten considerations for evaluating intensity (severity of effect): 1. Impacts that may be both beneficial and adverse. The EA considered potential beneficial and adverse effects. None of the effects are beyond the range of effects analyzed in the AMU/CMPA PRMP/FEIS. ACECs The Proposed Action would enhance protections already provided for under the ACEC designation by further restricting disturbance within the ACEC boundary. Vehicles and Off-Highway Vehicles (OHVs) are known to depart established trails within the ACEC. Installation of a fence that would limit vehicle use off traditional routes is expected to reduce the amount of disturbance caused by vehicle incursion into previously undisturbed areas. Noxious Weeds and Invasive Nonnative Plant Species By reducing the number of vehicles that access the shoreline of Borax Lake, the potential for weed invasion into the ACEC is expected to decrease. Enhancement and accelerated growth of riparian vegetation would increase competition for plant resources, and is likely to reduce extent and vigor of invasive weed infestation within the critical habitat. This may reduce the need for herbicide treatments as vigor and extent of the riparian plant community increases. 2 ' Migratory Birds Some disturbance to resident birds could occur in the immediate vicinity of fence- building operations in the 1 to 2-week time period during which construction would be authorized. Nesting and rearing activity is not expected during construction. After initial disturbance of fence-building, the fence would provide additional singing and resting perches for migratory songbirds. Migratory birds would benefit from the Proposed Action through the reduced disturbance and increased herbaceous and shrub cover for migratory birds resulting from the exclusion of vehicles from the area. Access into the area would be for administrative purposes and by permit. While the reduction in vehicle traffic is expected to reduce disturbance, the increase in foot traffic could increase disturbance in areas not previously or frequently disturbed. The risk of nest trampling would increase due to higher numbers of pedestrian traffic as visitors wishing to visit the lake would need to walk rather than drive to the lake shore. Threatened and Endangered Species or Habitat Threatened and Endangered Species present in the project are Borax Lake chub. The installation of a fence prohibiting vehicle access to the lakeshore and installation of signs are key elements for the delisting of the Borax Lake chub from the Federal Endangered Species List as outlined in the USFWS's Recovery Plan for the Borax Lake Chub (1987). Both of these actions have been analyzed and are included in the Proposed Action. Fence construction (Proposed Action) will not occur near Borax Lake. Where the construction would occur during the late summer chub are not expected to be present in Lower Borax Reservoir. Wetlands, Riparian Zones, Water Quality, and Fisheries In general, there are no specific riparian or fisheries concerns within the critical habitat, rather vehicle presence increases the risk of degradation and is the reason behind the preparation of this EA. In addition, the action proposed would limit the number of vehicles near the shoreline of Borax Lake reducing soil compaction and enhancing stabilizing vegetative cover thus meeting one of the objectives outlined in the Borax Lake Chub Recovery Plan. 3 ' Recreation and Visual Resources The proposed fence would introduce a human-made linear feature into the landscape and would be clearly visible from Borax Lake Road. However, the fence would not dominate the view as seen from the road by the casual observer due to materials used and the design height. Among the objectives of the Visual Resource Management (VRM) Class II category is to retain the existing character of the landscape. As a result of the Proposed Action, there will be fewer posts located in an area where a fence is more commonplace (on a roadside) and an existing fence would no longer be present; therefore, there would be a net improvement in the visual resource and VRM Class II objectives would continue to be met. Transportation/Roads Under the Proposed Action, Borax Marsh Road, the access road leading to Borax Lake from Borax Lake Road, would be closed to regular (unpermitted) traffic. As a result, visitors will be required to walk the remaining 0.4-mile from Borax Lake Road to the lake. While the reduced traffic would reduce vehicle impacts to the area including the narrowing of roads due to reduced use, an increase in pedestrian traffic could result in more trails being created to shorten distances between points of interest. 2. The degree to which the Proposed Action affects public health or safety. The Proposed Action involves the construction of a fence. Whereas this area is known to be used for OHV use, there exists the possibility that OHV operators could be involved in an accident with the fence. Considering the relatively small area associated with the project and the number of existing obstacles and indicators (fences and gates) present, incidents involving OHVs and the fence are not expected. 3. Unique characteristics of the geographic area such as proximity to historic or cultural resources, park lands, prime farmlands, wetlands, wild and scenic rivers, or ecologically critical areas. The area is within an ACEC designated to protect Borax Lake chub and 640 acres have been designated as critical habitat for the chub. The Proposed Action would provide protections for Borax Lake chub and its habitat as well as topographic features by limiting vehicle access. 4. The degree to which effects on the quality of the human environment are likely to be highly controversial. Controversy in this context means disagreement about the nature of the effects, not expressions of opposition to the Proposed Action or preference among the alternatives. No unique or appreciable scientific controversy has been identified regarding the effects of the Proposed Action or No Action Alternative. 4 ' 5. Degree to which possible effects on the human environment are highly uncertain or involve unique or unknown risks. The analysis has not shown there would be any unique or unknown risks to the human environment nor were any identified in the AMU/CMPA PRMP/FEIS to which this proposal is tiered. 6. Degree to which the action may establish a precedent for future actions with significant impacts or represents a decision in principle about a future consideration. This project neither establishes a precedent nor represents a decision in principle about future actions. 7. W hether the action is related to other actions with individually insignificant but cumulatively significant impacts.