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Plumas National Forest Over-Snow Vehicle Use Designation Final Environmental Impact Statement

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Plumas National Forest Over-Snow Vehicle Use Designation Final Environmental Impact Statement United States Department of Agriculture Plumas National Forest Over-snow Vehicle Use Designation Final Environmental Impact Statement Volume III. Appendices F through L Forest Service Plumas National Forest August 2019 Cover image: Snowmobiling at Round Valley Reservoir, Plumas National Forest, Plumas County, California. Photograph taken January 14, 2017 by Erika Brenzovich. In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity (including gender expression), sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status, income derived from a public assistance program, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity, in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA (not all bases apply to all programs). Remedies and complaint filing deadlines vary by program or incident. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.) should contact the responsible Agency or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English. To file a program discrimination complaint, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, AD- 3027, found online at http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html and at any USDA office or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by: (1) mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; (2) fax: (202) 690-7442; or (3) email: [email protected]. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender. Over-snow Vehicle Use Designation Final Environmental Impact Statement – Volume III Appendices F through L Over-snow Vehicle Use Designation Final Environmental Impact Statement Plumas National Forest Butte, Lassen, Plumas, Sierra, and Yuba Counties, California Lead Agency: USDA Forest Service Responsible Official: CHRISTOPHER CARLTON FOREST SUPERVISOR Plumas National Forest 159 Lawrence Street Quincy, CA 95971 For Information Contact: KATHERINE CARPENTER ENVIRONMENTAL COORDINATOR Plumas National Forest 159 Lawrence Street Quincy, CA 95971 (530) 283-7742 Abstract: The Forest Service proposes to designate snow areas and trails for public over-snow vehicle (OSV) use on the Plumas National Forest. These designations would occur on National Forest System lands within the Plumas National Forest. The Forest Service would also identify designated snow trails where grooming for public OSV use would occur within the Plumas National Forest. This final environmental impact statement (FEIS) discloses the comparative analysis of the options being considered in designating areas and trails of the Plumas National Forest for OSV use. We consider the environmental impacts of a proposed action, a no-action alternative, and four additional action alternatives developed in response to issues, public comments received during the scoping period; multiple interdisciplinary team discussions; coordination with project stakeholders; literature review; and application of the Minimization Criteria (36 CFR 212.55(b)(1-4)). Mail objections to: Randy Moore, Regional Forester USDA Forest Service Pacific Southwest Region Attn: Plumas OSV Objection 1323 Club Drive Vallejo, CA 94592 Email objections to: [email protected] Subject: Plumas OSV Objection Objection period: The 45-day objection period starts the day after the Legal Notice to Object is published in the Feather River Bulletin. Plumas National Forest iii Over-snow Vehicle Use Designation Final Environmental Impact Statement – Volume III Appendices F through L Contents Appendix F. Noxious Weed Risk Assessment .............................................................................................. 1 Appendix G. How Cumulative Impacts were Considered ............................................................................ 7 Appendix H. Scoping Comments Categories ............................................................................................. 16 Appendix I. Response to Comments ........................................................................................................... 17 Appendix J. Monitoring ............................................................................................................................ 225 Appendix K. Travel Management Definitions .......................................................................................... 229 Appendix L. Acronyms ............................................................................................................................. 231 Appendix M. Changes to Alternative 2 between DEIS and FEIS ............................................................ 232 List of Tables Table F- 1. Weed infestations in the Plumas OSV use designation project area. ......................................... 2 Table G- 1. Plumas National Forest allotments, livestock type, season of use, animal unit months, and allotment acres .............................................................................................................................................. 9 Table H- 1. Percentage of scoping comment subjects received after publication of the Notice of Intent (2015) .......................................................................................................................................................... 16 Table H- 2. Most common themes identified from scoping comments received in 2015 .......................... 16 Table I- 1. DEIS comment period letters from October 10, 2018 through January 25, 2019 ..................... 17 Table I- 2. DEIS comment period letters from January 1, 2019 through February 8, 2019 ....................... 21 Table I- 3. DEIS comment period letters from February 9, 2019 through March 2, 2019 ......................... 22 Table I- 4. Comment categories, number of comments, and correspondence numbers.............................. 24 Table I- 5. Concern categories, statements, and responses ......................................................................... 33 Table K- 1. Road and trail definitions ....................................................................................................... 229 Plumas National Forest v Over-snow Vehicle Use Designation Final Environmental Impact Statement – Volume III Appendix F. Noxious Weed Risk Assessment Appendix F. Noxious Weed Risk Assessment Five factors of weed spread were analyzed for the proposed Plumas National Forest OSV Use Designation Project. Discussions and determinations of risk (high, moderate, and low) are presented below along with the total risk of weed spread for the proposed project. Summary For all alternatives, the Plumas OSV Use Designation Project carries an overall low risk of spreading or introducing weeds. Existing factors of weeds already present, habitat vulnerability, and non-project weed vectors carry a moderate risk, but no habitat alteration and a relatively small amount of increased weed vectoring is expected from this project. Introduction Noxious weeds generally possess one or more of the following characteristics: aggressive and difficult to manage; poisonous; toxic; parasitic; a carrier or host of serious insects or disease; or being nonnative, new, to or not common to the United States or parts thereof (Forest Service Manual 2900). In order to control noxious weeds the U.S. Forest Service has adopted an integrated weed management approach to reduce the spread of noxious weeds on to, and from, National Forest System lands. The main objective of this integrated approach to weed management is to prevent the introduction and establishment of noxious weed infestations, and control (contain and suppress) existing noxious weed infestations on National Forest System lands (Forest Service Manual 2900). In addition, when any ground-disturbing action or activity is proposed, the Federal agency is required to determine the risk of introducing or spreading noxious weeds associated with the proposed action (Forest Service Manual 2900). On the Plumas National Forest, roadside weed infestations are routinely treated during their active growing season each year. In the Plumas OSV project area, 50 invasive plant species are documented. The table below shows a list of weed species and their acreage of presence near OSV trails and in areas designated for OSV use. The most likely places for possible weed introductions are in areas of concentrated OSV use, such as designated trails and trailheads. OSV trailheads are also accessible by wheeled vehicles during the summer seasons, so the presence of weeds does not necessarily indicate they were brought to the sites as a result of OSV activities. Although there are some differences in designated OSV trails in each alternative, the locations and uses of seven OSV trailheads would be the same for all alternatives. The following
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