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Environmental Assessment United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service November 2007 Environmental Assessment Travel Plan Map Revision Elimination of Motorized Cross-Country Travel and Motorized Route Designation Sawtooth National Forest Fairfield Ranger District, Camas County, Idaho Ketchum Ranger District, Blaine County, Idaho Minidoka Ranger District, Twin Falls, Cassia, Power, and Oneida Counties, Idaho; Box Elder County, Utah For Information Contact: Kim Pierson—Team Leader Sawtooth National Forest, Supervisor’s Office, Twin Falls, Idaho (208) 737-3200 http://www.fs.fed.us/r4/sawtooth/projects/ The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. Environmental Assessment Sawtooth National Forest Route Designation Table of Contents Acronyms, Abbreviations, and Initialisms .......................................................................................... xiii Preface ................................................................................................................................................ xvii CHAPTER 1—Introduction ................................................................................................................ 1-1 Document Structure ........................................................................................................................ 1-1 Background ..................................................................................................................................... 1-1 Purpose and Need for Action .......................................................................................................... 1-2 Proposed Action .............................................................................................................................. 1-2 Area to be Analyzed ........................................................................................................................ 1-3 Decision Framework ....................................................................................................................... 1-4 Public Involvement ......................................................................................................................... 1-4 Issues ............................................................................................................................................... 1-5 Issue 1: Recreation ..................................................................................................................... 1-5 Issue 2: Vegetation .................................................................................................................... 1-6 Issue 3: Soil and Hydrology ...................................................................................................... 1-6 Issue 4: Fisheries ........................................................................................................................ 1-7 Issue 5: Wildlife ......................................................................................................................... 1-7 Issue 6: Heritage ........................................................................................................................ 1-7 Issue 7: Economics .................................................................................................................... 1-8 Findings Required by Other Laws .................................................................................................. 1-8 Consistency with Sawtooth Land and Resource Management Plan ........................................... 1-8 National Environmental Policy Act (1970) ................................................................................ 1-8 Endangered Species Act (1973) .................................................................................................. 1-8 Environmental Justice ................................................................................................................. 1-8 National Historic Preservation Act ............................................................................................. 1-8 Fort Bridger Treaty of July 3, 1868 ............................................................................................ 1-9 Migratory Bird Treaty Act .......................................................................................................... 1-9 Wild and Scenic Rivers Act ........................................................................................................ 1-9 Federal Water Pollution Control Act and Amendments of 1972 ................................................ 1-9 Inventoried Roadless Areas ........................................................................................................ 1-9 36 CFR §§ 212, 251, 261, and 295 Travel Management; Designated Routes and Areas for Motor Vehicle Use .............................................................................................................. 1-10 CHAPTER 2—Alternatives, Including the Proposed Action ............................................................. 2-1 Alternatives Considered in Detail ................................................................................................... 2-1 Alternative 1, No Action (Baseline) ........................................................................................... 2-2 Action Alternatives 2–4 .............................................................................................................. 2-2 Alternative 2, Proposed Action—Modified ................................................................................ 2-2 Alternative 3 ............................................................................................................................... 2-2 Alternative 4 ............................................................................................................................... 2-2 Actions Common to Alternatives 2–4 ............................................................................................. 2-3 Alternative Description by RD........................................................................................................ 2-3 Fairfield RD ................................................................................................................................ 2-4 iii Environmental Assessment Sawtooth National Forest Route Designation Ketchum RD ............................................................................................................................... 2-6 Minidoka RD .............................................................................................................................. 2-7 Minidoka RD—Albion Division ................................................................................................ 2-8 Minidoka—Black Pine Division ................................................................................................. 2-9 Minidoka RD—Cassia Division ................................................................................................. 2-9 Minidoka RD—Raft River Division ......................................................................................... 2-10 Minidoka RD—Sublett Division .............................................................................................. 2-11 Alternatives Considered but Dismissed from Further Analysis ............................................... 2-11 Comparison of Effects from the Alternatives ............................................................................... 2-13 Recreation ................................................................................................................................. 2-14 Vegetation ................................................................................................................................. 2-17 Soil and Hydrology ................................................................................................................... 2-19 Fisheries .................................................................................................................................... 2-20 Wildlife ..................................................................................................................................... 2-22 Heritage .................................................................................................................................... 2-23 Economics ................................................................................................................................ 2-24 CHAPTER 3—Affected Environment and Environmental Consequences ......................................... 3-1 Assumptions .................................................................................................................................... 3-1 Cross-Country Travel ................................................................................................................
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