Brule River State Forest Master Plan and Environmental Impact Statement

Brule River State Forest Master Plan and Environmental Impact Statement Brule River State Forest # May 2003 Governor Jim Doyle Natural Resources Board Trygve A. Solberg, Chair James E. Tiefenthaler, Jr., Vice-Chair Gerald M. O’Brien, Secretary Herbert F. Behnke Howard D. Poulson Jonathan P. Ela Stephen D. Willett Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Scott Hassett, Secretary Bill Smith, Deputy Secretary Elizabeth Kluesner, Executive Assistant Paul DeLong, Administrator - Division of Forestry Laurie Osterndorf, Administrator - Division of Land Acknowledgments Authors and Editors Kent Van Horn, Ken Brokaw and Steve Petersen Contributors Bob Dall, Paul DeLong, Bob Dubois, Eric Epstein, Dan Egan, Kate Fitzgerald, Mike Keniry, Greg Kessler, Frank Koshere, Jody Les, Coleen Matula, Bruce Moss, Dennis Pratt, Robert Roden , Jeff Schimpf, Melissa R. Sette-Lake, Al Shea, Dave Schulz, Joanne Tooley and Tom Watkins. Equal Opportunity Employer The Wisconsin DNR provides equal opportunity in its employment, programs, services, and functions under an Affirmative Action Plan. If you have any questions, please write to Equal Opportunity Office, Department of Interior, Washington D.C. 20240. This publication can be made available in alternative formats (large print, Braille, audio-tape, etc.) upon request. Please contact the Wisconsin DNR, Division of Forestry, PO Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707. Phone: (608) 267-7494 View this Document on the Web: http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/master_planning/ (select BRSF master plan) STATE OF WISCONSIN Master Plan and Environmental Impact Statement for the Brule River State Forest (Douglas County) Proposed by the WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES Analysis Prepared by WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES Northern Region Land Program, Division of Forestry, And other DNR Staff Approved: December 4, 2002 Print Date: May 2003 1 Brule River State Forest Master Plan Table of Contents Chapter One - Introduction and Summary . 5 Property Description History and Background of the Property Regulatory and Statutory Requirements Overview of Master Plan Land Acquisition Overview Overview of Current Use and Management of the Property Justification of Plan Summary of Public Involvement Summary of Significant Issues Summary of Tribal Consultations Chapter Two – Master Plan (or Actions) . .21 Vision and Goals Property-wide Management Objectives Property-wide Provisions Real Estate Management Public Communication Land Use and Recreational Setting Classifications Land Management Summary Charts Introduction . 33 Area1: Lake Superior Clay Plain . .35 Area 2: Sugar Camp Hill / Lenroot Ledges. 36 Area 3: Miller Road / CCC Square. 37 Area 4: Bois Brule River . 38 Area 5: Brule River Bog and Spillway . 39 Area 6: After-hours . 40 Area 7: Administrative Area . 41 Area 8: Troy Pit Pines . 42 Area 9: Hazel Prairie Pines . 43 Area 10: Pine Forest and Barrens . 44 Area 11: Gordon Annex . .45 Area 12: Willard Road . .46 Area 13: Lake Minnesuing . 47 Recreation Management Summary Charts Areas 1-13 . 48 Lake Superior Clay Plain – Ecological Landscape . 54 Area1: Lake Superior Clay Plain – Native Community Management Area Area 2: Sugar Camp Hill / Lenroot Ledges – Native Community Management Area Area 3: Miller Road / CCC Square – Habitat Management Area Brule River Ecosystem . 70 Canoeing/ Kayaking Fisheries Area 4: Bois Brule River – Scenic Management Area Area 5: Brule River Bog and Spillway - Native Community Management Area 2 Brule River State Forest Master Plan Bayfield Sand Plain . .87 Area 6: After-hours - Recreation Area Area 7: Administrative – Special Management Area Area 8: Troy Pit Pines – Forest Production Area Area 9: Hazel Prairie Pines – Forest Production Area Area 10: Pine Forest and Barrens – Native Community Management Area Area 11: Gordon Annex – Forest Production Area Mille Lacs Uplands . 105 Area 12: Willard Road – Native Community Management Area Area 13: Lake Minnesuing – Scenic Management Area Chapter Three – Environmental Impacts of Master Plan . .111 Overview Impacts to the Physical and Biological Resources Impacts to Aesthetic Resources Impacts to Cultural Resources Impacts to Recreational Resources Impacts to Land Ownership and Land Use Impacts to Project Costs and Revenues – State Impacts to Counties, Towns, Villages, Local taxpayers Other Socio-Economic Impact Impacts on Resources of Special Tribal Interest Chapter Four – Environmental Impacts of Master Plan Alternatives . 169 Introduction to the Alternatives Table: Real Estate Management Alternatives Table: Description of Resources Management Alternatives in each Ecological Landscape Table: Description of Recreation Alternatives in each Ecological Landscape Alternatives Considered and Their Environmental Impacts Fiscal Impacts to the State Chapter Five – Supporting Information . 197 Background Information Physical and Biological Environment Existing Local and Regional Recreational Resources Cultural Resources Executive Summary of the Brule River State Forest Regional Analysis Land Ownership and Use within and adjacent to the Forest History of the Brule River State Forest State Forest Operational Costs and Revenue 3 Brule River State Forest Master Plan Chapter Six – Summary of Public Involvement and Comments . 209 Public Involvement Methods of Public Contact Primary Stakeholders in Planning Process Public Involvement Methods The Master Planning Process Issue Identification Background Research and Publications Information Forums Public Comments and the Decision-making Process The Tribal Consultation Process Table: The Chronology Summary of Public Involvement Activities Appendix . 217 Appendix A: Glossary of Terms Appendix B: Bankfull Flow Fact Sheet Appendix C: Land Use and Water Quality Fact Sheet Appendix D: Water Resources Fact Sheet Appendix E: Fisheries Fact Sheet Appendix F: Land Acquisition Fact Sheet Appendix G: Evaluation of Water Quality in the Bois Brule River System using the Hilsenhoff Biotic Index Appendix H: Endangered, Threatened, and Species of Special Concern Tables Appendix I: GLIFWC Resources of Special Interest Information Tables Appendix J: Brule River State Forest Natural Areas Bibliography . .255 Brule River State Forest Maps . 261 Ecological Landscapes of Northwest Wisconsin Bois Brule Watershed Land Management Recreation Natural Community Distribution Existing Covertype Future Covertype Brule River State Forest State Natural Areas 4 Brule River State Forest Master Plan – Chapter One CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY PROPERTY DESCRIPTION The Brule River State Forest is a remarkable place with a rich natural and cultural history and unique opportunities for restoration and management to provide the features that people have valued for so many generations. Located in eastern Douglas County in northwest Wisconsin, the Brule River State forest is approximately 30 miles north to south. It ranges from six miles wide at the south end, two miles wide for much of its length, and has eight miles of frontage on Lake Superior. The town of Brule, near BRSF headquarters, is at the junction of HWY 2 and HWY 27 and is approximately 35 miles east of the city of Superior. The 1979 master plan project boundary includes approximately 50,000 acres of which 40,882 acres are in state ownership. BRSF contains the entire 44 mile long Bois Brule River and 45% of its watershed. There is a total of 165 miles of stream length including 74 named and unnamed streams and there are five small lakes within the boundary. Three major ecoregions are represented on BRSF. The Lake Superior Clay Plain, formerly covered by a unique form of boreal forest, today is a landscape that is fragmented into farmland, aspen stands and spruce-fir remnants. The Bayfield Sand Barrens once supported an extensive pine barrens and dry pine-oak forest cover. Pine plantations dominate this region, with sandy, poor soils and level to rolling topography. It is also the site of the “Brule Spillway”, a complex of unique natural features. The Mille Lacs Uplands is a ridge of igneous bedrock that wedges between the other two ecoregions and supports one of the few areas of northern hardwood forest on the Brule River State Forest. Present forest cover includes 14,000 acres of aspen, 1,400 acres of white birch, 10,000 acres of red, jack or white pine, 2,300 acres of scrub oak/pine barrens, 2,200 acres of fir/spruce cover, 1,500 acres of swamp conifers, 1,000 acres of hardwoods, and 1,100 acres of swamp hardwoods. A diversity of habitats located within BRSF is reflected in an equally diverse mix of bird and mammal species including white-tail deer, black bear, beaver, otter, fisher, mink, bobcat, timber wolf, and ruffed and sharp-tailed grouse. More than 200 species of birds have been recorded in the Brule River State Forest. Forty-four rare species of special concern, three state endangered and seven state threatened have been documented on the Brule River State Forest. Some of these species have both state and federal protection status. Over 90 occurrences of 20 natural communities were surveyed on the property. Most of these rare species on the Brule River State Forest (BRSF) are associated with aquatic or wetland habitats. 5 Brule River State Forest Master Plan – Chapter One The coldwater fishery supports both native and introduced fish species. Species such as resident and anadromous trout and salmon include brook, rainbow, and brown trout, and Coho and Chinook salmon. A lamprey barrier exists on the lower river to block passage of sea lampreys to their previously productive spawning

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