Halfway Malin
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Halfway Malin Botany Report Prepared by: Bruce Davidson Botanist, TEAMS Enterprise Unit for: St. Joe Ranger District Idaho Panhandle National Forests September 15, 2015 Updated August 15, 2016 by Lynette Myhre IDT Team Leader, St. Joe RD NEPA Coordinator 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. ____________________________________________________ The Forest Service uses the most current and complete data available. Geographic information system (GIS) data and product accuracy may vary. They may be developed from sources of differing accuracy, accurate only at certain scales based on modeling or interpretation, incomplete while being created or revised, etc. Using GIS products for purposed other than those for which they were created may yield inaccurate or misleading results. If a map contains contours, these contours were generated and filtered using the Digital Elevation Model (DEM) files. Any contours generated from DEMs using a scale of less than 1:100,000 will lead to less reliable results and should only be used for display purposes. For more information contact the St. Joe Ranger District at 222 S. 7th Street Suite 1, St. Maries, Idaho, 83861; (208)245-2531. Reported mileages are estimates and may vary depending on how they are rounded and what models and equations they are used for or result from. Resource Report Title of Project Contents Botany ............................................................................................................................................. 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 1 Regulatory Framework ............................................................................................................... 1 Analysis Area and Temporal Scope ............................................................................................ 2 Methodology ............................................................................................................................... 2 Affected Environment ................................................................................................................. 4 Species and Habitat Descriptions ............................................................................................ 4 Species Considered in the Analysis ......................................................................................... 8 Existing Condition ................................................................................................................. 10 Environmental Consequences ................................................................................................... 12 Alternative A – No Action .................................................................................................... 12 Alternative B – Proposed Action ........................................................................................... 12 Alternative C ......................................................................................................................... 18 Compliance with LRMP and Other Relevant Laws, Regulations, Policies and Plans .......... 21 Summary of Determinations .................................................................................................. 21 Summary of Environmental Effects .......................................................................................... 22 References Cited ....................................................................................................................... 24 Appendix A. St. Joe Ranger District Rare Plant Lists and Habitat Guilds ............................... 26 St. Joe Sensitive Plants by Rare Plant Habitat Guild (revised 2011)* .................................. 26 St. Joe Plant Species of Concern* (revised 2011) ................................................................. 26 St. Joe Ranger District Rare Plant Habitat Guild Descriptions ............................................. 27 Appendix B. Maps of Affected TEPS plant habitats ............................................................... 30 Tables Table 1: Botany indicators and measures for assessing effects ....................................................... 3 Table 2. Plant Species Preliminary Analysis Results. ..................................................................... 8 Table 3: Botany indicators and measures for the existing condition ............................................. 11 Table 4. Botany indicators and measures for Alternative A .......................................................... 12 Table 5: Botany indicators and measures for Alternative B .......................................................... 17 Table 6: Botany indicators and measures for Alternative C .......................................................... 20 Table 7. Summary comparison of environmental effects to botany resources .............................. 23 i Botany Report Halfway Malin Project Botany Introduction The purpose of this Biological Evaluation /Assessment (BEBA) is to analyze and disclose the effects of proposed activities on all federally listed threatened, endangered, proposed, and Forest Service Region 1 sensitive (TEPS) plants that are known to occur, or have the potential to occur within the Halfway/Malin Project area on the St. Joe Ranger District of the Idaho Panhandle National Forest (IPNF). In order to increase forest resilience, increase the quality and quantity of browse for big game wildlife species, contribute to a sustainable level of timber products, improve aquatic conditions, and reduce road maintenance costs, the proposed project is to harvest timber, apply prescribed fire, remove a culvert, construct new roads, store or gate roads, and decommission roads. Ground disturbing activities included in the proposed action have potential to damage these plant species. No Federally Listed Threatened or Endangered plants are known or suspected in the project area and none were found during surveys. One Forest Service Sensitive plant is known to occur in the project area. If any additional sites are found in the future that are deemed necessary to ensure species and population viability and prevent a potential trend towards federal listing, those sites would be protected. Regulatory Framework Endangered Species Act The purpose of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) is to provide a means whereby the ecosystems upon which endangered species and threatened species depend may be conserved and to provide for the conservation of such endangered species and threatened species. The ESA directs federal agencies to ensure that actions authorized, funded, or carried out by these agencies are not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of threatened or endangered species, or result in the destruction or adverse modification of their critical habitats (ESA Section 7(a)(2)). National Forest Management Act The National Forest Management Act (NFMA) of 1976 is the primary statute governing the administration of national forests and was an amendment to the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974, which called for the management of renewable resources on National Forest system lands. NFMA changed forest planning by requiring the Forest Service to use a systematic and interdisciplinary approach to resource management, also providing for public involvement in preparing and revising forest plans. This includes a requirement for project-level planning to be in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act and Land and Resource Management Plans. Forest Service Manual Forest Service Manual direction (FSM 2672.1 and FSM 2672.43) requires that activities