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Mesabi Project EA

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Mesabi Project EA Environmental United States Department of Agriculture Assessment Forest Service October Mesabi Project 2016 Laurentian Ranger District, Superior National Forest St. Louis County, Minnesota Townships 59-61 North, Ranges 16-21 West 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. Mesabi Project Environmental Assessment CONTENTS AND LISTS TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: PURPOSE AND NEED Page 1.1 INTRODUCTION …………………………………………………………………...... 1 1.2 ORGANIZATION OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT ……………. 3 1.3 FOREST PLAN DIRECTION FOR THE MESABI PROJECT AREA………………… 3 1.4 PURPOSE OF AND NEED FOR ACTION…………………………….……………….. 8 1.5 PROPOSED ACTION…………………………………………………………............ 15 1.6 DECISION TO BE MADE…………………………………………………………… 25 1.7 PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT AND ISSUES WITH THE PROPOSED ACTION... 25 CHAPTER 2: COMPARISON OF ALTERNATIVES 2.1 INTRODUCTION ………………………………………………………………….... 27 2.2 HOW A RANGE OF ALTERNATIVES WAS DEVELOPED………………….. 27 2.3 ALTERNATIVES ANALYZED IN DETAIL ………………………………………...... 27 2.4 ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED AND NOT CARRIED FORWARD FOR DETAILED 31 ANALYSIS ……………………………………………………………... 2.5 COMPARISON OF ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED IN DETAIL …………. 32 2.6 COMPARISON OF HOW ALTERNATIVES MEET PURPOSE AND NEED... 42 CHAPTER 3: AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES 3.1 INTRODUCTION ………………………………………………………………………. 47 3.2 TREATY RIGHTS……………………………………………………………………...... 47 3.3 VEGETATION ………………………………………………………………………….. 48 3.4 THREATENED AND ENDANGERED SPECIES…………………………………….... 68 3.5 REGIONAL FORESTER SENSITIVE SPECIES………………………………………. 69 3.6 MANAGEMENT INDICATOR SPECIES AND MANAGEMENT INDICATOR 71 HABITATS 3.7 FIRE AND FUELS……………………………………………………………………….. 77 3.8 SOILS…………………………………………………………………………..………… 86 3.9 WATER RESOURCES …………………………………………………......................... 93 3.10 NON-NATIVE INVASIVE PLANTS………………..…………………………………. 111 3.11 RECREATION/SCENERY………………………………………………...…………… 118 3.12 OTHER DETERMINATIONS (Heritage Resources, Wilderness, Air Quality, Gravel, and 127 Civil Rights and Environmental Justice)................................................. CHAPTER 4: LISTS AND REFERENCES 4.1 LISTS OF PREPARERS AND CONTRIBUTORS ……………………………………... 139 4.2 DISTRIBUTION LISTS………………………………………………………………...... 139 4.3 REFERENCE AND LITERATURE CITED…………………………………………….. 140 APPENDICES: Appendix A. Vegetation Treatment Descriptions and Unit Specific Design Criteria Appendix B: Proposed Treatments by Stand Unit for Alternative 2 Appendix C: Operational Standards and Guidelines Appendix D: Monitoring Plan and Sample Pit Management Plans Appendix E: Past, Present, and Reasonably Foreseeable Future Actions Appendix F: Response to Scoping Comments Appendix G: Economics Appendix H: Herbicide Proposal OTHER: Vegetation and Transportation Maps Laurentian Ranger District i Mesabi Project Environmental Assessment CHAPTER 1: PURPOSE AND NEED 1.1 INTRODUCTION The purpose of the Mesabi Project is to implement the 2004 Superior National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (forest plan-FP). The project’s proposed activities are designed to move the vegetation in the project area from its existing condition toward the desired conditions described in the forest plan. Key objectives of the Mesabi Project are to promote diverse, productive, and healthy native vegetation communities; improve habitat for sensitive plants; enhance wildlife habitat for threatened, endangered, and sensitive species; introduce fire into fire dependent ecosystems; reduce hazardous fuels; improve riparian function; improve water and soil resource health; improve recreational opportunities; designate gravel pits; provide sustainable forest products; and improve forest health and productivity. Other objectives are described further in this document. Activities proposed to accomplish these objectives include harvesting (such as thinning, clearcut with reserves or shelterwood), hazardous fuels reduction, a full suite of reforestation activities (such as site preparation, seeding, planting (figure 1.1), timber stand improvement (TSI), prescribed burning, and understory fuel reduction. Additional proposed actions include constructing and decommissioning temporary roads to access units, decommissioning roads no longer needed, and designating federal gravel pits needed for projects and public use. The Mesabi Project Area is located in St. Louis County, approximately three miles north of Virginia, Minnesota (figure 1.2). Townships include 59 North, Ranges 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, and 21 West; Township 60 North, Ranges 17, 18, 19, 20, and 21 West; and Township 61 North, Ranges 17, 18, 19, 20, and 21 West. The Mesabi Project Area encompasses approximately 256,984 acres of land with mixed ownership; approximately 101,599 acres (40 percent) are National Forest System land. This environmental assessment was prepared to provide the decision maker (Laurentian District Ranger) and the public with information about the potential effects of proposed vegetation management activities and connected road actions in the project area. An interdisciplinary team of resource specialists prepared this document. Figure 1.1: An example of diversity planting with oak, pine, and spruce. Laurentian Ranger District 1 Mesabi Project Environmental Assessment Figure 1.2: Mesabi Project Area Vicinity Map. Laurentian Ranger District 2 Mesabi Project Environmental Assessment 1.2 ORGANIZATION OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT This environmental assessment (EA) is organized into four chapters with appendices and follows the format established by the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations (40 CFR 1500-1508) for implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Major sections of the EA are as follows: • Chapter 1: Purpose and Need. This chapter provides introductory material that explains the purpose and need for the proposed action, provides background information about the project area, presents pertinent laws and regulations, and describes issues to be addressed. • Chapter 2: Alternatives. This section describes the no action alternative and the action alternatives, all of which are analyzed in detail in chapter 3. Chapter 2 also includes mitigation measures and monitoring procedures that would be used in implementing an action alternative. A summary comparison of the environmental effects for each alternative is also provided. • Chapter 3: Affected Environment and Environmental Effects. This chapter describes the affected environment and the direct, indirect, and cumulative effects likely to occur with the implementation of each alternative. • Chapter 4: References. This chapter provides names of the preparers and contributors to this environmental assessment, a distribution list, and literature cited. An important consideration in the preparation of this EA was the reduction of paperwork as specified in 40 CFR 1500.4. The objective is to furnish enough site-specific information to demonstrate a reasoned consideration of the environmental effects of the alternatives and how any adverse effects can be mitigated or avoided. Additional supporting information is in the Mesabi project record and is available at the Laurentian Ranger District, Aurora, Minnesota or upon request. This environmental assessment is tiered to the Forest Plan Revision Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS). Relevant analysis from the Forest Plan Revision FEIS was incorporated by reference rather than repeating the information. 1.3 FOREST PLAN DIRECTION FOR THE MESABI PROJECT AREA The forest plan divides the Superior National Forest outside the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) into ten management areas. Chapter 3 of the forest plan (FP) includes the desired conditions, objectives, standards, and guidelines for each management area. The project
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