Study Plan 2 and 3 Draft Report March 2009
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COMBINED VEGETATION AND THREATENED, ENDANGERED AND SENSITIVE SPECIES ASSESSMENT -DRAFT COMBINED REPORT- MASON DAM PROJECT BAKER COUNTY, OREGON Project Number P-12686-001 Prepared for Baker County 1995 Third Street Baker City, Oregon 97814 Prepared by EcoWest Consulting, Inc. 13740 Red Fox Baker, OR 97814 541-523-5572 March 2009 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Overview..............................................................................................................1 1.2 Project Description.............................................................................................3 2.0 METHODS 2.1 Introduction 2.1.1 Federal and State-Listed Species...........................................................4 2.1.2 Forest Service Sensitive Species.............................................................4 2.1.3 Rare Species Summary............................................................................5 2.2 TES PreField Screening 2.2.1 2007 TES Prefield Screening...................................................................5 2.2.2 2008 TES Prefield Screening...................................................................6 2.2.3 TES Plant Phenology................................................................................7 2.3 Field Methods 2.3.1 TES Species................................................................................................7 2.3.2 Vegetation Mapping/Characterization..................................................10 2.4 Analysis Methods 2.4.1 TES Species...............................................................................................11 2.4.2 Vegetation Characterization...................................................................11 2.4.3 Wetland/Riparian Functional Assessment............................................12 2.4.4 Wetland and Riparian Impacts..............................................................13 3.0 FEDERAL AND STATE-LISTED SPECIES ACCOUNTS 3.1 Federally Listed Species......................................................................................14 3.2 State -Listed Species............................................................................................17 3.3 FWS Species of Concern.....................................................................................22 4.0 TES RESULTS 4.1 Federal and State-listed Species 4.1.1 Pre-Field Screening..................................................................................31 4.1.2 Summary of Federal/State-Listed Species Pre-Field Screening..........39 4.2 Forest Service Sensitive Species 4.2.1 Pre-Field Screening.................................................................................39 4.2.2 Summary of Forest Service Sensitive Species Pre-Field Screening....47 4.3 Species Phenology...............................................................................................47 4.4 Field Survey Results............................................................................................49 4.4.1 Wetland/Aquatic Dependent TES Species............................................49 4.4.2 Upland Forest Dependent TES Species.................................................55 4.4.3 Rock/Talus Slope Dependent TES Species............................................58 4.4.4 Bats and Myotis........................................................................................59 4.4.5 Summary of Surveys and Habitat Assessments....................................60 5.0 TES SPECIES IMPACTS AND MITIGATION MEASURES 5.1 Federal and State-listed Species 5.1.1 Introduction............................................................................................67 5.1.2 Bald Eagle................................................................................................67 5.1.3 Bull Trout................................................................................................70 5.1.4 Gray Wolf................................................................................................70 5.1.5 Blue Mountain Cryptochian Caddisfly.................................................71 5.2 Forest Service Sensitive Species 5.2.1 Introduction.............................................................................................71 5.2.2 Red Band Trout.......................................................................................71 5.3 Enhancement Measures......................................................................................71 6.0 VEGETATION STUDY RESULTS 6.1 Introduction........................................................................................................73 6.2 Wetland and Aquatic Habitats 6.2.1 Open Water............................................................................................73 6.2.2 Powder River Riparian.........................................................................75 6.2.3 Tributary Wetlands...............................................................................76 6.2.4 Functional Assessment..........................................................................80 6.2.5 Wetland and Aquatic Habitat Summary............................................82 6.3 Upland Habitats.................................................................................................82 6.3.1 Upland Forest.........................................................................................84 6.3.2 Dry Grassland........................................................................................88 6.3.3 Rock/Talus Slope...................................................................................90 6.3.4 Bare.........................................................................................................90 6.3.5 Upland Habitat Summary....................................................................91 6.4 Potential Impacts..............................................................................................92 6.4.1 Direct Impacts.......................................................................................92 6.4.2 Indirect Impacts....................................................................................93 6.4.3 Summary of Potential Impacts............................................................94 7.0 REFERENCES..............................................................................................................96 APPENDIX A: MASON DAM PROJECT MAPS AND FIGURES................................101 Figure 1. Mason Dam Project Study Area for TES Species Figure 2. Mason Dam Project Study Area for TES Species and Additional Potential Impact area for Bald Eagle Figure 3a. Bald Eagle Nest Site and BEMA Boundaries. Figure 3b. Potential Construction Noise Impact Zones Figure 4. Known and Potential TES Habitat in the Vicinity of the Mason Dam Project. Figure 5a. Mason Dam Study Area Figure 5b. Mason Dam Study Area Vegetation Map Figure 5c. Mason Dam Vegetation Data Points Map APPENDIX B: AGENCY TES SPECIES LISTS........................................................................110 APPENDIX C: REPRESENTATIVE HABITAT PHOTOGRAPHS........................................119 APPENDIX D: PLANT SPECIES OBSERVED DURING 2007 AND 2008 TES FIELD ASSESSMENTS....................................................................................................133 APPENDIX E: WILDLIFE SPECIES/SIGN OBSERVED DURING 2007 AND 2008 TES FIELD ASSESSMENTS.......................................................................................142 APPENDIX F: VEGETATION STUDY DATA SHEETS..........................................................146 APPENDIX G: BAKER BIRD CLUB OBSERVATIONS WITHIN THE MASON DAM VICINITY..............................................................................................................188 APPENDIX H: NOXIOUS WEED ASSESSMENT.....................................................................190 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Overview Baker County has applied to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to develop hydroelectric energy at the existing Mason Dam. Mason Dam is located in Baker County, Oregon approximately 15 miles southwest of Baker City off of State Highway 7. Mason Dam was built by the US Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) on the Powder River for irrigation, water delivery and flood control. Water is stored behind Mason Dam in Phillips Lake, and released during the irrigation season by Baker Valley Irrigation District. Water is generally stored between October and March and released April through September (Baker County 2006). Releases average approximately 10 cfs between October and January, increase to an average 20 to 50 cfs during February and March and generally remain above 100 to 200 cfs through the remainder of the year. As part of the licensing process, FERC and other resource agencies requested a number of studies to be completed. Two of the requested studies were: Study Plan 2-Vegetation, Rare Plants, and Noxious Weeds and Study Plan 3 -Threatened, Endangered, and Special Status Species Assessment. These studies are made up of the following components, (1) threatened, endangered, or sensitive (TES) species and (2) general botanical resources including wetland/riparian habitats, rare plants and noxious weeds. The study plan results overlap, and FERC (2008) approved the combination of the two study plan results into a single final report for all TES species, habitats and botanical resources. Instead of splitting the discussion of TES plant species into listed, rare, sensitive, or other species of concern,