Calumet Project Area Final Environmental Impact Statement Pennington County, South Dakota
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CALUMET PROJECT AREA FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT USDA Forest Service Black Hills National Forest Mystic Ranger District Rapid City, South Dakota Commonly Used Acronyms and Abbreviations ARC At-Risk-Community FSH Forest Service Handbook BA Basal Area FSM Forest Service Manual BF Board Foot GIS Geographic Information System BHNF Black Hills National Forest GPS Global Positioning System BMP Best Management Practices HFRA Healthy Forests Restoration Act CCF Cubic Hundred Feet ID Team Interdisciplinary Team CDA Connected Disturbed Area MA Management Area CEQ Council on Environmental Quality MBF Thousand Board Feet CF Cubic Feet MIS Management Indicator Species CFR Code of Federal Regulations MMBF Million Board Feet CMAI Culmination of Mean Annual MPB Mountain Pine Beetle Increment MVUM Motorized Vehicle Use Map CPUA Concentrated Public Use Area NEPA National Environmental Policy Act CWD Coarse Woody Debris NFMA National Forest Management Act CWPP Community Wildfire Protection NFS National Forest System Plan NFSR National Forest System Road DBH Diameter Breast Height OHV Off Highway Vehicle DEIS Draft Environmental Impact ROD Record of Decision Statement S&G Standard(s) and Guideline(s) EA Environmental Analysis SDGF&P South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks EIS Environmental Impact Statement SHPO State Historic Preservation Officer EPA Environmental Protection SOLC Species of Local Concern Agency SS Structural Stage FEIS Final Environmental Impact T&E Threatened and Endangered Statement TMP Travel Management Plan FLMPA Federal Land Management TSI Timber Stand Improvement Policy Act USDA United States Department of Agriculture FP Forest Plan USFWS United States Fish and FRCC Fire Regime Condition Class Wildlife Service FRTA National Forest Roads and WUI Wildland-Urban Interface Trails Act FS Forest Service The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance program. 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Calumet Project Area Final Environmental Impact Statement Pennington County, South Dakota Lead Agency: USDA Forest Service Cooperating Agencies: None Responsible Official: Ruth Esperance, District Ranger 8221 South Highway 16 Rapid City, South Dakota 57702 For Information Contact: Lou Conroy, Team Leader 8221 South Highway 16 Rapid City, South Dakota 57702 (605) 343-1567 Abstract: The Mystic Ranger District of the Black Hills National Forest has prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and other relevant Federal and State laws and regulations. The Mystic Ranger District proposes to implement multiple resource management actions within the Calumet Project Area as guided by the Black Hills National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan) as amended, by the Healthy Forests Restoration Act (HFRA) and supported by the National Fire Plan, the President’s Healthy Forest Initiative, and by other National level policy. The focus of the actions proposed is to manage the vegetation to reduce the threat to ecosystem components, including forest resources, from the existing insect and disease (mountain pine beetle) epidemic and to reduce hazardous fuels in order to minimize the potential for large-scale severe wildfires. Two alternatives are considered in detail. Alternative A is the No Action Alternative. Alternative B is the proposed action. Alternative B uses landscape level thinning and pine harvest to break up the large area of continuous, dense forest and lower the mountain pine beetle (MPB) and wildfire hazard. This Final EIS discloses the direct, indirect, and cumulative environmental impacts resulting from the No Action and the proposed action alternative. At this time, the Forest Service has identified Alternative B as the preferred alternative. Calumet Project Final EIS, Page i Calumet Project Final EIS, Page ii SUMMARY The Black Hills National Forest, Mystic Ranger District proposes to implement multiple resource management actions within the Calumet Project Area. This proposal is guided by the Black Hills National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan as amended by the Phase II Amendment; the statutory authority and direction provided by the Healthy Forests Restoration Act; and supported by the National Fire Plan; The 10 Year Comprehensive Strategy Implementation Plan agreed to by the Western Governor’s Association; and The President’s Healthy Forest Initiative. The project area lies approximately six miles west of Rapid City, SD. The project area encompasses approximately 31,772 acres, consisting of 27,617 acres of National Forest System lands and 4,155 acres of interspersed private lands. The forest condition is representative of a ponderosa pine fire adapted ecosystem that has been managed for multiple-use objectives for decades. The focus of the actions proposed are designed to treat vegetation on a broad landscape scale to reduce the threat to ecosystem components, including forest resources, from the existing insect and disease (mountain pine beetle) epidemic and reduce the potential for severe large-scale wildfire. There is a need to slow or appreciably halt the ongoing development and spread of mountain pine beetle (MPB) in the project area. The implications of continued spread of this epidemic include: increased tree mortality across the landscape; further accumulation of hazardous fuels and increased potential for severe large-scale wildfires threatening the values of the Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) within the area and beyond; major changes in the scenery; and alteration of wildlife habitat. According to Schmid et al. (2007), the most important aspect of managing mature ponderosa pine stands in the Black Hills National Forest is minimizing the MPB-caused mortality. The only effective long-term strategy to minimize MPB-cause mortality is controlling stand conditions through silvicultural means over large landscapes and monitoring areas of beetle buildup (USDA Forest Service 2012a). The ongoing MPB epidemic is of foremost concern in the project area. This epidemic is killing mature pine trees, resulting in stand replacement on a landscape scale. Locally (and nationally), the public is demanding action to reduce the risk of MPB affecting their lands, as well as, reducing potential for large-scale wildfires on public lands. The Healthy Forests Restoration Act (HFRA) of 2003, represents the culmination of a number of National level policy documents and efforts developed to address this issue. Guided by the Forest Plan and the HFRA, the Calumet Project proposed action has been developed to treat vegetation on a broad landscape scale to reduce the threat to ecosystem components from the existing insect and disease (MPB) epidemic and reduce the potential for large-scale severe wildfires. Ultimately, the intent is to limit effects to the environment from MPB and reduce the potential for loss of property or life due to large-scale wildfire. Through varied public involvement and collaboration efforts, comments on the proposed action, potential concerns, and opportunities for managing the Calumet Project Area were solicited from Forest Service resource specialists, tribal representatives, members of the public, other public agencies, adjacent property owners, and organizations. Methods used to request comments included: Publishing the Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare and EIS in the Federal Register on October 24, 2011; mailing a scoping letter that solicited comments to approximately 542 interested parties; conducted public meetings; and meeting with interested individuals and parties. Calumet Project Final EIS, Page iii Comments received during the scoping process were used to help in defining issues, develop alternatives and mitigation measures, and analyze effects. Through review and analysis of the scoping comments and input, the Calumet Interdisciplinary Team (ID Team) identified three (3) prevailing or key issues related to the proposed activities. The three key issues include: mountain pine beetle, wildfire and fuels hazard, and vegetation and wildlife habitat diversity. These issues allowed the ID Team to clarify components of the proposed action that were not made explicit during the scoping phase of the project. No concerns raised merited the development of additional action alternatives. The alternatives analyzed in detail in this EIS are briefly described as follows: Alternative A (No Action) – The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires the study of the no action alternative, and to use it as a basis for comparing the effects of the proposed action and other alternatives. This alternative assumes no implementation of any elements of the proposed action. However, such things as ongoing fire