Chapter I: Forest Plan Introduction

Chapter I: Forest Plan Introduction A. Purpose of the Forest Plan The Forest Plan guides all natural resource management activities and establishes management standards and guidelines for the Wenatchee National Forest. It describes resource management practices, levels of resource production and management, and the availability and suitability of lands for resource management. The decisions of the Regional Forester in approving a Forest Plan may generally be categorized as: 1. Establishment of forest-wide multiple-use goals and objectives [36 CFR 219.11(b).]; 2. Establishment of forest-wide standards and guidelines to fulfill requirements of NFMA applying to future activities [resource integration requirements of 36 CFR 219.13 to 219.26, and the requirements of 36 CFR 219.27]; 3. Establishment of management area direction including management area prescriptions and standards and guidelines applying to future management activities in that management area [36 CFR 219.11(c).]; 4. Establishment of allowable timber sale quantity and designation of suitable timber land [36 CFR 219.16 and 219.14]; 5. Establishment of monitoring and evaluation requirements [36 CFR 219.11(d).]; and The Forest Plan embodies the provisions of the National Forest Management Act of 1976, its implementing regulations, and other guiding documents. Land use determinations, prescriptions, and standards and guidelines are a statement of the Plan's management direction; however, the project outputs, services, and rates of implementation are dependent on the annual budgeting process. This Forest Plan establishes the management direction for the Wenatchee National Forest and it will ordinarily be revised on a 10 year cycle, or at least every 15 years. B. Relationship of the Forest Plan to Other Documents This Forest Plan sets forth the direction for managing the land and resources of the Wenatchee National Forest. The Plan results from extensive analysis and considerations that are addressed in the accompanying Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and Record of Decision. The planning process and the analysis procedures that were used to develop this Plan are described or referenced in the EIS. The EIS also describes other alternatives considered in the planning process. Specific activities and projects will be planned and implemented to carry out the direction in this Plan. The Forest will perform environmental analysis on these projects and activities. Project level environmental analysis will use the data and evaluations in the Plan and EIS as its basis. Environmental analysis of projects will be tiered to the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) accompanying this Forest Plan. Regional Guide The Regional Guide for the Pacific Northwest Region (June 1984) as amended December 8, 1988 provides direction for National Forest Plans. It includes standards and guidelines addressing major issues and management concerns considered at the Regional Level, to facilitate Forest planning. Alpine Lakes Management Act The Alpine Lakes Area Management Act of 1976 (PL 94-357) required that a separate plan be developed for the Alpine Lakes Area. This plan and Environmental Impact Statement was developed with extensive public involvement, and implemented early in 1982. The regulations guiding the development of Forest Plans state that "if, in a particular case, special area authorities require the preparation of a separate special plan, the direction in any such plan may be incorporated without modification in plans prepared under (these regulations), "(36 CFR 219.2(b)). The area has been managed under the above plan for approximately eight years. To date, neither the Forest Service nor the public have identified any major problems with the allocation or management of that plan. Some minor adjustments have been made in Management Requirements for water, wildlife and fish to meet NFMA standards. Preliminary administrative recommendations will be made for some rivers for consideration under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. In good faith to those members of the public who helped develop that plan, the Forest Plan will incorporates the land allocations and management as presented in the Alpine Lakes Area Land Management Plan. Both the Wenatchee and the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie Forests are in agreement with this direction which will allow that plan to stand the test of time. Problems which surface could be handled administratively or when the Forest Plan is revised in approximately ten years. If direction in this Plan is found not to agree with the direction contained in the Alpine Lakes Management Plan, the Alpine Lakes Plan will take precedence for the Alpine Lakes Management Unit with the exception of some management requirements for water, wildlife and fish and protecting of eligible Wild and Scenic rivers. Copies of the Alpine Lakes Plan are available for review at the Wenatchee National Forest Supervisor's Office, 301 Yakima Street, Wenatchee, Washington. Project Planning The Forest Plan serves as the single land and resource management plan for the Wenatchee National Forest. All other land management plans are replaced by the direction in this Forest Plan; see Chapter V for a listing of existing plans that this Forest Plan supersedes. The management direction provided by this Forest Plan comprises the framework within which project planning and activities take place. C. Plan Structure The Forest Plan is organized into five chapters and seven supplemental sections. They are: Chapter I: Forest Plan Introduction describes the purpose of the Plan, summarizes its content, illustrates the geographic location, and discusses the Plan's relationship to other documents. Chapter II: Summary of the Analysis of the Current Management Situation (AMS). Included are summaries of the current management situation for each resource, potential supply for various resource goods and services, a brief look at demand, and a brief socioeconomic overview of the Forest and related communities and counties. Chapter III: Responses to Issues, Concerns, and Opportunities. This chapter shows how the management plan addresses and responds to the major public issues, and management concerns identified during the planning process. Chapter IV: Forest Management Direction. This chapter is the heart of the Plan and presents the management goals, objectives, and standards and guidelines that constitute direction for resource management covered by the plan. Chapter V: Implementation of the Forest Plan - This chapter explains how management direction will be implemented, how implementation activities will be monitored and evaluated, and how the plan can be kept current in light of changing conditions or other findings. Glossary: This section contains Forest Plan terms that need a common understanding or which have special meanings. Appendix A: Included are detailed schedules of projected activities by resource. Appendix B: Includes the land classification ownership direction by management prescription Appendix C: Includes a copy of the Treaty With The Yakima, 1855. Appendix D: Is a Fire Management Policy Model decision matrix. Appendix E: Is The Wilderness Management Appendix. Appendix F: Includes a set of Monitoring Worksheets used to develop the details of the monitoring plan which is summarized in Table V-I of Chapter V. D. Forest Description The Wenatchee National Forest is a publicly owned natural area of marvelous beauty, diversity, and productivity. The Forest includes a net area of 2,164,180 acres. It is about 140 miles long and 25 to 55 miles wide, stretching from spectacular Lake Chelan in the north through the rugged Goat Rocks Wilderness in the south. It begins at the very crest of the Cascade Range in Central Washington State and falls sharply to the breaks of the Columbia River. Elevations on the Forest range from 800 feet to more than 9,500 feet, encompassing three major landforms and more than 30 different geologic formations. This geologic variety and a wide difference in precipitation across the Forest leads in turn to an unusual diversity in vegetation and an associated richness of wildlife species. The vegetation changes with elevation and moisture as the Forest rises from grass, sage, and bitterbrush in the low-lying eastern areas, through open stands of orange-barked ponderosa pine, and into mixed forests of Insert Location Map pine, Douglas fir, and larch. Next it rises into subalpine areas with true firs and lodgepole pine, and finally reaches lush alpine meadows fringed with hardy stands of alpine firs, larch, and whitebark pine. Areas near the Cascade crest receive up to 140 inches of precipitation and as much as 25 feet of snow accumulation each year. Moisture declines markedly to the east, resulting in near-desert conditions with less than 10 inches of precipitation on the eastern fringes of the forest. However, the generous precipitation and snowpack in the high mountain areas supply hundreds of sparkling alpine lakes and dozens of tumbling streams and rivers. These in turn feed half a dozen large lakes and reservoirs that help water thousands of acres of productive farmland in the fertile valleys of central Washington. The diversity of the Forest also has led to a great variety of wildlife species. An estimated 440 species of fish and wildlife reside within the forest. These vary from stately elk to the tiny mouse-like pika, from soaring bald eagles to hummingbirds, from leaping salmon to shadowy suckers methodically vacuuming the bottom of lakes and streams. This wealth of water, wildlife,

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