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DRAFT Assessment for the Nantahala and Pisgah NFs September 2013 Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests United States Assessment Department of Agriculture WORK IN PROGRESS – 9/20/2013 DRAFT Forest Information presented in this Assessment report and its supplementary reports is considered under Service development as we continue the Assessment phase of forest plan revision. Information will continue to be Southern updated until the Assessment is finalized. Region September 2013 DRAFT September 2013 DRAFT Assessment for the Nantahala and Pisgah NFs September 2013 Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests Assessment Prepared for: The National Forests in North Carolina 160 Zillicoa Street, Suite A Asheville, NC 28805 and USDA Forest Service Southern Region 1720 Peachtree Road NW Atlanta, GA 30367 For further information contact: Kristen Bail Forest Supervisor National Forests in North Carolina 828-257-4200 ABSTRACT: The Assessment presents and evaluates existing information about relevant ecological, economic, and social conditions, trends, and sustainability and their relationship to the land management plan, within the context of the broader landscape. 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DRAFT September 2013 Contents Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................................................................... 1 Land Status and Ownership, Use, and Access Patterns ..................................................................................................................................... 9 Terrestrial Ecosystems, Aquatic Ecosystems, and Watersheds ....................................................................................................................... 18 Ecosystem Health Stressors & Disturbance ...................................................................................................................................................... 47 At-Risk Species in the Planning Area ................................................................................................................................................................ 54 Air, Soil, and Water Resources ........................................................................................................................................................................... 57 Carbon Stocks ...................................................................................................................................................................................................... 75 Social, Cultural, and Economic Conditions ...................................................................................................................................................... 82 Benefits People Obtain from the NFS Plan Area .............................................................................................................................................. 89 Multiple Uses ........................................................................................................................................................................................................ 93 Recreation Settings, Opportunities and Access (including infrastructure), and Scenic Character ........................................................... 110 Renewable and Nonrenewable Energy and Mineral Resources .................................................................................................................... 126 The Transportation System .............................................................................................................................................................................. 134 Areas of Tribal Importance .............................................................................................................................................................................. 143 Cultural and Historic Resources and Uses ...................................................................................................................................................... 146 Designated Areas ............................................................................................................................................................................................... 169 Appendix A. Supplemental Reports ................................................................................................................................................................. 197 Appendix B. Management Area Descriptions and Maps ............................................................................................................................... 198 ii Draft 2013 Assessment: The Nantahala and Pisgah NFs September 2013 Figure 1. Assessment Area, Size, Amount of Forest Land and Amount of National Forest System Land ..................................................... vii Table 1. The Age of the Forests. Percent of NFS Forest Land and Percent of All Other Forest Land .............................................................. 2 Table 2. Racial Makeup of the Population ........................................................................................................................................................ 3 Figure 2 National Forests in North Carolina Allocated Funds 1994-2013 ....................................................................................................... 5 Figure 3. Number of Employees of the National Forests in North Carolina .................................................................................................... 5 Table 3. Total and NFS acres for each county in the plan area ......................................................................................................................... 9 Table 4. Nantahala National Forest Area Land Uses: Acres and Proportions by County ............................................................................... 11 Table 5. Pisgah National Forest Area Land Uses: Acres and Proportions by County ..................................................................................... 12 Figure 4. Cradle of Forestry in America ......................................................................................................................................................... 14 Figure 5. Linville Gorge Wilderness ............................................................................................................................................................... 14 Table 6. Management Areas (MA) – 1987 Nantahala/Pisgah Land Management Plan (Approximate acres as of 1994 Amendment 5) ....... 15 Figure 6. A timber management area .............................................................................................................................................................. 15 Figure 7. Timber harvest and regeneration. .................................................................................................................................................... 15 Table 7. Land Added to Nantahala or Pisgah National Forest 1992 - 2012 .................................................................................................... 16 Figure 8. Catawba Falls, Grandfather RD ....................................................................................................................................................... 17 Table 8. Potential acres of each Ecological Zone ........................................................................................................................................... 18 Table 9. Known Sites of Rare Habitats ........................................................................................................................................................... 19 Figure 9. Boulderfield Forest. ......................................................................................................................................................................... 19 Figure 10. Vascular plant species richness within 11 ecozones on the Nantahala and Pisgah NFs ................................................................ 21 Figure 11. Spruce-Fir Ecological Zone. .......................................................................................................................................................... 22 Figure 12. Northern Hardwood Ecological Zone. ........................................................................................................................................... 24 Figure 13. High Elevation Red Oak Ecological