State of Alaska Department of Fish and Game Environmental Review Unimak Caribou Herd Management Options April 2010 Contents Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................... i Background ................................................................................................................................... 1 Need .......................................................................................................................................................................... 2 Purpose ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 Law and Policy ......................................................................................................................................................... 3 State ...................................................................................................................................................................... 3 Federal .................................................................................................................................................................. 4 Cooperative Agreement .......................................................................................................................................... 17 Permits and Approvals ............................................................................................................................................ 17 Management Options.................................................................................................................. 18 No action ................................................................................................................................................................. 18 Actions common to all management options .......................................................................................................... 18 Actions to improve breeding success ...................................................................................................................... 18 Bull Translocation ............................................................................................................................................... 18 Actions to improve calf survival ............................................................................................................................. 19 Immunocontraception or surgical sterilization .................................................................................................... 19 Targeted Wolf Removal ...................................................................................................................................... 20 Broad Scale Wolf Removal ................................................................................................................................ 22 Actions considered but dismissed ........................................................................................................................... 23 Bear and wolf removal ........................................................................................................................................ 25 Monitoring, assessment, future decision points ...................................................................................................... 26 Affected Environment ................................................................................................................ 27 Physical Environment ............................................................................................................................................. 27 Geography ........................................................................................................................................................... 27 Land Status ......................................................................................................................................................... 28 Climate ................................................................................................................................................................ 28 Vegetation ........................................................................................................................................................... 29 Biological Environment .......................................................................................................................................... 29 Wildlife ............................................................................................................................................................... 29 Birds .................................................................................................................................................................... 35 Human Environment ............................................................................................................................................... 35 Cultural Resources .............................................................................................................................................. 35 Subsistence Uses ................................................................................................................................................. 36 Recreational Uses ............................................................................................................................................... 37 Wilderness .......................................................................................................................................................... 38 Environmental Affects ................................................................................................................ 38 Dismissed from further review ............................................................................................................................... 40 Endangered Species Act ..................................................................................................................................... 40 Climate Change ................................................................................................................................................... 40 Cultural Resources .............................................................................................................................................. 40 Reviewed in detail .................................................................................................................................................. 41 Birds .................................................................................................................................................................... 41 Caribou ............................................................................................................................................................... 42 Bears ................................................................................................................................................................... 46 Wolves ................................................................................................................................................................ 46 Subsistence Uses ................................................................................................................................................. 48 Recreational Uses ............................................................................................................................................... 49 Wilderness Character .......................................................................................................................................... 51 Vegetation ........................................................................................................................................................... 52 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................ 55 Appendix ...................................................................................................................................... 59 Alaska Board of Game Regulations ........................................................................................................................ 59 Caribou Calving Area ............................................................................................................................................. 71 NEPA 1 ................................................................................................................................................................... 72 NEPA 2 ................................................................................................................................................................... 73 NEPA 3 ................................................................................................................................................................... 78 Department Action Plan .......................................................................................................................................... 81 Department Study Plan 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