Environmental Assessment GALLATIN NATIONAL FOREST ROAD AND TRAIL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS USDA Forest Service Gallatin National Forest Montana February, 2009 Responsible Official: Mary Erickson Forest Supervisor For Further Information, Contact: Steve Christiansen, Project Leader Gallatin National Forest P.O. Box 130 Bozeman, MT 59771 (406) 587-6701 “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. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) 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USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.” Gallatin National Forest Road and Trail Projects Environmental Assessment Table of Contents PAGE CHAPTER 1 – PURPOSE AND NEED FOR ACTION 1-1 Introduction 1-1 General Location and Geographic Setting 1-1 Proposed Action 1-2 Need and Purpose 1-2 CHAPTER 2 – ALTERNATIVES 2-1 Introduction 2-1 Scoping and Issue Identification 2-1 The Alternative Development Process 2-1 Alternatives Studied in Detail 2-2 Alternative 1 – The Proposed Action 2-2 Emigrant Gulch Area 2-2 Gardiner Basin Area 2-2 Suce Creek Area 2-2 Bangtails Area 2-3 Bridger Ridge Area 2-4 Fairy Lake Area 2-4 Johnson Canyon Area 2-5 Cooke City Area 2-6 Deer Creeks Area 2-7 Shields River Area 2-8 Smith Creek Area 2-8 Bozeman Creek Area 2-9 Gallatin Roaded Area 2-9 Hyalite Area 2-11 North Dry Area 2-12 Cutler Lake Area 2-12 Rock/Tom Miner Area 2-12 Trail Creek/Bear Canyon Area 2-13 Hebgen Basin Area 2-14 Lionhead Area 2-14 Mile Creek Area 2-15 Pika Point Area 2-16 Sage Creek Area 2-16 Pole Gulch Area 2-16 West Pine Area 2-16 Altenative 1 (Cont.) – Authorized Work Description 2-17 Alternative 1 (Cont.) – Standard Operating Procedures 2-20 Alternative 1 (Cont.) – Additional Applicable Mitigation 2-22 Alternative 1 (Cont.) – Monitoring 2-23 Alternative 2 – No Action 2-24 Alternatives Considered but not Given Detailed Study 2-24 Comparison of Alternatives 1 and 2 2-24 CHAPTER 3 – AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT AND 3-1 ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES Introduction 3-1 BIODIVERSITY 3-2 FISHERIES 3-20 GENERAL WILDLIFE 3-27 GRIZZLY BEAR 3-45 INVASIVE WEEDS 3-77 LYNX 3-81 MIGRATORY BIRDS 3-93 ROADLESS 3-99 WATER QUALITY 3-105 WOLVERINE 3-115 RARE PLANTS 3-121 SENSITIVE WILDLIFE SPECIES 3-126 OTHER CONSIDERATIONS 3-138 CHAPTER 4 – PREPARATION AND CONSULTATION 4-1 The Public Involvement Process 4-1 Consultation 4-1 Preparation 4-1 References 4-3 APPENDIX A – Response to Comments A-1 CHAPTER 1 PURPOSE AND NEED FOR ACTION Introduction This Environmental Assessment (EA) discloses the potential environmental consequences of a Forest Service proposal for improvement work on certain Gallatin National Forest roads and trails. The work being proposed is one phase of implementing the Gallatin National Forest Travel Management Plan (Travel Plan) which established the opportunities to be provided for public recreation use and access on the Forest’s road and trail system (See Gallatin National Forest Travel Management Plan Record of Decision, October 2006). The Travel Plan specified the types of uses to be allowed and managed for on each road and trail including passenger car pleasure driving, high clearance vehicle use, ATV use, motorcycle use, biking, horseback riding, snowmobiling, hiking, skiing and snowshoeing. The improvement work now being proposed is designed to provide adequate facilities to accommodate the designated uses and provide for other resource protection. This EA has been prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for implementing NEPA provisions (40 CFR 1500), the Forest Service NEPA regulations (36 CFR 220) as well as applicable Forest Service manuals, handbooks and other higher-level direction. This EA serves to: (a) Briefly provide sufficient evidence and analysis for determining whether to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) (40 CFR 1508.9(a)). (b) Aid in informing the decision process and in complying with NEPA should it be found that an EIS is not necessary (id.). General Location and Geographic Setting The Gallatin National Forest contains approximately 1.8 million acres of National Forest System land and is located along the northern and western boundaries of Yellowstone National Park in southwest Montana (See Figure 1.1). The Forest spans portions of Madison, Gallatin, Park, Meagher, Sweet Grass and Carbon Counties. Offices are located in the cities of Bozeman, Livingston, Big Timber, Gardiner and West Yellowstone. The Gallatin National Forest includes lands in the Bridger, Bangtail, Crazy, Absaroka, Beartooth, Gallatin, Henry’s Lake and Madison Mountain Ranges. Major rivers include the Gallatin, Madison and Yellowstone Rivers. Included in the Gallatin National Forest are the Lee Metcalf Wilderness Area and the Absaroka- Beartooth Wilderness Area covering approximately 716,000 acres. Also included are the Cabin Creek Recreation and Wildlife Management Area (approximately 37,000 acres) and the Hyalite/Porcupine-Buffalo Horn Wilderness Study Area (approximately 155,000 acres). In addition to these areas, approximately 704,000 acres of National Forest land have been inventoried as roadless. The remaining Forest lands have been mostly roaded and developed for mineral entry and timber production. Gallatin National Forest Road and Trail EA Chapter 1-6 Proposed Action The U.S. Forest Service, Gallatin National Forest, is proposing the following work to as part of implementation of the Gallatin National Forest Travel Management Plan: 1. Construction of the new trail connectors identified in the Travel Plan designed to create loop opportunities for ATVs, motorcycles and mountain bikes. 2. Construction of other trail segments to accommodate the non-motorized and winter opportunities (both snowmobiling and skiing) targeted to be provided by the Travel Plan. 3. Reconstruction of existing roads and trails to accommodate the uses designated by the Travel Plan (e.g. reconstructing a single track trail so that it can accommodate ATVs). 4. Construction and reconstruction of trailheads and parking facilities needed to accommodate user demand. 5. Surfacing of high priority roads and replacement of culverts to facilitate aquatic organism passage. 6. Restoration and stabilization of certain excess roads not designated for motorized use by the Travel Plan. Generally, the work would be scheduled to be performed over a 5 year period beginning in 2009 and is located in various locations across the Forest. More specific information on the location of individual projects can be found under the description of alternatives in Chapter 2 of this EA. Need and Purpose Need for Road and Trail Work The proposed improvement work to be done on Gallatin National Forest roads and trails includes construction and reconstruction of trails; construction of trailheads and parking facilities; reconstruction of roads, and restoration and stabilization of closed roads, all of which are designed to meet the desired conditions identified by the Gallatin National Forest Travel Management Plan (Gallatin National Forest Travel Management Plan Record of Decision and Detailed Description of the Decision, 10/2006). The Travel Plan specified the types of uses to be allowed and managed for on each road and trail including passenger car pleasure driving, high clearance vehicle use, ATV use, motorcycle use, biking, horseback riding, snowmobiling, hiking, skiing and snowshoeing. There is now a need to provide adequate facilities to accommodate the designated uses while maintaining resource protection, and to restore and stabilize existing roads that are in excess to administrative, recreation and access needs. A more specific description of the need follows. New Trail Construction The Travel Plan identified some new trails but defined them on the decision maps as general corridors between two endpoints. In other words, the actual trails don’t yet exist. The location on- the-ground and the construction design standards for the routes now need to be determined to provide the trail facility that will accommodate the uses designated by the Travel Plan. Gallatin National Forest Road and Trail EA Chapter 1-7 Trail Reconstruction Some existing trails were identified for ATV use by the Travel Plan but the trail facilities themselves are currently inadequate to safely accommodate this use. Therefore, reconstruction of these trails is needed. For example, where the existing tread is too narrow, additional width needs to be constructed. Where the clearing limits are too tight, additional vegetation needs to be removed. Where grades are steep and excessive tread erosion is occurring, relocation is needed to relax the grade. At stream crossings, trail bridges or hardened fords may be needed to protect stream courses. Road Reconstruction Most open roads on the Gallatin National Forest were constructed for logging traffic so their geometry is generally satisfactory. However, some entry roads to the Forest and roads to major destinations need to be hardened (e.g. graveled) to accommodate the use and minimize erosion. Some roads also need additional features such as turnouts, turnarounds at gates, and dispersed recreational roadside parking. Construction of Trailheads/Parking Areas Where a trail leaves the road system, a parking facility is necessary to keep users from parking along the roads, parking in private driveways, and from parking in front of gates.