United States Department of Environmental Agriculture Forest Assessment Service Recreation Residence Standards & July 2013 Guidelines and Camp Cherokee Master Site Plan Cherokee National Forest Polk and Monroe Counties, Tennessee For Information Contact: Mike Wright 3171 Hwy 64 Benton, TN 37307 423-338-3300 www.fs.usda.gov/cherokee The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). 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Environmental Assessment Recreation Residences and Camp Cherokee Table of Contents Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………1 Document Structure………………………………………………………………………………..….1 Background……………………………………………………………………………………………. 1 Purpose and Need for Action………………………………………………………………………... 3 Proposed Action………………………………………………………………………………………. 4 Decision Framework………………………………………………………………………………….. 6 Public Involvement……………………………………………………………………………………. 6 Issues……………………………………………………………………………………………………6 Alternatives, Including the Proposed Action ………………………………………………7 Alternatives.……………………………………………………………………………………………..7 Alternative A – No Action……………………………………………………………………………7 Alternative B – Proposed Action……………………………………………………………….….11 Alternative C………………………………………………………………………………………...23 Alternatives Not Considered in Detail………………………………………………………………36 Mitigation Common to All Alternatives…………………………………………………………......40 Comparison of Alternatives………………………………………………………………………....40 Environmental Consequences………………………………………………………………72 Biological Factors…………………………………………………………………………………… 72 Social Factors…………………………………………………………………………………………93 Physical Factors……………………………………………………………………………………. 136 Consultation and Coordination…………………………………………………………….140 References……………………………………………………………………………………..142 i Environmental Assessment Recreation Residences and Camp Cherokee This page intentionally left blank. ii Environmental Assessment Recreation Residences and Camp Cherokee INTRODUCTION Document Structure ______________________________ The Forest Service has prepared this Environmental Assessment in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and other relevant Federal and State laws and regulations. This Environmental Assessment discloses the direct, indirect, and cumulative environmental impacts that would result from the proposed action and alternatives. The document is organized into five parts: • Introduction: The section includes information on the history of the project proposal, the purpose of and need for the project, and the agency’s proposal for achieving that purpose and need. This section also details how the Forest Service informed the public of the proposal and how the public responded. • Comparison of Alternatives, including the Proposed Action: This section provides a more detailed description of the agency’s proposed action as well as alternative methods for achieving the stated purpose. These alternatives were developed based on significant issues raised by the public and other agencies. This discussion also includes possible mitigation measures. Finally, this section provides a summary table of the environmental consequences associated with each alternative. • Environmental Consequences: This section describes the environmental effects of implementing the proposed action and other alternatives. This analysis is organized by resource area. Within each section, the affected environment is described first, followed by the effects of the No Action Alternative that provides a baseline for evaluation and comparison of the other alternatives that follow. • Agencies and Persons Consulted: This section provides a list of preparers and agencies consulted during the development of the environmental assessment. • Appendices: The appendices provide more detailed information to support the analyses presented in the environmental assessment. Additional documentation, including more detailed analyses of project-area resources, may be found in the project planning record located at the Supervisor’s Office in Cleveland, TN. Background _____________________________________ Recreation Residences The Organic Administration Act of 1897 gave federal managers the authority to permit uses of the forest reserves (later change to National Forest). However, the one-year permit that allowed cabin construction in these early years made investment risky and, as a consequence, only marginally popular. Congress eliminated this obstacle with the passage of the Act of March 4, 1915 providing the authority to set aside land, not exceeding five acres, for construction of summer homes with multi-year occupancy permits. These permitted, privately owned cabins may be inherited or the improvements sold, however, in either case, the Forest Service continues to retain ownership of the underlying land. The south zone of the Cherokee National Forest contains sixty-two of these recreation residences along the shores of Parksville Lake on the Ocoee/Hiwassee Ranger District and 7 recreation residences 1 Environmental Assessment Recreation Residences and Camp Cherokee in the Tellico River Corridor on the Tellico Ranger District. See Appendix A for maps indicating the location of the residences. Because the lands of the Cherokee National Forest were acquired from private ownership during the 1920’s and 1930’s and beyond through the use of the Weeks Act of 1911 these recreation residences in some cases were already present when the lands became National Forest. When the lands around the Parksville Lake were acquired by the Forest Service (from Tennessee Valley Authority) in 1940 there were 17 lots, 15 existing recreation residences, and four unpermitted cabins around the lake. All of these structures were also present when Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) acquired the reservoir and lands from the Tennessee Electric and Power Company. During both changes in land ownership the improvements were owned by private individuals, however the lands they sat on were owned by either the TVA or the Tennessee Electric and Power Company. The Forest Service surveyed additional lots in the 1940’s bringing the total number of lots for summer homes to 66. Permits for summer homes were offered to individuals based on these lots. Once a permit was issued the permittee had one year to build a recreation residence. If a structure was not built within the one year timeframe the permit was forfeited and the lot was offered to someone else on the waiting list. In 1961 the Cherokee National Forest (CNF) policy on summer home sites changed. Ranger Christenensen in his letter of April 21, 1961 stated “In the future, due to greatly increased demand for development of public camping and picnicking areas, it is necessary to give highest priority to this general public use. This requires all available sites on the Cherokee and, accordingly, no additional summer home sites be established.” When TVA transferred their lands (Contract Transfer Agreement #TV56799) on August 12, 1940 they excluded all that portion of said land lying on the upstream side of the Parksville Dam and having the elevation of it present ground surface below the plane of the 838 foot (MSL) contour. In addition TVA granted to the Department of Agriculture, its agents, and servants the right of access to and use of TVA’s land between the high and low water marks on Parksville Lake along with the right of access to and use of the waters of said lake for the purpose of constructing and maintaining thereon boating and recreational facilities, piers, docks, and related equipment, and of performing all other acts which may be reasonably necessary to the administration and conduct of the lands. TVA also stated that nothing herein contained shall be construed to affect in any way the powers given to TVA by section 26 (a) of the Tennessee Valley Authority Act of 1933, as amended, with respect to the approval of all structures on the rivers of the Tennessee River System. This is why TVA and the Forest Service both issue permits for facilities in this area and why TVA defers to the Forest Service for approval of all water use facilities. Recreation Residence 14 and lot lie on the north side of U.S. 64 and across the road from the Lake Ocoee Inn and Marina. This recreation residence is 1,100 feet north of U.S. 64 and it is the only recreation residence that does not have access to Parksville Lake (i.e. deck/dock on the lake shore). This is one of the existing recreation residences that was transferred to the Forest Service in 1940 from TVA. The Forest Service acquired a tract from Babcock Lumber and Land Company and Tellico River Lumber Company in 1925, which contained a school house, built in 1924 by the Monroe County School Board. In 1945 a recreation special use permit was issued for the Monroe County school house and lot. The Forest Service also surveyed lots for additional summer home sites. Six additional permits for the current summer homes were