PACTOLA PROJECT AREA FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT USDA Forest Service Black Hills National Forest Mystic Ranger District Rapid City, South Dakota Commonly Used Acronyms and Abbreviations ARC At-Risk-Community FSM Forest Service Manual BA Basal Area GIS Geographic Information System BF Board Foot GPS Global Positioning System BHNF Black Hills National Forest HFRA Healthy Forests Restoration Act BMP Best Management Practices ID Team Interdisciplinary Team CCF Cubic Hundred Feet MA Management Area CDA Connected Disturbed Area MBF Thousand Board Feet CEQ Council on Environmental Quality MIS Management Indicator Species CF Cubic Feet MMBF Million Board Feet CFR Code of Federal Regulations MPB Mountain Pine Beetle CMAI Culmination of Mean Annual MVUM Motorized Vehicle Use Map Increment NEPA National Environmental Policy Act CPUA Concentrated Public Use Area NFMA National Forest Management Act CWD Coarse Woody Debris NFS National Forest System CWPP Community Wildfire Protection NFSR National Forest System Road Plan OHV Off Highway Vehicle DBH Diameter at Breast Height ROD Record of Decision DEIS Draft Environmental Impact S&G Standard(s) and Guideline(s) Statement SDGF&P South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks EA Environmental Analysis SHPO State Historic Preservation Officer EIS Environmental Impact Statement SOLC Species of Local Concern EPA Environmental Protection SS Structural Stage Agency T&E Threatened and Endangered FEIS Final Environmental Impact TMP Travel Management Plan Statement TSI Timber Stand Improvement FLPMA Federal Land Policy USDA United States Department of Management Act Agriculture FRCC Fire Regime Condition Class USFWS United States Fish and FRTA National Forest Roads and Wildlife Service Trails Act WUI Wildland-Urban Interface FS Forest Service FSH Forest Service Handbook 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.) 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). To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer . Pactola Project Area Final Environmental Impact Statement Pennington County and Lawrence County, South Dakota Lead Agency: USDA Forest Service Cooperating Agencies: None Responsible Official: Robert J. Thompson, District Ranger 8221 South Highway 15 Rapid City, South Dakota 57702 For Information Contact: Katie Van Alstyne, Team Leader 8221 South Highway 16 Rapid City, South Dakota 57702 (605) 343-1567 Abstract: The Mystic Ranger District of the Black Hills National Forest has prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and other relevant Federal and State laws and regulations. The Mystic Ranger District proposes to implement multiple resource management actions within the Pactola Project Area as guided by the Black Hills National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan) as amended, by the Healthy Forests Restoration Act (HFRA) and supported by the National Fire Plan, the President’s Healthy Forest Initiative, and by other National level policy. The focus of the actions proposed is to manage the vegetation to reduce the threat to ecosystem components, including forest resources, from the existing insect and disease (mountain pine beetle) epidemic and to reduce hazardous fuels in order to minimize the potential for large-scale severe wildfires. Three alternatives are considered in detail. Alternative A is the No Action Alternative. Alternative B is the proposed action. It uses landscape level thinning and pine harvest to break up the large area of continuous, dense forest and lower the mountain pine beetle (MPB) and wildfire hazard. Alternative C responds to comments received during scoping. It includes roadside and fuel break treatments, as well as cable and helicopter logging. This Final EIS discloses the direct, indirect, and cumulative environmental impacts resulting from the proposed action and alternatives. The preferred alternative is Alternative C, with a minor modification to address scenic quality. Pactola Project Final EIS, Page i SUMMARY The Black Hills National Forest, Mystic Ranger District proposes to implement multiple resource management actions within the Pactola Project Area. This proposal is guided by the Black Hills National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan as amended by the Phase II Amendment; the statutory authority and direction provided by the Healthy Forests Restoration Act; and supported by the National Fire Plan; The 10 Year Comprehensive Strategy Implementation Plan agreed to by the Western Governor’s Association; and The President’s Healthy Forest Initiative. The project area lies approximately 10 miles west of Rapid City, SD. The project area lies within both Pennington and Lawrence counties. The project area encompasses approximately 26,017 acres. The project area consists of 24,863 acres of National Forest System lands with 1,154 acres of interspersed private lands. The forest condition is representative of a ponderosa pine fire adaptive ecosystem that has been managed for multiple-use objectives for decades. The focus of the actions proposed are designed to treat vegetation on a broad landscape scale to reduce the threat to ecosystem components, including forest resources, from the existing insect and disease (mountain pine beetle) epidemic and reduce the potential for severe large-scale wildfire. There is a need to slow or appreciably halt the ongoing development and spread of mountain pine beetle (MPB) in the project area. The implications of continued spread of this epidemic include: increased tree mortality across the landscape; further accumulation of hazardous fuels and increased potential for severe large-scale wildfires threatening the values of the Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) within the area and beyond; major changes in the scenery; and alteration of wildlife habitat. According to Schmid et al. (2007), the most important aspect of managing mature ponderosa pine stands in the Black Hills National Forest is minimizing the MPB-caused mortality. The only effective long-term strategy to minimize MPB-cause mortality is controlling stand conditions through silvicultural means over large landscapes and monitoring areas of beetle buildup (USDA Forest Service, 2010d). The ongoing MPB epidemic is of foremost concern in the project area. This epidemic is killing mature pine trees, resulting in stand replacement on a landscape scale. Locally (and nationally), the public is demanding action to reduce the risk of MPB affecting their lands, as well as, reducing potential for large-scale wildfires on public lands. The Healthy Forests Restoration Act (HFRA) of 2003, represents the culmination of a number of National level policy documents and efforts developed to address this issue. Guided by the Forest Plan and the HFRA, the Pactola Project proposed action has been developed to treat vegetation on a broad landscape scale to reduce the threat to ecosystem components from the existing insect and disease (MPB) epidemic and reduce the potential for large-scale severe wildfires. Ultimately, the intent is to limit effects to the environment from MPB and reduce the potential for loss of property or life due to large-scale wildfire. Through varied public involvement and collaboration efforts, comments on the proposed action, potential concerns, and opportunities for managing the Pactola Project Area were solicited from Forest Service resource specialists, tribal representatives, members of the public, other public agencies, adjacent property owners, and organizations. Methods used to request comments included: Publishing the Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare and EIS in the Federal Register on August 9, 2010; publication of news releases and articles in the Rapid City Journal; mailing a Pactola Project Final EIS, Page ii scoping letter that solicited comments to approximately 400 interested parties; conducted public meetings; and meeting with interested individuals and parties. Comments received during the scoping process were used to help in defining issues, develop alternatives and mitigation measures, and analyze effects. Through review and analysis of the scoping comments and input, the Pactola Interdisciplinary Team (ID Team) identified three (3) prevailing or key issues related to the proposed activities. The three key issues include: mountain pine beetle, wildfire and fuels hazard, and vegetation and wildlife habitat diversity. These issues led the ID Team to develop alternatives to the proposed action. The alternatives analyzed in detail in this EIS are briefly described as follows: Alternative A (No Action) – The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires the study of the no action alternative, and to use it as a basis for comparing the effects of the proposed action and other alternatives.