Eyak – Heney Landscape Assessment Cordova Ranger District Chugach National Forest 09/30/2002 Team: Susan Kesti - Team Leader, Writer-editor, Vegetation, Mining Milo Burcham – Wildlife Resources, Subsistence Dean Davidson – Soils, Geology Tim Joyce – Fish Subsistence Bill MacFarlane – Hydrology, Water Quality Dixon Sherman – Recreation, Lands, Special Uses Sean Stash – Fisheries Linda Yarbrough – Heritage Resources Table of Contents Executive Summary ............................................................................................................ vi Chapter 1 – Introduction .................................................................................................... 1 Purpose .............................................................................................................................. 1 The Analysis Area .............................................................................................................. 1 Relationship to the Revised Chugach Land Management Plan ......................................... 4 Chapter 2 – Analysis Area Description .............................................................................. 6 Physical Characteristics .................................................................................................... 6 Geographic Location ...................................................................................................... 6 Climate ........................................................................................................................... 7 Geology .......................................................................................................................... 8 Ecological Classification ............................................................................................. 11 Soils.............................................................................................................................. 12 Hydrology .................................................................................................................... 13 Water Quality And Sedimentation ............................................................................... 24 Groundwater ................................................................................................................ 26 Biological Characteristics ............................................................................................... 27 Fish ............................................................................................................................... 27 Vegetation .................................................................................................................... 31 Wildlife ........................................................................................................................ 34 Human Dimension ........................................................................................................... 42 Heritage Resources ...................................................................................................... 42 Cordova Water Supply ................................................................................................. 44 Hydroelectric Power .................................................................................................... 45 Roads............................................................................................................................ 47 Recreation Facilities and Use....................................................................................... 48 Sites .............................................................................................................................. 52 Special Uses ................................................................................................................. 54 Outfitter/Guides ........................................................................................................... 54 Subsistence Fishing ...................................................................................................... 54 Sport and Subsistence Hunting .................................................................................... 55 Chapter 3 – Issues and Key Questions ............................................................................. 57 Physical ............................................................................................................................ 57 Fish Issues ........................................................................................................................ 57 Human Use Issues ............................................................................................................ 57 Economic ..................................................................................................................... 57 Recreation .................................................................................................................... 58 Special Uses ................................................................................................................. 58 i Heritage Resource Issues ................................................................................................. 58 Vegetation Issues ............................................................................................................. 59 Water Quality/ Hydrologic Issues .................................................................................... 59 Wildlife Issues .................................................................................................................. 60 Chapter 4 – Conditions, Trends, and Interpretation...................................................... 61 Landtype Association ....................................................................................................... 61 Wetlands ........................................................................................................................... 62 Disturbance Regimes ....................................................................................................... 64 Tectonic, Glacial .......................................................................................................... 64 Wind ............................................................................................................................. 66 Insect and Diseases ...................................................................................................... 66 Timber harvest ............................................................................................................. 66 Hill slope processes - landslide risk analysis ............................................................... 67 Hydrology and Water Quality .......................................................................................... 70 Drainage basin morphometry ....................................................................................... 71 Channel type/channel geometry ................................................................................... 71 Soil depth and infiltration ............................................................................................ 71 Rainfall ......................................................................................................................... 71 Snow ............................................................................................................................ 72 Surface Water............................................................................................................... 72 Human Influences ........................................................................................................ 73 Analysis of selected factors ......................................................................................... 73 Fish .................................................................................................................................. 75 Human .............................................................................................................................. 76 Heritage resources ........................................................................................................ 76 Recreation .................................................................................................................... 77 Subsistence Use of fish and wildlife resources ............................................................ 79 Timber Harvest ............................................................................................................ 79 Mining .......................................................................................................................... 80 Vegetation ........................................................................................................................ 80 Invasive Species ........................................................................................................... 80 Threatened, Endangered and Sensitive Plant Species .................................................. 80 Wildlife ............................................................................................................................. 81 Chapter 5 – Recommendations ......................................................................................... 82 Inventory and Monitoring ................................................................................................ 82 Fish 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