Hassayampa Landscape Restoration Environmental...

Hassayampa Landscape Restoration Environmental Assessment

Silviculture Report

Prepared by: Paul E. Klug, Certified Silviculturist; Kalispell, Montana

U.S. Forest Service Enterprise Program

for: Bradshaw Ranger District Prescott National Forest

August 2017

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Hassayampa Landscape Restoration, Silviculture Report

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Table of Contents Introduction .............................................................................................................................................. 1 Relevant Laws, Regulations, and Policy .................................................................................................. 1

Regulatory Framework ......................................................................................................................... 1 Topics and Issues Addressed in This Analysis ......................................................................................... 5

Purpose and Need ................................................................................................................................. 5 Resource Indicators and Measures ........................................................................................................ 5

Methodology ............................................................................................................................................. 6 Spatial and Temporal Context for Effects Analysis .............................................................................. 6

Affected Environment .............................................................................................................................. 6 Existing Condition ................................................................................................................................ 6 Need for Change ................................................................................................................................... 7 Silvicultural Practices of the Proposed Action...................................................................................... 8

Environmental Consequences ................................................................................................................. 13 Alternative 1 – No Action ................................................................................................................... 13 Alternative 2 – Proposed Action ......................................................................................................... 15

Summary ................................................................................................................................................. 18 Compliance with Forest Plan and Other Relevant Laws, Regulations, Policies and Plans .................... 21 Other Agencies and Individuals Consulted ............................................................................................ 21 References Cited ..................................................................................................................................... 21

Tables

Table 1. Relevance of forest vegetation changes and corresponding environmental factors ........................ 6 Table 2. Summary comparison of effects to relevant environmental values .............................................. 19


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Introduction This report addresses proposed silvicultural activities and the resulting or predicted forest vegetation changes that relate to environmental quality. The Hassayampa Landscape Restoration Project employs silvicultural practices to change current forest conditions toward desired conditions indicated by the Land and Resource Management Plan for the Prescott National Forest (USDA Forest Service 2015) and the principles and practices of General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-310, Restoring Composition and Structure in Southwestern Frequent Fire Forests, 2013 (Reynolds 2013).

Relevant Laws, Regulations, and Policy

Regulatory Framework

Land and Resource Management Plan The Land and Resource Management Plan for the Prescott National Forest (Forest Plan) is the framework for managing forest vegetation. It provides need for change, desired conditions, objectives, and standards and guidelines.

The first need for change in the Forest Plan (page 9) is: “Restore vegetation structure and composition and desired characteristics of fire to selected ecosystems, while responding to citizen concerns related to smoke emissions.” Additional needs for change, specific to current conditions in the project area, are discussed in later sections.

Potential Natural Vegetation Types The Forest Plan addresses forest vegetation in terms of potential natural vegetation types. According to appendix B of the final environmental impact statement for the Forest Plan, a potential natural vegetation type is a “course-grained grouping of ecosystem types that share similar geography, vegetation, and historic disturbances such as fire, drought, and grazing by native species.” Potential natural vegetation type structural states describe conditions that may occur within a potential natural vegetation type at different life stages—using descriptors such as life forms, composition, age or size, and relative density. In the Forest Plan, potential natural vegetation types and states are used to characterize current and desired vegetation conditions, and to establish general vegetation management objectives.

The potential natural vegetation types of primary interest to proposed silvicultural activities and their effects to forest vegetation are Ponderosa Pine-Gambel Oak and Ponderosa Pine-Evergreen Oak. Taken together, these types essentially make up and describe the conifer forest zone of the project area.

In addition to potential natural vegetation types, broad-scale forest conditions of the project area are assessed in terms of biophysical units called ecological response units. Ecological response units are an alternate, yet similar and complementary, system for classifying growing-sites and their characteristic vegetation. They are “groupings of … vegetation classes with similar site potential … and disturbance history; that is, the range of plant associations, along with structure and process characteristics, that would occur when natural disturbance regimes and biological processes prevail” (Wahlberg 2013).

Applying ecological response unit data allows us to further stratify potential natural vegetation types and potential natural vegetation type states such that we identify, survey, and potentially consider separate silvicultural treatment of finer-grained forest conditions. In the case of the Hassayampa Project, these include areas currently supporting mixed conifers or mixed conifers with aspen. Accordingly, the


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ecological response units supporting conifer forests of the project area include Ponderosa Pine Forest, Ponderosa Pine-Evergreen Oak, Mixed Conifer-Frequent Fire, and Mixed Conifer with Aspen.

Whereas both potential natural vegetation types and ecological response units are biophysical classifications, they characterize the growing-site (physical) as well as its range of potential vegetation (biological). But neither system strictly defines current vegetation cover or its condition, because these change over time; that is, within the ecological amplitude of the subject potential natural vegetation type or ecological response unit. Potential natural vegetation type “states” do address this level of detail, but not completely. For example, there is no potential natural vegetation type or potential natural vegetation type-state that distinguishes ponderosa pine-dominated stands from areas stocked more predominantly by Douglas-fir or white fir (“dry mixed conifers”). Overlaying the ecological response unit classification helps in this regard. Still, the main value of potential natural vegetation types and ecological response units is understanding the ecological setting, as opposed to describing the current vegetation conditions.

Consequently this report will speak in terms of potential natural vegetation types, potential natural vegetation type states, and ecological response units when the subject is the involved forest ecosystems and their broad-scale conditions or trends. Alternately, when speaking about particular forest conditions in the project area, or their silvicultural treatment and effects, the language may focus instead on the species, forest type, or forest stand attributes of interest. Terminology used will conform to The Dictionary of Forestry (Helms 1998). If and where needed, language “crosswalks” to text of the Forest Plan or proposed action will be provided.

Desired Conditions The following direction from the Forest Plan is further informed by the project purpose and need. The Forest Plan says “desired conditions describe how the resources on the Prescott NF should look and function” (page 15). Correspondingly, desired conditions have no timeframe; they are dynamic and continuous.

Desired conditions for vegetation are described according to the potential natural vegetation types to which they pertain.

• Desired conditions DC-Veg-1 through DC-Veg-5 (Forest Plan, pages 24–26) apply to all potential natural vegetation types, including those supporting conifer forests. These address conservation of native species and historic ecological patterns and processes; this, through management that uses the vegetation resource in a sustainable manner to ensure continuation of the public benefits prescribed in law. Accordingly, diversity, sustainability, managed grazing on suitable lands, old or large trees where possible, economic activity, and protection of unique plant and animal habitats and species are all identified as desired throughout the plan area.

• Desired conditions DC-Veg-13 through DC-Veg-16 (Forest Plan, pages 34–36) apply specifically to the Ponderosa Pine-Evergreen Oak Potential Natural Vegetation Type.

• Desired conditions DC-Veg-17 through DC-Veg-20 (Forest Plan, pages 36–39) apply specifically to the Ponderosa Pine-Gambel Oak Potential Natural Vegetation Type. These apply also to areas that, under the ecological response unit system, could be classified as the Mixed Conifer-Frequent Fire Ecological Response Unit or the Mixed Conifer with Aspen Ecological Response Unit, because such areas are encompassed by the Ponderosa Pine-Gambel Oak Potential Natural Vegetation Type.

Desired conditions for the two Ponderosa Pine Potential Natural Vegetation Types are substantially the same. This is not surprising, as both have very similar beneficial uses (“ecosystem services”), histories,


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current conditions, and needs for change. They differ mainly in their site productivity—Ponderosa Pine-Evergreen Oak being drier and less able to support continuous stocking of high forest cover—and in their suitability for certain species—Ponderosa Pine-Gambel Oak being moister by varying degrees and sometimes able to support Douglas-fir and white fir as associates of ponderosa pine, or even quaking aspen in draws or concave areas. The desired-conditions discussions for the two Ponderosa Pine Potential Natural Vegetation Types are summarized, and integrated with the Hassayampa proposed action as follows.

Management should culture and maintain, at multiple scales, site-suited species composition and a broad range of tree age- and size-classes, to attain diversity—both vertical or stand-structural diversity, and horizontal or pattern diversity and structure. The diversity to be attained includes old-forest conditions. Such conditions are a “moving allocation,” requiring culture of replacement stands, groups, and scattered individual trees over broad spatial areas and long timeframes. Additionally, the forest diversity to be attained should be tailored to:

• imitate historic ecological patterns and response to disturbance;

• reflect various stocking levels and densities according to site differences and multi-resource considerations;

• support a broad range of native wildlife habitats;

• reduce the intensity of potential fire behavior and the risk of severe fire effects; and,

• reduce susceptibility to damaging insects and diseases such as bark beetles and dwarf mistletoes.

The management emphasis on diversity has an additional overarching end: broad-scale forest conditions that are resilient. That is, reflecting an adaptive capacity to respond to natural or human-caused disturbance, or to environmental changes such as climate; and to sustain the ecological functions and public benefits for which the national forests are established and valued (DC-Ecosystem Resilience-1, Forest Plan, page 18).

Standards and Guidelines Forest Plan standards and guidelines that directly apply to topics addressed by this report are a subset of those under “Vegetation” (pages 74–76) and “Forest Products” (pages 93–95).

Vegetation standards and guidelines that may apply are those that provide guidance for trending toward or achieving desired conditions labeled as DC-Ecosystem Resilience-1, DC-Watershed-3, DC-Veg-4 to 5, DC-Aquatic-1, and DC-Transportation and Facilities-1 in chapter 2 of the Forest Plan.

Forest Products standards are those required by National Forest Management Act to govern various aspects of timber harvest. All applicable standards and guidelines referred to above will be considered incorporated by reference. Reference to particular standards or guidelines by number will be made as needed to support or clarify statements made in this text.

Management Area The proposed silvicultural activities lie within the Prescott Basin, Crown King and Williamson Valley South Management Areas (Forest Plan, pages 103–105, 109-112). These areas have a recreation- and scenery-management emphasis, in combination with other compatible uses. Of the particular desired conditions, standards, or guidelines added for these management areas, none are specific to vegetation resources or the proposed silvicultural activities.


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Special Area Designations The project area includes the 800 acre Grapevine Botanical Area where hand thinning and prescribed burning are proposed to restore and maintain the unique botanical features for which this area was designated. These treatments are designed to protect the unique riparian communities present in the area. Proposed treatments of the Hassayampa Landscape Restoration Project in the Grapevine Botanical Area would not include mechanical treatments.

The project area boundary encompasses a large portion (approximately 26,836 acres) of the Blind Indian Creek Inventoried Roadless Area where various hazardous fuel-reduction practices are proposed on very limited acreages near communities at risk from wildfire. Inventoried roadless areas have an undeveloped character and are valued for many resource benefits, including wildlife habitat, biological diversity, and dispersed recreation opportunities. Forest management activities within inventoried roadless areas are regulated by the provisions of 36 CFR 294 Subpart B—Protection of Inventoried Roadless Areas. Consistent with the provision that any timber cut and removed be “of generally small diameter” (§ 294.13(1)), proposed treatments of the Hassayampa Project within the Blind Indian Creek Inventoried Roadless Area involve low thinning for fuel hazard reduction, cutting and removing trees less than 9.0 inches diameter at breast height, and piling and pile burning slash and woody debris. These treatments, their effects, and additional aspects of their regulatory compliance, are further addressed in a separate report entitled “Recreation and Areas with Special Designation Report.”

Federal Law

National Forest Management Act National Forest Management Act (NFMA, 16 U.S.C. 1640) requirements are generally satisfied by developing, designing, and implementing the project and its silvicultural practices consistent with the Forest Plan. Selected specific requirements are addressed below.

Culmination of Mean Annual Increment NFMA requires that the Forest Service have standards to ensure that, prior to harvest, stands of trees generally shall have reached the point of greatest average volume growth, or “culmination of mean annual increment of growth” (16 U.S.C. 1604(m)). The law provides that these standards shall not preclude appropriate thinning or other stand improvement measures, nor preclude salvage or sanitation in naturally damaged stands of trees or those in imminent danger from insect or disease attack (16 U.S.C. 1640(m)(1)). Additionally, the law provides for exceptions to the culmination of mean annual increment of growth requirement in order to achieve multiple-use objectives other than timber harvest (16 U.S.C 1604(m)(2)). Culmination of mean annual increment of growth provisions of the law are implemented at the Prescott National Forest through Forest Plan standard Std-FP-4 (page 95).

The proposed action may harvest trees of some stands before culmination of mean annual increment of growth has been reached. These harvest treatments are either a form of thinning, sanitation, or improvement cutting that are not precluded by NFMA and Std-FP-4 (Forest Plan, page 95), or they are consistent with the exceptions provided for in NFMA, part (m)(2) and Std-FP-4. The exceptions provide for actions that reduce fire risk or change current forest conditions to trend toward the established desired conditions. Both exceptions are part of the purpose and need for action of the project (see the environmental assessment) and the proposed treatments would effectively meet this purpose and need for action.


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Other NFMA Consistency Requirements The proposed action does not involve clearcutting or other cuts designed to regenerate an even-aged stand of timber. Consequently, provisions of NFMA related to these practices, and Forest Plan standard implementing those provisions (Std-FP-2, Forest Plan, page 94), are satisfied.

Lands on which commercial timber harvest is proposed are classified as suitable for timber production (Std-FP-1, Forest Plan, page 94). Timber suitability is discussed in the Forest Plan on pages 128 to 129. The Prescott National Forest includes 38,875 acres of lands suitable for timber harvest, including those proposed in this project.

Site-specific silvicultural prescriptions would be prepared prior to any timber harvest and would address the requirement to adequately restock affected areas within five years (Std-FP-3, Forest Plan, page 94).

Other Guidance Treatment of forest vegetation to develop the established desired conditions is further informed by principles and practices of General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-310, Restoring Composition and Structure in Southwestern Frequent Fire Forests, 2013. (Reynolds 2013) Similarly, management of spotted owl habitat is guided by the Mexican Spotted Owl Recovery Plan, First Revision, 2012 (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 2012); see the Wildlife specialist report for more details.

Topics and Issues Addressed in This Analysis

Purpose and Need The overall purpose of this project is to “return fire to its natural role in the ecosystem, to meet desired conditions of potential natural vegetation types across the Forest, and to protect life and property from catastrophic wildfires.” Meeting the project’s purpose and underlying need for action requires extensive, broad-scale manipulation of forest vegetation in order to improve the health and resiliency of fire-adapted ecosystems. Consequently, this report will focus chiefly on the silviculture of conifer forest areas to be treated, and the effects of such treatment to human environmental values.

Outside the conifer forest areas, vegetation to be treated consists mainly of woody high shrubs or grasslands that are addressed more thoroughly by analyses of hazardous fuels, potential fire behavior, wildlife habitat components, or other resource management objectives such as scenery and recreation. Special reports analyzing these components are available in the project record.

Resource Indicators and Measures

Relevance of Forest Vegetation Changes and Corresponding Environmental Factors This section addresses the question of why forest vegetation is a component of the affected human environment, and how to assess and describe such effects. Identification of relevant vegetation changes, and appropriate descriptors of the change, is based upon the scope of the proposed action.

NEPA implementing regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) say:

Scoping is “… an early and open process for determining the scope of issues to be addressed and for identifying the significant issues related to a proposed action.” (40 CFR 1501.7)


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Internal and external scoping identified as relevant the following human environmental values that may be affected by changes to forest vegetation. Corresponding environmental factors, by which such changes can be assessed and described, are displayed in Table 1.

Table 1. Relevance of forest vegetation changes and corresponding environmental factors Relevance considerations: human environmental values that may be affected by stand-level changes to forest vegetation

Corresponding environmental factors: stand attributes that may increase or decrease to affect the relevant environmental values

Bark beetle resistance Tree age-classes, diameter classes, stand densities Diversity of forest structure–horizontal Spatial pattern variation Diversity of forest structure–vertical Height, age-class, or crown-class variation Old-growth qualities Presence of large upper-canopy trees Conservation of native forest cover Persistence of site-adapted forest tree species

Methodology Relevant changes to forest vegetation as outlined in table 1 will be described for each environmental value of interest, and the kind and amount of change that would result. Duration of changes, such as temporary, short term, long term, or permanent, will also be described in context.

Spatial and Temporal Context for Effects Analysis

Direct, Indirect, and Cumulative Effects Spatial Boundary The spatial boundary for analyzing all effects to forest vegetation is formed by the horizontal extent of all lands within the project area classified as Ponderosa Pine Potential Natural Vegetation Types and which therefore also includes dry mixed conifer ecological response units. This conceptual boundary encompasses roughly 33,000 acres; this is the acres identified for mechanical thinning. This is the broad-scale area in which the proposed action would manipulate current forest conditions through silvicultural treatments.

Temporal Context The temporal context for analyzing direct and indirect effects to forest vegetation is 20 years. This is the interval that most closely corresponds to the efficacy of the primary silvicultural treatments, those being the individual tree selection method and group selection reproduction method. In other words, for these treatments to serve their longer-term purposes, additional entries to the same areas, for the same or complementary purposes, should be considered approximately 20 years after initial treatment.

The time scale for the cumulative impacts analysis includes all past years in which related actions affecting forest vegetation in the area are documented or known, and the current timeframe in which other known actions are occurring.

Affected Environment

Existing Condition In contrast to the diversity-themed desired conditions, current conditions in stands of ponderosa pine and dry mixed conifers are predominantly even-aged, somewhat densely stocked, vertically simple with some exceptions, and lacking horizontal pattern diversity due to somewhat unbroken age-classes between stands. Additionally, old-growth qualities, desired throughout the Ponderosa Pine Potential Natural


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Vegetation Types in the form of finer-scale groups or clumps of old or large trees (Forest Plan DC-Veg-13, 17), are generally absent or poorly represented.

An analysis of forest conditions across the broad landscape, made in conjunction with the forest planning process, resulted in certain key findings, including the following:

• In the Ponderosa Pine Potential Natural Vegetation Types, there is a great overabundance, relative to desired conditions, of stands characterized by pole- or medium and larger sawtimber with closed canopies; and correspondingly, a great under-abundance of the same kinds of stands with open canopies.

• On the higher-productivity pine sites, those supporting Gambel oak or moister-site conifers such as Douglas-fir or white fir in association with pine, such conditions are considered outside the range of historic conditions. This means that historic disturbance events including relatively high-frequency, low- or moderate-intensity surface fires formerly controlled the stocking, density, and canopy closure of these forests.

The above conditions are prevalent in the Ponderosa Pine Potential Natural Vegetation Types of the Hassayampa Project Area.

Current forest conditions are the result of many influences. Important among past influences are the following:

• Timber cutting for mine timbers, rail ties, construction, or fuelwood starting in the late 1800s;

• Purposeful or inadvertent burning, or natural ignition, of cut timber slash and woody debris;

• Unsuppressed wildfires of the same period; and

• Effective fire suppression during much of the 20th century.

The combination of these factors appears to have directly contributed to the initiation, roughly 100 to 130 years ago, of broad-scale cover of pine or dry mixed conifer forests that are essentially even-aged and somewhat dense, in relation to historic conditions.

Need for Change The overarching problem to be addressed through the management of forest vegetation is “departure”—or the manner and degree to which current forest conditions are different from the desired conditions.

This kind of departure is a both a human and an environmental concern, because these are National Forest System lands established for specific public benefits, or “ecosystem services;” and the benefits for which the public owns these lands are not delivered or sustained if current ecosystem processes are trending away from them. Thus, attaining or making progress toward desired conditions is the appropriate point of reference for human environmental quality where forest vegetation is concerned.

Diagnosis The first consideration is whether current conditions, left untreated, can be expected to develop the desired conditions. Such cannot be expected in this case, as explained further below.

Among other features, the desired conditions involve diverse age- and size-classes becoming established through the periodic creation of small openings of 0.5 to 2 acres. Studies indicate that, historically, such conditions resulted mainly from frequent lower-intensity surface fires ignited naturally or by indigenous


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people. But natural ignitions that could be allowed to burn under current conditions are likely to create large openings, far exceeding the opening sizes characteristic of historic conditions. Recent fire events have often resulted in nearly complete stand mortality and re-initiation, at horizontal scales involving hundreds or thousands of acres.

Self-thinning in dense stands is a natural process by which the least dominant trees die from competition for light, soil moisture, and nutrients, or from related stress-induced vulnerabilities to external damaging agents. In stands of the area, this has occurred since initiation and will continue. But these processes normally result in fully-stocked equilibrium conditions in which the canopy remains generally closed and relatively intense tree-to-tree competition continues. Consequently, self-thinning will not result in attainment of the desired conditions established for conifer forests of the project area.

Potentials The conifer forests of the project area still have the potential to change, through management, toward the desired conditions. Positive factors that create this potential are:

• presence of ponderosa pine or dry mixed conifers in settings or sites where they are known to naturally occur;

• sufficient stocking in most areas to support “target,” or post-treatment, conditions;

• stand ages, that while in the mature category for the species involved, are not so great as to expect substantial age-related mortality for several more decades; and

• endemic, as opposed to epidemic, levels of bark-beetle infestation, dwarf mistletoe infection, or other insect or disease damages.

Attaining desired conditions (listed in the “Desired Conditions” section of this report) is a long-term program with recurrent entries at intervals of about 20 years—to control stocking, sanitize and improve the growing-stock, and create openings to regenerate a new age-class of seedlings.

Silvicultural Practices of the Proposed Action In the environmental assessment, the proposed action describes project activities to be undertaken to reduce hazardous fuels, restore fire as an ecological process, and achieve all other project purposes. Included in these descriptions are the various tools, or operational methods and processes, by which the activities would be carried out—tools such as mastication using mechanized cutting equipment, hand or non-mechanized treatments using chainsaws, mechanical (mechanized) harvesting using feller-bunchers, log retrieval systems such as skidders or forwarders, fuelbreak construction, and prescribed burning. Descriptions of the operational methods sometimes allude to the silviculture of these activities, using general terms such as thinning or uneven-aged management.

This section identifies and describes in more detail, the actual silvicultural practices through which the proposed project operations would change current forest conditions toward desired conditions. This is necessary in order to examine and explain the near- and long-term effects of these practices, as well as the effects of not performing them (no action). This is not a detailed silvicultural prescription. Detailed site-specific prescriptions would be prepared, or reviewed and approved, by a certified silviculturist prior to implementing any tree cutting, removal, disposal, or related practices such as burning. This is explained further following presentation of proposed treatments, below.


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Target Stand Attributes Target stand attributes are those that proposed treatments should create upon completion, in order for stands to develop the long-range desired conditions. Target attributes generally fitting conifer stands of the project area can be identified by applying current literature summarized in General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-310, Restoring Composition and Structure in Southwestern Frequent Fire Forests (2013), and by considering target conditions applied to adjacent Prescott National Forest lands for the same purposes (Wetzstein 2013). Additionally, Forest Plan Guide-Veg-7 (page 76) directly applies. It addresses retention of historic frequencies of forest tree species, age- and size-classes, and large trees; and the continuous representation old-growth attributes.

Proposed treatments are designed to achieve the following desired stand densities:

PAC Treatments

• Pine-Oak: 80-140 sq ft/ac

• Mixed Conifer: 90-150 sq ft/ac

Nest/Roost Replacement Habitat



Recovery Habitat



Everything else:

• Goshawk PFA: 60-80 sq ft/ac

• Non-PFA: 40-80 sq ft/ac

• Goshawk nest stands 115 sq ft/ac

General Forest and Northern Goshawk Foraging Areas The target stand attributes for general forest and northern goshawk foraging areas include the following:

• Uneven-aged condition, under a long-term group or individual tree selection system involving three or more age-classes with new age-classes regenerating in small openings of 0.5 to 2 acres;

• 30 percent canopy cover in the aggregate stand condition produced by trees at least 12 inches diameter at breast height;

• Aggregate stand basal area of approximately 50 square feet per acre, including group openings;

• Two snags per acre 18 inches in diameter or larger;

• Three down logs per acre greater than 12 inches in diameter at mid-point and at least 8-feet long/

• 3 to 10 tons per acre of woody debris 3 inches in diameter or larger.

Northern Goshawk Post-fledging Family Areas Target attributes are the same as above, except as follows:


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• 40 percent canopy cover in the aggregate stand condition produced by trees at least 12 inches diameter at breast height; and,

• Aggregate stand basal area of approximately 60 square feet per acre, including group openings.

Mexican Spotted Owl Recovery Habitat Areas identified for management of spotted owl recovery habitat—specifically, replacement nest or roost habitat—are mainly the higher-productivity pine sites supporting Gambel oak and moister-site conifers such as Douglas-fir or white fir in association with ponderosa pine. Target attributes of these areas are derived mainly from the Mexican Spotted Owl Recovery Plan, First Revision (2012).

The Recovery Plan establishes 100 acre core areas in order to protect Mexican spotted owl nests or primary roost areas. All activities within the core area should undergo consultation with the appropriate U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service office. The target attributes for these areas are as follows:

• 120 square feet per acre or greater aggregate total live stand basal area (total live stand density) in mixed conifer stands and 110 square feet per acre of live stand basal area in pine-oak stands;

• 20 square feet per acre or more of aggregate total live stand basal area contributed by the Gambel oak component;

• 30 percent or more of aggregate total live stand basal area contributed by trees 12 to 18 inches diameter at breast height ;

• 30 percent or more of aggregate total live stand basal area contributed by trees 18 inches diameter at breast height or larger;

• 12 or more live trees per acre 18 inches diameter at breast height or larger; and,

• Strive to retain all live trees 24 inches in diameter or larger unless overriding management situations require their removal to protect human safety and/or property, or in situations where leaving large trees precludes reducing threats to owl habitat. It is strongly recommended that agencies take reasonable steps to minimize the loss of trees larger than 24 inches. (Recovery Plan, pg. 269)

Within the areas outside the nesting/roosting areas the Recovery Plan establishes Protected Activity Centers. Within these protected activity centers (PACs), the following guidance is provided:

• Conduct mechanical treatments in up to 20 percent of total non-core PAC area within each Ecological Management Unit per year. Ecological Management Units (EMU) are subdivisions of the Mexican spotted owl range within the United States. The Prescott National Forest falls within the ‘Basin and Range-West’ EMU, which runs from Prescott to Phoenix and further south to Fort Huachuca.

• Strive for a diversity of patch sizes, with minimum contiguous patch sizes of 2.5 acres, with larger patches located near nesting/roosting cores, and strive to attain heterogeneity between patches, thus creating habitat diversity;

• Create horizontal and vertical habitat heterogeneity within patches, resulting in diversity in tree size and structure within patches;

• Create a diversity of tree species in the PAC, resulting in a mix of hardwoods and shade tolerant species;


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• Target treatments at creating a diverse composition of shrubs, forbs and grasses;

• Create small canopy gaps (0.1 to 2.5 acres) in order to provide for prey habitat diversity, with smaller gaps in nest/roost cores and larger gaps in the surrounding PACs; and,

• Retain minimum canopy cover of 40 percent in pine-oak and 60 percent cover in mixed conifer stands.

Treatments should result in a diversity of tree sizes, with a goal of having trees larger than 16 inches comprising 50 percent of the stand basal area.

Mexican Spotted Owl Protected Habitat Target stand attributes for spotted owl protected areas vary by location such as individual protected activity centers. Effects to this habitat are addressed in the Wildlife specialist report.

Silvicultural Practices The Hassayampa Landscape Restoration Project proposes several silvicultural practices aimed at modifying current conditions toward the target attributes outlined above. Usually, these practices are employed in conjunction, both within a given stand and across the broader-landscape Ponderosa Pine Potential Natural Vegetation Types and the included dry mixed conifers, as explained further the following sections.

Individual Tree Selection Harvest Cutting Individual tree selection is an uneven-aged cutting method wherein selected trees are removed from all size classes throughout the stand to promote the growth of remaining trees and to provide space for regeneration (Helms, 1998). Selection thinning can involve the removal of both immature and mature trees, either in groups or individually with the primary objective of adjusting stocking and spatial arrangement of leave trees to move the stand towards a balanced uneven-aged, clumpy stand structure (Powell 2013). The desired stand following a series of individual tree selection treatments would be randomly distributed as individuals with some small clumps, with small and irregular sized forest interspaces composed of native grasses, forbs and shrub components.

Determination of trees to select for harvest is based on a number of characteristics including tree form, live crown ratio, tree vigor, and the presence of dwarf mistletoe or earlier injuries. Trees are removed from all size classes throughout the stand to promote the growth of remaining trees and to provide space for regeneration. This method allows the silviculturist to retain desirable trees while focusing on achieving a desired stand density range as specified in stand specific prescriptions.

While the healthiest trees are usually not removed through individual tree selection, there are cases where large healthy trees are removed in order to provide growing space and allow for the regeneration of young seedlings. This method allows for the development of an uneven age structure throughout a stand as opposed to smaller patches of uneven aged trees that can result from group selection. However, this method can be used in combination with group selections ranging from very small openings of 0.1 acre to larger 2 acre openings, employing a combination of small group openings alongside thinning across all size classes in order to develop an uneven-aged structure while providing groups for more vigorous tree regeneration.

In the Prescott area, the individual tree selection method is particularly useful in less productive sites with soils that are predominantly made up of decomposed granite. These sites tend to be less productive and due to their lower water holding capacity tend to favor the growth of shrubs which have a deeper root


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system. In these areas, individual tree selection allows the silviculturist to maintain a more continuous canopy cover which suppresses the aggressive shrub layer and allows for the continued dominance of tree species like ponderosa pine. The implementation of a group selection system on the same site can result in a shift of species composition away from a conifer overstory and towards a stand dominated by an intransigent shrub understory. As a result, the group selection system tends to be more effective on more productive sites which tend to be made up of basalt clay soils. These stands naturally tend to support a larger grass component in the understory and the creation of group openings on these sites tend to favor tree regeneration and grasses, rather than a dominant shrub layer.

Individual tree selection is part of a long-term silvicultural system of treatments involving a cutting cycle with a planned interval between harvests to make growing room for younger cohorts. In this project area, it is expected that a cutting of cycle of about 20 years would be employed to remove selected trees throughout the diameter classes to provide growing room, improve the health of remaining trees and provide space for regeneration.

Group Selection Harvest Cutting Group selection is an uneven-aged cutting procedure to regenerate and maintain a multi-aged forest structure. Trees are removed and new age-classes are established in small groups—in this case, openings of 0.5 to 2 acres in size. The management unit or stand in which regeneration, growth, and yield are regulated consists of an aggregation of groups, not the individual openings or age-classes. Group selection with reserves is a variant of the method in which some trees within a group are not cut, in order to attain goals other than regenerating the group. Reserves in this case might mean retaining large or old trees to culture old-growth qualities within the general forest zone, and thereby serve wildlife, scenery, or other resource management objectives.

As an uneven-aged reproduction method, group selection implies a long-term silvicultural system of treatments involving a cutting cycle, or the planned interval between harvests to make new groups and age-classes. In this case, a cutting cycle of about 20 years, with some variation, is anticipated. At each interval, starting with the current project, approximately 20 percent of the broader forest zone would be harvested to make new groups. Consequently, the future forest might comprise five or more recognizable age-classes under management.

Thinning From Below Outside the groups harvested to create a new age-class, the spatially predominant, mainly even-aged forest matrix would be thinned to reduce stand density. Thinning redistributes forest-growth potential to fewer, retained trees in order to avoid or control natural mortality from competition (self-thinning) and maintain quality and vigor in the retained growing-stock. Tree diameter growth rates in particular are benefited. Thinning in this case is also purposed to reduce the stocking of lower- and mid-level trees that can help wildfires climb and torch the crowns of upper-level trees; and to create forest conditions that would allow the health and vigor of retained large trees to improve and become more fire-resistant.

Thinning would be conducted using mainly low thinning methods (commonly referred to as “thinning from below”) which remove mainly lower- or mid-level trees to favor and redistribute growth potential to retained upper-level larger trees. Other thinning methods could be used in combination, as needed to maintain a variety of tree species and age- and diameter-classes, consistent with the natural character of each forest type and the target stand attributes of individual stands. This includes attributes serving wildlife, scenery, or other resource management objectives.

In all cases, trees to be retained would be selected for signs of best potential vigor and freedom from serious insect or disease problems. Additionally, retention patterns at the fine scale would emphasize


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groups or small clumps of desired growing-stock, with more density-reduction cutting outside a group or clump, and less cutting within it. In other words, regular spacing of retained trees is not an objective. Thinning in this manner imitates historic conditions in the Ponderosa Pine-Gambel Oak Potential Natural Vegetation Type, including constituent areas of the Mixed Conifer-Frequent Fire Ecological Response Unit; and the Ponderosa Pine-Evergreen Oak Potential Natural Vegetation Type. It is intended also to meet objectives for future old-forest composition. Old growth in frequent fire forests occurs as old trees in groups and scattered individuals within uneven-aged forests (Reynolds 2013).

Improvement Cutting Improvement cutting is an intermediate treatment—that is, not intended to regenerate a new age-class—that removes the less desirable trees of any species in a stand of poles or larger trees, primarily to improve the composition and quality. In this case it is integrated with thinning, and focused primarily on culturing the ponderosa pine component where there is current intense competition from high stockings of less-desired junipers or other woody high shrubs.

Sanitation Cutting Sanitation is a practice that removes trees to improve stand health by stopping or reducing the actual or anticipated spread of damaging insects and disease. In this case it is integrated with individual tree selection, group selection harvest cutting, thinning, and improvement cutting, and focused chiefly at reducing the incidence and spread of dwarf mistletoe, a parasitic plant that reduces the vigor of infected trees and consequently increases vulnerability to mortality from drought and bark-beetle attacks.

Detailed Silvicultural Prescriptions A certified silviculturist is required to prepare or approve detailed prescriptions for all forest vegetation-management activities. Prescriptions will designate the trees to be cut or reserved and control other elements of forestry operations according to a timetable for implementation that is included. These requirements will be applied by Forest Service workers and incorporated into any contracts that pertain. The prescriptions must meet the applicable Forest Plan standards and guidelines and resource protection measures specified in the environmental planning documents for this project.

Prescriptions consider and integrate all relevant policy and management requirements to determine the post-treatment stand species-composition, stocking, density, vertical and horizontal structure, and age- and condition-classes. In turn, such attributes influence future stand dynamics that may serve to control risks of damage from insects, diseases, wind, fire, and other agents, as well as adaptability to a possible continuing warmer climate. Post-treatment stand attributes also influence long-term potential growth and yield and other public benefits such as biological diversity, wildlife, recreation, and scenery.

Environmental Consequences In this section, environmental consequences of the proposed action are contrasted to no action.

Alternative 1 – No Action “No action” considers the current condition and expected future condition in the absence of the project. In other words, how the forest will change, and the environmental effects such change, if none of the proposed silvicultural and other activities are implemented.


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Direct and Indirect Effects

Bark Beetle Resistance Even-aged mature small and medium sawtimber continues as the predominant forest cover. Stand densities remain relatively high compared to historic conditions. Tree-to-tree competition and declining live crown quality causes continuance of low vigor and very slow diameter growth. Some trees would die from the combined effects of competition, disease, and bark-beetle attacks while surviving trees very gradually grow larger. Most stands are vulnerable to moderate or severe damage from bark beetle outbreaks, especially during droughty periods.

Diversity of Forest Structure–Horizontal The predominantly even-aged condition that is somewhat unbroken between stands over large spatial areas would likely persist until new openings are created by disturbance agents such as bark beetles or wildfire. But these agents are likely to cause larger, more extensive disturbance than what is desired to imitate historic horizontal patterns, those being typified by a mosaic of various age-classes in small groups.

Diversity of Forest Structure–Vertical The even-aged, vertically simple condition that currently predominates the Ponderosa Pine Potential Natural Vegetation Types would likely persist unless new small openings and age-classes are created by disturbance agents such as bark beetles or wildfire. But this is not likely as these agents, in the absence of the project, are likely to cause larger, more extensive disturbance.

Where stands are currently stratified into recognizable vertical layers, such as among the dry mixed conifers, the Douglas-fir and white fir components may generally persist at intermediate or overtopped levels, or as younger age-class regeneration. But where closed canopy conditions increase (likely in the near term), these species are expected to gradually decline to a limited stocking and poor vigor, pending new canopy gaps occurring from natural mortality to upper-level trees.

Old Growth Qualities Old-forest stand components, in the form of finer-scale groups or clumps of old or large upper-level trees, would be slow and uncertain to develop. This is due to continuance of current or increased stand density and tree-to-tree competition for light, soil moisture, and nutrients, combined with the unlikelihood of beneficial low-intensity surface fire that might reduce competition. To the extent that the absence of the project maintains forest conditions with potential for high-intensity crown fire, a likely effect of such a fire on stands with potential to develop old-growth qualities would be to transform them back to a stand-initiation stage with a low stocking of surviving old or large trees.

Conservation of Native Forest Cover To the extent that the absence of the project—taking no action—maintains forest conditions with potential for high-intensity crown fire, a possible effect of such a fire is long-term loss of some or even all ponderosa pine forest cover in areas severely affected.

In a study of ten locations where southwestern ponderosa pine forests were affected by crown fires occurring between 1948 and 1977, investigators found various results concerning post-fire pine regeneration and subsequent forest cover. Results ranged from sites on which adequate or even overabundant post-fire regeneration occurred and pine dominance persisted for decades after the fire, to other sites where there was partial or even complete pine-regeneration failure after the fire, resulting in current and apparently long-term future conversion to shrub or grass vegetation cover types. A key


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determinant appeared to be whether upper canopy pines within or adjacent to severely burned areas survived the fire to promptly regenerate the site via natural seeding (Savage and Mast 2005).

Alternative 2 – Proposed Action This alternative would reduce fuels and restore fire as an ecological process on approximately 234,515 acres. Opportunities for treatments are proposed in a variety of potential natural vegetation types including Semi-Desert Grasslands, Juniper Grasslands, Pinon-Juniper Evergreen Shrub, Interior Chaparral, Ponderosa Pine-Evergreen Oak, Ponderosa Pine-Gamble Oak Desert Communities, and Riparian Gallery Forest. Mixed conifers are included in the Ponderosa Pine-Oak Potential Natural Vegetation Types and would be treated as part of this project. A variety of methods are being considered to reduce fuels and create and maintain healthy and resilient ecosystems, including hand thinning or pruning, prescribed burning, and mechanized and non-mechanized fuel reduction treatments. A combination of vegetation management treatments, including mechanized and non-mechanized fuels treatments, prescribed burning, and fuel break construction, would be used to attain desired conditions.

Direct and Indirect Effects

Bark Beetle Resistance New openings and a new age-class of seedlings are created via individual tree selection or group selection harvest cutting. Via thinning, density is reduced and controlled to levels imitating historic conditions. Tree-to-tree competition is reduced and crown quality is maintained or improved, resulting in generally improved vigor and diameter growth of retained trees. Additionally, the reduced stand density and interspersed group openings would cause the microclimate surrounding retained trees to be far less favorable for bark beetle population buildups. As a result, serious bark beetle outbreaks in these areas would become less likely for at least 20 years.

Diversity of Forest Structure–Horizontal Individual tree selection and group selection harvest cutting would initiate a long-term process to change the current predominantly even-aged, broad-scale condition to a multi-aged condition comprising small groups of a given age-class on dispersed, randomly located spatial areas. Group selection methods would create such groups to collectively control about 20 percent of the broad-scale aggregate Ponderosa Pine-Gambel Oak Potential Natural Vegetation Type, including constituent areas the Mixed Conifer-Frequent Fire Ecological Response Unit; and the Ponderosa Pine-Evergreen Oak Potential Natural Vegetation Type. Individual tree selection would create smaller groups across a larger area, allowing for a more consistent distribution of unevenly aged trees. Subsequent harvests at intervals of approximately 20 years would add new groups and age-classes. In the long-term future, five or more recognizable age-classes might theoretically be present in a group-mosaic pattern. In this scenario, a change in forest condition would be encountered at relatively short horizontal surface distances of 100 to 300 feet. Possible future disturbances by wildfire or endemic bark beetle activity, if not severe, would alter patterns created by management in a manner consistent with historical processes. Future prescribed managed fire would have a similar effect.

Diversity of Forest Structure–Vertical Individual tree and group selection harvest cutting would immediately initiate a new (low) vertical layer, in a dispersed small-group pattern, over the broad-scale aggregate Ponderosa Pine-Gambel Oak Potential Natural Vegetation Type, including constituent areas the Mixed Conifer-Frequent Fire Ecological Response Unit; and the Ponderosa Pine-Evergreen Oak Potential Natural Vegetation Type. Subsequent harvests at intervals of approximately 20 years would add new groups and age-classes that would vary from others with respect to their vertical position.


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Where thinning from below would be conducted, in the spatially predominant forest matrix (outside group openings), the vertical forest structure would become more uniform for the next 20 years, pending creation of additional age-classes in group openings. This uniformity is the result of low thinning methods that remove trees from the lower crown classes (layers) to favor those of the upper crown classes. However, by reducing density in a manner that focuses on retention of desirable groups or clumps, some vertical differentiation would occur between the upper tree canopy and lower-level vegetation growth that would occur in response to new micro-openings created between clumps.

Old Growth Qualities Where thinning would be conducted in the spatially predominant forest matrix (outside new openings), the balance of tree size-classes and forest stand structures would immediately change toward larger- diameter, upper-level trees, because proposed treatments focus on removing smaller, lower-level trees. Growth of retained large trees would improve and candidate groups or clumps would advance over time toward old-forest composition. Additionally, in areas of individual tree selection harvest and group selection harvest openings where large or old trees would be reserved in clumps or as individuals, attainment of old-growth qualities featuring these trees would be advanced by removing all other mature trees and creating open understories.

The combination of these changed conditions would generally moderate potential fire behavior (torching and crowning), and increase the likelihood of old or large trees surviving any given fire event.

Conservation of Native Forest Cover The proposed action is intended in part to moderate potential fire behavior and thereby improve resilience—the capacity of the forest to maintain or regain normal function and development following disturbance.

Both individual tree selection and group selection harvest cutting would contribute positively to moderating potential fire behavior. These methods would increase spatial-pattern (horizontal) diversity at the mid- and broad scales by making new openings that interrupt the current, somewhat continuous high forest canopy. Thinning from below would also increase spatial-pattern diversity, but at the fine or micro-scale (tree-to-tee, clump-to-clump), by reducing stand density and thereby increasing average spacing between crowns of trees retained as growing-stock, whether as individuals or clumps.

These structural changes, and their related activities that actually remove or dispose of some portion of the current woody fuels on the ground and in the lower canopy, are likely to moderate potential torching and crown-fire behavior, and therefore also the severity of fire effects, at all but the most extreme fire weather conditions. See the Fire and Fuels specialist report for more details.

In summary, the proposed action would allow a more resilient forest condition to develop—one in which some trees are likely to survive a crown fire and function to regenerate the site via natural seeding. It would do this by initiating an uneven-aged silvicultural system of individual tree selection or group selection; controlling the density of retained growing-stock through thinning; and continuing this system through future cutting cycles.

All predicted direct and indirect effects of the proposed action are consistent with forest vegetation standards and guidelines of the Forest Plan, NFMA, and the requirements of other applicable laws, regulations, and policies.


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Cumulative Effects Cumulative impacts result from the incremental impact of the action when added to current or anticipated effects of other related actions in the affected environment. The impact of the action when added may be beneficial—improving the quality of the affected environment, or adverse—making it worse.

Cumulative impacts are considered in order to make sure no potentially significant adverse impact of the proposed action is missed by failing to consider impacts that exist (from related past or present actions) or that are expected to exist (from reasonably foreseeable future actions).

Past, Present, and Reasonably Foreseeable Actions Relevant to Cumulative Effects Analysis Past actions relevant to the analysis include the following:

• Historic tree cutting for building communities, mining structures, and firewood resulted in even-aged stands.

• Fire suppression led to overly dense stands, thick ladder fuels, and severe fire risk.

• Possible high-grading during the 20th century—amounts and locations unknown, may have removed some of the largest and best-formed trees for their timber quality.

The combination of these factors appears to have directly contributed to the initiation, roughly 100 to 130 years ago, of broad-scale cover of pine or dry mixed conifer forests that are essentially even-aged and somewhat dense, in relation to historic conditions, and the maintenance of such conditions. Thus the effects of these past activities are represented in the current conditions.

Within the delimited area of consideration, there are no present or other reasonably foreseeable actions relevant to the cumulative effects analysis. The projects listed in the environmental assessment do not overlap with the forested stands in this project.

Cumulative Effects of Proposed Action The proposed action does not cause any current or anticipated adverse vegetation conditions to worsen; rather, it would add beneficial changes to the existing, or current aggregate, conditions. It would do so by arresting or reversing trends that have resulted in part from past actions. Beneficial cumulative effects of the proposed action include:

• Creating or maintaining diversity of tree species, age- and size-classes;

• Reducing stand densities;

• Increasing the growth and development of large trees;

• Reducing the risk of bark-beetle outbreaks or severe fire effects in stands containing large trees or advancing toward desired old growth qualities; and

• Conserving native forest cover at risk from potential high-intensity fire behavior.

All predicted cumulative effects of the proposed action are consistent with forest vegetation standards of the Forest Plan and the requirements of other applicable laws, regulations, and policies.

No adverse cumulative impacts of the proposed action to forest vegetation are predicted.


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Summary Management of forest vegetation, established by Federal law through the Prescott National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan, would be pursued by applying various silvicultural practices in the Ponderosa Pine-Gambel Oak Potential Natural Vegetation Type, including constituent areas of the Mixed Conifer-Frequent Fire and Mixed Conifer with Aspen Ecological Response Units; and the Ponderosa Pine-Evergreen Oak Potential Natural Vegetation Type. These practices are intended to change current attributes of the forest, such that long-term desired conditions may be attained and their human benefits or ecosystem services may be more fully delivered.

In summary, changes to forest vegetation from the proposed action are expected to be beneficial, not adverse.


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Table 2. Summary comparison of effects to relevant environmental values

Relevant Environmental Values

Stand Attributes That May Change to Cause Effects Effects of No Action Effects of the Proposed Action

Bark beetle resistance Tree age-classes, diameter classes, stand densities

Even-aged mature small and medium sawtimber continues as the predominant forest cover. Stand densities remain relatively high compared to historic conditions. Stands are vulnerable to moderate damage from bark beetle outbreaks.

A new age-class of seedlings is created via individual tree selection and group selection harvest cutting. Via thinning, density of the forest is reduced and controlled to levels imitating historic conditions. Serious bark beetle outbreaks would become less likely for at least 20 years.

Diversity of forest structure–horizontal

Spatial pattern variation The predominantly even-aged condition over large spatial areas would likely persist until new openings are created by bark beetles or wildfire. But these agents are likely to create large openings, not the desired mosaic of various age-classes in small groups.

Individual tree selection and group selection harvest cutting would initiate a long-term process to change the current predominantly even-aged broad-scale condition to a multi-aged condition.

Diversity of forest structure–vertical

Height, age-class, or crown-class variation

The vertically simple, spatially predominant even-aged ponderosa pine condition would likely persist until new openings are created by bark beetles or wildfire. But these agents are likely to create large openings, not the desired mosaic of vertically differentiated age-classes in small groups.

Individual tree selection and group selection harvest cutting would immediately initiate a new (low) vertical layer, in a dispersed clumpy pattern. Subsequent harvests at intervals of approximately 20 years would add new groups and age-classes that would vary from others with respect to their vertical position. Where thinning from below is conducted outside new group openings, the vertical forest structure would become more uniform for the next 20 years, pending creation of additional groups.

Old growth qualities Presence of large upper-canopy trees

Old-forest stand components, in the form of finer-scale groups or clumps of old or large upper-level trees, would be slow and uncertain to develop. High-intensity crown fire that could occur would likely result in a low stocking of surviving old or large trees.

Where thinning is conducted the balance of tree size-classes and forest stand structures would immediately change toward larger-diameter, upper-level trees. Growth of retained large trees would improve and candidate groups or clumps would advance over time toward old-forest composition. Individual tree selection and group selection harvest cutting combined would generally moderate potential fire behavior and increase the likelihood of large upper-canopy trees surviving a fire.


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Relevant Environmental Values

Stand Attributes That May Change to Cause Effects Effects of No Action Effects of the Proposed Action

Conservation of native forest cover

Persistence of site-adapted forest tree species

To the extent that the absence of the project maintains forest conditions with potential for high-intensity crown fire, a possible effect of such a fire, were it to occur, is long-term loss of some or even all ponderosa pine forest cover in areas severely affected.

Both individual tree selection, group selection cutting and thinning from below would contribute positively to moderating potential fire behavior and would allow a more diverse and resilient forest condition to develop—one in which some trees are likely to survive a crown fire and function to regenerate the site via natural seeding.


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Compliance with Forest Plan and Other Relevant Laws, Regulations, Policies and Plans The proposed silvicultural practices and their effects to forest vegetation comply with the Prescott National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan and all other known relevant laws, regulations, policies, and plans.

Other Agencies and Individuals Consulted Consulted Roy Mita, at the Forest Service Fort Collins Service, to discuss common stand examination sampling design and data management for forest vegetation simulator application.

References Cited Helms, J.A. 1998. The dictionary of forestry. Society of American Foresters. Bethesda, MD. 210 p.

Powell, D.C. 2013. Silvicultural Activities: Description and Terminology. White Paper F14-SO-WP-SILV-34, USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region, Umatilla National Forest. Available online at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5413732.pdf

Reynolds, R.T.; Sánchez Meador, A.J.; Youtz, J.A.; [and others]. 2013. Restoring composition and structure in Southwestern frequent-fire forests: A science-based framework for improving ecosystem resiliency. General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-310, USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fort Collins, CO. 76 p.

Savage, M.; Mast, J.N. April 2005. How resilient are southwestern ponderosa pine forests after crown fires? Canadian Journal of Forest Research 35: 967–977. Available online at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237567791

USDA Forest Service. 2015. Land and resource management plan for the Prescott National Forest. Prescott National Forest. Prescott, AZ.

USDI Fish and Wildlife Service. 2012. Final recovery plan for the Mexican spotted owl (Strix occidentalis lucida), first revision. Albuquerque, NM. 413 p.

Wahlberg, M.M.; Triepke, F.J.; Robbie, W.A.; [and others]. 2013. Ecological response units of the Southwestern United States. USDA Forest Service Forestry Report FR-R3-XX-XX. Southwestern Region, Regional Office, Albuquerque, NM. 201 p.

Wetzstein, K. 2013. Bradshaw vegetation management—Silvicultural prescriptions for thinning activities. Prescott National Forest unpublished report. Prescott, AZ.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5413732.pdf

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237567791

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