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Forest Plan Amendment

Fire Cove Salvage Sales

This amendment to the Forest Plan modifies the Small Old Growth Reserves in VCU 739 to better meet size, location and habitat composition criteria.

The decision to amend the Forest Plan was documented in the Decision Notice for the Fire Cove Salvage Sales Project signed by the Forest Supervisor on February 21, 2002.

February 21, 2002
Ketchikan-Misty Ranger District

Small Old Growth Habitat Reserve Adjustments in VCU 739
Non-significant Forest Plan Amendment

Based on the project level analysis process as described in the Old-growth Management Prescriptions and Appendix K of the Tongass National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan of 1997 (Forest Plan), the location of the small Old-growth Habitat Reserve (OGR), located in Value Comparison Unit (VCU) 739 in the Fire Cove Salvage Sale Project Area, was reviewed by an interagency group of biologists. The reserve, as initially mapped in the Forest Plan, met the productive old-growth (POG) acreage requirements for small reserves, but the total size was 150 acres smaller than the minimum requirement specified in Appendix K of the Forest Plan. The review team recommended adjusting the boundaries of the existing reserve to encompass a large block of high-volume POG to the northwest and the high-volume, low elevation POG adjacent to Traitors Creek to the northeast of the current reserve. This proposed recommendation wold have increased the size of the reserve by 176 acres, increased the total POG by 1,075 acres and reduced the suitable timber land by 711 acres, including some of the most easily accessible lands along the existing roads in the Traitors Cove area.

The final selected location of the small old-growth reserve as displayed in the attached map, incorporates some, but not all, elements of the interagency recommendation. The following table contracts the reserve locations in detail.

Table B-1. OGR Comparison

While the selected location does not expand the reserve to incorporate all the block of POG north of Traitors cove (the low elevation south-facing slopes are included), or east to include all of the high volume timber along Traitors River road, it more than meets the requirements of the Forest Plan with respect to size, location and habitat composition criteria in the VCU.

The Secretary of Agriculture's implementing regulation indicates the determination of significance of a Forest Plan amendment is to be "...based on an analysis of the objectives, guidelines and other contents of the Forest Plan" (36 Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) 219.10(f)). The Forest Service has issued guidance for determining what constitutes a "significant amendment" under the National Forest Management Act. This guidance, in the Forest Service Handbook (FSH) 1909.12 - Chapter 5.32, identifies four factors to be used in determining whether a proposed change to the TLRMP is significant or not significant. These four factors are: (1) timing, (2) location and size, (3) goals, objectives, and outputs, and (4) management prescriptions. The Alaska Region issued a supplement to FSH 1909.12, Chapter 5.32, effective October 17, 1990, that includes an additional factor which may be considered, in determining the significance of a TLRMP Amendment. This additional factor deals with technical changes. An analysis of the factors is presented below.

Timing - The timing factor takes into account when, during the life of the Forest Plan, the proposed change is to take place. Generally, the later the change in the life of the Plan, the less likely it is to be significant.

The Forest Plan revision was completed in 1997, so this change is proposed early in the life of the Plan. However, the Old-growth Habitat Management Prescription in the Forest Plan recognizes the small mapped reserves have received differing levels of field review and integration of site-specific information in their design. The intent of the Forest Plan was for project level environmental analysis, for project areas that include or are adjacent to mapped Old-growth Habitat Reserves, to evaluate the size, spacing and habitat composition of mapped reserves. Additionally, Forest Plan Appendix K gives specific instruction for how to make these changes. Clearly, modifications to the Old-growth Habitat Land Use Designation (LUD) were anticipated in the Forest Plan. For these reasons, I have determined that these proposed changes relevant to timing are not considered significant.

Location and Size - This factor takes into account the location and size of the area involved in the change, and the affected area's relationship to the overall planning area. Generally, the smaller the area affected, the less likely the change is to be a significant change in the Forest Plan. The areas added to the small Old-growth Habitat Reserves were taken from the low elevation southfacing slopes along Traitors Cove and west to include the area north of the Traitors Cove salt chuck, an important area identified by Alaska Department of Fish and Game. The net change in total acres for the project area is an increase of 203 acres for the Old-growth Habitat LUDs, which is not considered significant with respect to the size of the overall planning area within the Tongass National Forest. The boundaries of the Old-growth Habitat Reserves were modified to better address the Forest Plan objectives for biodiversity. VCU-specific rationale is addressed in the Interagency report which is available in the project planning record.

Goals, Objectives, and Outputs

This factor examines whether the change alters long-term relationships between the levels of goods and services projected by the Forest Plan. In most cases, changes in outputs are not likely to be a significant change in the Forest Plan unless the change would forego the opportunity to achieve an output in later years.

Goals - The Forest Plan goal for Biodiversity is to maintain healthy forest ecosystems; and, to maintain a mix of habitats at different spatial scales (i.e. site, watershed, island, province and forest) capable of supporting the full range of naturally occurring flora, fauna, and ecological processes native to Southeast Alaska. The adjustment to these three reserves is consistent with the goals of the Forest Plan.

Objectives - The Forest Plan objectives are to maintain a Forest-wide system of old-growth forest habitat (includes reserves, non-development LUDs, and beach, estuary and riparian corridors) to sustain old-growth associated species and resources; and, to ensure that the reserve system meets the minimum size, spacing and composition criteria described in Appendix K of the Forest Plan. The adjustments to this reserve was specifically designed to meet the Forest Plan Objectives.

Outputs - Adjustment of this reserve will have a relatively minor effect on the Forest Plan outputs on a Forestwide basis, primarily because the change in the acres of LUDs that allow scheduled timber harvest is relatively small. There was a net decrease of 447 acres of forest lands classed as suitable for timber production on 20,390 acres of the development LUD within this project area, which is negligible when considered across the Tongass National Forest. (150 of these acres were needed to meet the minimum size requirements designated by the Forest Plan).

Management Prescriptions - This factor accounts for whether the change in a management prescription is only for a specific situation or whether it would apply to future decisions throughout the planning area. It evaluates how the change alters the desired future condition of the land and resources or the anticipated goods and services to be produced.

None of the standards and guidelines associated with the management prescriptions has been changed as a result of this amendment. The changes to the mapped small Old-growth Habitat Reserves apply only to this specific situation. These changes also would apply in future management. The proposed amendment fulfills the desired future condition for the Old-growth Habitat LUD Management Prescription as defined in the Forest Plan and would not significantly affect the goods and services produced.

Technical Changes - Technical changes to a Plan's management direction may be made on the basis of new information about the actual resource characteristics of the area. This category does not apply to this case.

Fire Cove Salvage Timber Sale Environmental Assessment (EA) is one of thirteen National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) decisions as of August 2001, to make nonsignificant amendments to the Forest Plan by modifying LUD boundaries. These changes are tracked with a monitoring question posed by the Forest Plan and are part of the Annual Monitoring & Evaluation Report.

The Niblack Environmental Assessment (EA) changed a Wild River nondevelopment LUD to Oldgrowth Habitat and Timber Management LUDs. The other amendments involved enlargement or reduction of Old-growth Habitat LUDs, usually exchanging acres with one of the development LUDs in order to more effectively meet Forest Plan objectives. Usually, wherever an Old-growth Habitat LUD was expanded, there was a corresponding reduction of acres suitable for timber harvest. Likewise, an Old-growth Habitat LUD size reduction usually meant an increase in suitable acres. Often non-forest or low-productive forest land is included in the modification of the shape of a small Old-growth Habitat Reserve due to the natural fragmentation of the forest in Southeast Alaska.

While the LUD changes within each project decision constituted nonsignificant Forest amendments, Table Appendix 1-1 displays the accumulated effect on suitable acres for all projects. For each project the table displays acres that were changed from a nondevelopment LUD to a resource development LUD, or from a development LUD to Old-growth Habitat and the net change in acres suitable for timber management. The net change in suitable acres represents less than 1 percent of the suitable land base.

Table B-2. Effects of Forest Plan Amendments on Acres Suitable for Timber Harvest as of January 2002

Conclusion - Based on a consideration of the factors above, I conclude adoption of this amendment is not significant in the context of the National Forest Management Act. This amendment is fully consistent with current Forest Plan goals and objectives. The amendment provides added detail on implementation of the Old-growth Habitat Management Prescriptions of the Forest Plan.

I hereby amend the Forest Plan with this non-significant amendment by adjusting the small Old-growth Habitat Reserve as shown on the Record of Decision Map and documented in the project planning record for the Fire Cove Salvage Timber Sale Final EA (see Figure 1-1).

USDA Forest Service - Tongass National Forest
Last Modified: February 06, 2006