ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSES
Fremont-Winema
National Forests
Chemult Ranger District
ASPE (Astragalus peckii) Prescribed Burning
The sections, below, tagged with "PDF" are provided in Portable Document Format and require Adobe Acrobat Reader software. You may download Acrobat Reader, free of charge, from Abode at: http://www.adobe.com/acrobat/readstep.html. Sections tagged with "DOC" were prepared in Microsoft Word 2000 and should be compatible with that word processor. Sections tagged "RTF" are in Rich Text Format and should be compatible with most word processors.
Decision (September 23, 2004)
- Decision Memo [DOC - 34K] [RTF - 26K] [PDF - 151K]
Astragalus peckii, known as Peck's milkvetch, is a rare legume endemic to Central Oregon. Eight populations occur on the Chemult and Chiloquin Ranger Districts of the Fremont-Winema National Forests. In order to discover the effects of management activities on the species, a Forest study has been initiated in cooperation with the Oregon Department of Agriculture Plant Conservation Biology Program and Prineville District Bureau of Land Management. Part of the study will look at the effects of burning on the species. Because Peck's milkvetch grows in open forest canopy conditions, expectations are that burning will improve habitat conditions and the plants will respond favorably to prescribed fire. This project is needed to provide information for a long-term management strategy for Peck's milkvetch.
A 1-acre block of milkvetch habitat located in T28S, R8E, Section 14 will be burned. Hand felling of a few small trees may be required in preparation for burning within this block. Paired plots inside and outside of the proposed burn area will be used to monitor the effects of fire on milkvetch survival and reproduction. A fire containment line will be constructed around the proposed burn area according to guidelines provided by fire management staff at Chemult.
Contacts: Kathy Cushman at 541-365-7060 (kcushman@fs.fed.us) or Jayne Goodwin at 541-365-7072 (jlgoodwin@fs.fed.us).