Table Of Content

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United States Upper Carroll Departmentof Agriculture Forest Service Timber Sale Tongass National Forest RIO - MB-332 Environmental Impact October 1996 Final Statement Volume I United States Department of Agriculture Is lame it Act onservation Act f 1 I I y National Agricultural Library '1976 ..knent EIS Environmental Impact Statement EPA Environmental Protection Agency EVC Existing/ExpectedVisual Condition FEIS Final Environmental Impact Statement FSH Forest Service Handbook FSM Forest Service Manual GIS Geographic Information System IDT InterdisciplinaryTeam KPC Ketchikan Pulp Company KV Knutsen-VandenbergAct LTF LogTransferFacility LUD LandUse Designation LWD LargeWoody Debris (same as LOD) MBF One Thousand Board Feet MELP Multi-Entry Layout Process MIS Management Indicator Species MM MaximumModification MMBF One Million Board Feet NEPA National Environmental PolicyAct NFMA National Forest Management Act NMFS National Marine Fisheries Service NOI Notice ofIntent P Primitive PR Partial Retention R Retention RM Roaded Modified RN Roaded Natural ROD Record ofDecision ROS Recreation Opportunity Spectrum SHPO State Historic Preservation Officer 3PM Semi-Primitive Motorized SPNM Semi-Primitive Nonmotorized TLMP TongassLand Management Plan TRUCS TongassResource Use Cooperative Survey TTRA TongassTimberReformAct USDA United States Department ofAgriculture USDI United States Department ofthe Interior USFWS United States FishandWildlife Service VCU Value ComparisonUnit VQO Visual Quality Objective WAA WildlifeAnalysisArea Acknowledgments Frontcover: ByCindyRossBarber, 1992. ThedesignillustratestherangeofinterconnectedissuesaddressedintheEIS. Final Environmental Impact Statement Upper Carroll Timber Sale United States Department of Agriculture — Forest Service Alaska Region Lead Agency: U.S.D.A. Forest Service Tongass National Forest Ketchikan Administrative Area Responsible Official Forest Supervisor Ketchikan Administrative Area Tongass National Forest Federal Building Ketchikan, Alaska 99901 For Further Information Contact: Bill Nightingale, Planning Forester Ketchikan Ranger District U.3. OEFnr. OF AGRICULTURE Tongass National Forest NATIONALAGRICULTURAL LIBRARY 3031 Tongass Avenue Ketchikan, Alaska 99901 NOV 51996 I (907) 225-2148 CATALOGING PREP Abstract The USDAForest Serviceproposestoharvestuptoapproximately 70millionboard feet (MMBF) oftimber in the Upper Carroll Project Area, Ketchikan Ranger District, Ketchikan Administrative Area, Tongass National Forest. Timbervolume would be offeredto the Ketchikan Pulp Company (KPC) underthe KPC Long-term Timber Sale Contract (AlOfs- 1041) and/or the Ketchikan Area independent timber sale program. The actions analyzed in this EIS are designed to implement direction contained inthe Tongass Land Management Plan (TLMP, 1979a, asamended) and the TongassTimber ReformAct. The EIS describes 6 alternatives which provide different combinationsofresource outputsand spatial locations of harvest units. The alternatives include: 1) NoAction, proposingnonewharvest fromthe Project Area at thistime; 2) configure harvest unitsto providethe maximumamount oftimber within Forest Plan Standards and Guidelines; 3) configure harvest unitsto emphasize timber sale economics, fisheries,wildlife, and subsistence values; 5) emphasize helicopteryard- ing in Neets Bay while allowingharvest at the Forest Plan implementation level in most other zones; 6) avoid harvest in Neets Bayand in potential goat winter range, minimize impacts to the west side ofCarroll Creekthrough the use ofhelicopter logging; and 7) emphasize helicopter logging, visuals,and subsistence values. Table of Contents Volume S Chapter 1 - Purpose and Need 1-1 Introduction 1-2 Decision to be Made 1-2 Document Organization 1-2 Project Area 1-3 ProposedAction 1-6 Purposeand Need 1-6 Implement TLMP 1-6 Timber Demand 1-6 Reasons for Schedulingthe Environmental Analysis oftheUpper Carroll Project Area 1-7 Existingand Desired Future Condition 1-8 The Decision Making Process 1-9 National Level 1-9 Regional Level 1-9 Forest Level 1-9 Project Level 1-10 Other Projects 1-10 Current Project 1-10 TLMP, as Amended 1-11 Land Use Designations 1-11 LUDIV 1-11 TLMP Revision 1-11 Alaska State Lands (AK) 1-11 Private Lands (PV) 1-11 Encumbered Lands (EN) 1-12 Old-Growth Habitat 1-12 Scenic Viewshed 1-12 Modified Landscape 1-12 Timber Production 1-12 Public Involvement 1-15 Scoping 1-15 Notice ofIntent (NOI) 1-15 Public Mailing 1-15 Local News Media 1-15 Briefings 1-15 Draft EIS 1-15 Availability ofDraft EIS forPublic Comment 1-15 Subsistence Hearings 1-15 Final EIS 1-16 Response 1-16 Issues 1-16 IssuesAssociated withthe ProposedAction 1-16 Issue 1: Timber Economics and Supply 1-16 Issue 2: Fish Habitat and Water Quality 1-16 Issue 3: Recreation and Scenic Quality 1-16 Issue4: Wildlife 1-17 Issue 5: Subsistence 1-17 Issue 6: Transportation/Utility Corridor 1-17 Issue 7: Social and Economic Effects 1-17 Issue 8: Marine Environment 1-17 Issues Outside the Scope ofThisAnalysis 1-18 Issue A: Land Use Designations/Forest Plan Revision 1-18 Issue B: Bradfield Road Transportation Link 1-18 1 Contents Issue C: Development Outside the ProjectArea 1-18 Issue D: Below Cost Timber Sales 1-18 Issue E: Timber Supply and Demand 1-18 Issue F: Manage Upper Carroll for Sustained Yield 1-19 Issue G: Wild and Scenic Rivers 1-19 Issue H: Cancel the KPC Long-term Sale Contract 1-19 Federal and State Permits, Licenses, and Certifications 1-19 U.S. Army Corps ofEngineers 1-19 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 1-19 State ofAlaska, Department ofNatural Resources 1-19 State ofAlaska, Department ofEnvironmental Conservation 1-19 U.S. Coast Guard 1-19 Legislation and Executive Orders Related to This EIS 1-20 Availability ofthe PlanningRecord 1-21 Chapter2 - Alternatives 2-1 Introduction 2-2 Changes Between DEIS and FEIS 2-2 New Information 2-2 ImprovedAnalysis 2-2 Timber 2-2 . Wildlife 2-3 Soil, Water, and Air 2-3 Social and Economic 2-3 Marine Environment 2-3 Subsistence 2-3 Recreation and Visuals 2-3 Alternative Development 2-4 Ecosystem Management 2-4 Process Used to Formulate Alternatives 2-11 Address the Issues Identified Duringthe Scopingand Public Comment Periods 2-11 Integrated Resource Analysis Focused on the Proposed Action 2-11 Evaluate a Reasonable Range ofAlternatives 2-11 Consistencywith TLMP RSDEIS, Preferred Alternative (USDA Forest Service 1996a) Standards and Guidelines 2-12 Follow an Interdisciplinary Process 2-12 Alternatives Eliminated fromDetailed Study 2-12 Alternative A Single Resource or Issue 2-12 Alternative B Transportation/Utility Corridorbetween Ketchikan and the Project Area 2-12 Alternative C Avoid Previously Mapped Old-growth Retention Areas 2-13 Alternative D Neets Bay/Orchard Lake Alternative 2-13 Alternative E Helicopter LoggingAlternative 2-13 Alternative F "Fishermen’s Alternative" 2-14 Alternative G 2-14 Alternatives Considered for Detailed Study 2-15 Alternative (No Action) 2-15 1 Alternative 2 2-15 Alternative 3 Preferred Alternative 2-16 Alternatives 2-16 Alternative 6 2-17 Alternative 7 2-18 Forest Service Preferred Alternative 2-18 Comparison ofAlternatives 2-18 Summary Comparison 2-18 Comparison ofAlternatives by Proposed Activity 2-21 Acre or Timber Type Map Method 2-23 Transition Proportionality Analysis Method 2-25 2 Contents Comparison ofAlternatives by Significant Issue 2-28 Issue 1. Timber Harvest Economicsand Supply 2-28 Logging Systems 2-28 Mid-market Value 2-29 Timber Supply 2-29 Issue 2. Fish Habitat andWater Quality 2-30 Best Management Practices 2-30 Habitat Capability 2-30 Cumulative Watershed Effects 2-30 StreamCrossings 2-31 Mass Movement Index (MMI) 2-32 Sediment Transfer and Deposition 2-32 Issue 3. Recreation and Scenic Quality 2-33 Scenic Quality 2-33 Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (ROS) 2-34 Roadless Areas 2-34 Issue4. Wildlife Habitat 2-35 Issue 5. Subsistence Use 2-37 Issue 6. Transportation/Utility Corridor 2-39 Issue 7. Social and Economic Effects 2-42 Issue 8: MarineEnvironment 2-43 Mitigation 2-45 TLMP Mitigation 2-45 Water Quality and Fish Production 2-45 TTRA, BMPs, Water Quality 2-45 Wildlife 246 Harbor Seals, Trumpeter Swans, and OtherWildlife 246 Goshawks 246 Marbled Murrelets 247 Trumpeter Swans 247 Bald Eagle Nests 247 Whale Habitats 248 Marine Mammals 248 Waterfowl 248 Heron and RaptorNest Protection 249 AlexanderArchipelagoWolf 249 Mountain Goat 249 Subsistence 249 Recreation 249 Cultural Resources 249 Sensitive Plants 2-50 Monitoring 2-50 Forest Plan Monitoring 2-50 Mitigation/Monitoring Feedback Loop 2-52 Routine Implementation Monitoring 2-52 Effectiveness Monitoring 2-52 Project-Specific Effectiveness Monitoring 2-52 Sensitive Species 2-53 Fisheries and Watershed 2-54 Transportation System 2-55 Validation Monitoring 2-55 Maps ofAlternatives 3 Contents Chapter3 -Affected Environment and Effects oftheAlternatives 3-1 Introduction 3-1 Available Information 3-1 AnalyzingEffects 3-2 Land Divisions 3-3 Geographic Information System 3-4 . Description ofthe Ecosystem 3-4 AIRQUALITY 3-8 Affected Environment 3-8 Effects ofthe Alternatives 3-9 Direct, Indirect and Cumulative Effects 3-9 Effects on Air Quality Outside the Project Area 3-9 WATER RESOURCES 3-11 Affected Environment 3-11 Consumptive WaterUse 3-11 StreamFlow Water Quality 3-11 Effects ofthe Alternatives 3-17 Direct and Indirect Effects 3-17 Riparian Management Strategy 3-29 Project Specific RHCA Applications 3-31 Cumulative Effects 340 Effects on Water Quality Outsidethe Project Area 3-44 Swan-Tyee Transmission Line 3-44 GEOLOGY, MINERALS, AND CAVE RESOURCES 345 Affected Environment 345 Geomorphology 345 Lithology 346 Structural Geology 346 Minerals 346 Cave Resources 347 Effects oftheAlternatives 347 Geomorphology 347 Minerals 347 Cave Resources 347 Swan-Tyee Transmission Line 347 SOILS AND ECOLOGICAL LANDTYPES 348 Affected Environment 348 Ecological Landtypes 348 Plant Communities 3-50 Soils 3-51 Soil Properties 3-54 Effects ofthe Alternatives 3-56 Soils: Direct and Indirect Effects 3-56 Soils: Cumulative Effects 3-61 Swan-Tyee Transmission Line 3-61 RIPARIANAREAS, FLOODPLAINS,AND WETLANDS 3-62 Affected Environment 3-62 Riparian Areas 3-63 Floodplains 3-63 Wetlands 3-64 Effects ofthe Alternatives 3-70 Direct and Indirect Effects 3-70 Cumulative Effects 3-76 Swan-Tyee Transmission Line 3-76 FISHERIES 3-77 Affected Environment 3-77 Introduction 3-77 Fish Habitat 3-79 4