Shasta-Trinity National Forest; California; Elk Late-Successional Reserve Enhancement Project

Resumo

The Forest Service will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) to evaluate and disclose the predicted effects of the Elk Late-Successional Reserve Enhancement project, which would treat natural stands and plantations on approximately 2,930 acres to reduce the current and future risk of large-scale disturbance events within early, mid and late-successional habitat within the Elk Flat Late-Successional Reserve and nearby stands. Additional benefits from risk reduction treatments include increasing the resilience and promoting continued development and connectivity of late-successional forest habitat within the Elk Flat Late-Successional Reserve. Objectives include improving forest health; increasing resiliency to natural events such as drought, insect and disease infestations and high severity wildfire; and restoring unique habitats. Forest stand treatments would be completed using commercial and non-commercial thinning and regeneration prescriptions. Fuels reduction would be completed using mechanical and hand methods and prescribed fire. Proposed road actions include maintenance and reconstruction of National Forest System roads, construction of temporary roads to complete