Common use of AQUATIC RESOURCES Clause in Contracts

AQUATIC RESOURCES. ‌ Under all alternatives, timber harvest and management activities are expected to occur throughout the Enrolled Lands, resulting in potential effects to aquatic resources. Timber harvest and management activities may vary between certain alternatives, but such variations are not expected to be highly significant. Under all alternatives, Applicant will continue to follow the Forest Practices Program and its elaborate prescriptions to protect riparian health, stream temperatures, and water quality for federally-listed fish species. Specifically, all activities would follow applicable rules and regulations (i.e., Forest Practices Rules and FPHCP) regarding RMZs, CMZs, and Unstable Slopes; therefore, impacts to aquatic resources would be the same under all alternatives, as analyzed in sections 4.5 and 4.7 of the FPHCP FEIS (USFWS and NMFS 2006). Following the criteria for implementation of buffers around RMZs, WMZs, Equipment Limitation Zones, CMZs, sensitive sites, and unstable slopes outlined in the Forest Practices Rules and FPHCP results in increased shade protection, reduced sediment delivery to streams, greater protection from pesticide contamination, reduced effects of timber-harvest induced peak flows, reduced likelihood of contaminated surface water reaching and contaminating groundwater, and lower likelihood for adverse hyporheic zone impacts. There may be marginal differences in impacts to aquatic resources under each of the three alternatives relating to the lands set aside for conservation purposes. For example, Alternative 3 would result in additional set-asides near wetland areas and the Proposed Alternative would set aside Presumed Habitat or Occupied Sites as no-harvest areas that are also near aquatic resources, which could positively impact riparian forest, stream temperatures, and/or water quality at a site- specific scale. However, none of these differences in impacts to aquatic resources are expected to be measurable given the fact that the same Forest Practices Program regarding aquatic resources will apply under all alternatives. Under the No Action Alternative, Proposed Action Alternative and Alternative 3, continued operations are not expected to alter existing fish habitat conditions or otherwise result in effects to ESA-listed fish species other than as already described in the FPHCP (WDNR 2005), the FPHCP EIS (USFWS and NMFS 2006), and the Biological Opinions of USFWS (2006) and NMFS (2006) because there would be no changes to Forests & Fish Buffers, road construction, maintenance, and abandonment, or other forest management activities that may affect fish resources. The elements that affect fish resources will continue to be managed under the Forest Practices Program under all alternatives. Therefore, the Alternatives considered are not expected to significantly impact federally-listed fish species and/or federally-designated critical habitats for fish in a manner or to an extent that has not been previously considered or described.

AQUATIC RESOURCES. ‌ Under all alternatives, timber harvest and management activities are expected to occur throughout the Enrolled Lands, resulting in potential effects to aquatic resources. Timber harvest and management activities may vary between certain alternatives, but such variations are not expected to be highly significant. Under all alternatives, the Applicant will continue to follow the Forest Practices Program and its elaborate prescriptions to protect riparian health, stream temperatures, and water quality for federally-listed fish species. Specifically, all activities would follow applicable rules and regulations (i.e., Forest Practices Rules and FPHCP) regarding RMZs, CMZs, and Unstable Slopes; therefore, impacts to aquatic resources would be the same under all alternatives, as analyzed in sections 4.5 and 4.7 of the FPHCP FEIS (USFWS and NMFS 2006). Following the criteria for implementation of buffers around RMZs, WMZs, Equipment Limitation Zones, CMZs, sensitive sites, and unstable slopes outlined in the Forest Practices Rules and FPHCP results in increased shade protection, reduced sediment delivery to streams, greater protection from pesticide contamination, reduced effects of timber-harvest induced peak flows, reduced likelihood of contaminated surface water reaching and contaminating groundwater, and lower likelihood for adverse hyporheic zone impacts. There may be marginal differences in impacts to aquatic resources under each of the three alternatives relating to the lands set aside for conservation purposes. For example, Alternative 3 would result in additional set-asides near wetland areas and the Proposed Alternative would set aside Presumed Habitat, Occupied Sites, and Murrelet Habitat or Occupied Sites as Development Areasas no-harvest areas that are also near aquatic resources, which could positively impact riparian forest, stream temperatures, and/or water quality at a site- site-specific scale. However, none of these differences in impacts to aquatic resources are expected to be measurable given the fact that the same Forest Practices Program regarding aquatic resources will apply under all alternatives. Under the No Action Alternative, Proposed Action Alternative and Alternative 3, continued operations are not expected to alter existing fish habitat conditions or otherwise result in effects to ESA-listed fish species other than as already described in the FPHCP (WDNR 2005), the FPHCP EIS (USFWS and NMFS 2006), and the Biological Opinions of USFWS (2006) and NMFS (2006) because there would be no changes to Forests & Fish Buffers, road construction, maintenance, and abandonment, or other forest management activities that may affect fish resources. The elements that affect fish resources will continue to be managed under the Forest Practices Program under all alternatives. Therefore, the Alternatives considered are not expected to significantly impact federally-listed fish species and/or federally-designated critical habitats for fish in a manner or to an extent that has not been previously considered or described.