Over conservationists’ objections, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has finalized rules regarding a categorical exclusion (CE) on the removal of pinyon-juniper in sage grouse and mule deer habitat.
While environmental groups want to restore sage grouse habitat, the groups feel exclusions to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) would “take the public out of public land management, serve extractive industries, and downplay science in decision-making.”
The new CE would focus on pinyon-juniper removal of up to 10,000 contiguous or non-contiguous acres within sagebrush and sagebrush-steppe communities to manage pinyon-juniper encroachment. The removal would not only benefit sage grouse and mule deer habitat restoration but provide the potential of reestablishing a new habitat and reduce wildfire risk, according to BLM.
BLM states pinyon and juniper species are aggressively growing into other vegetation communities, including the sagebrush ecosystem, and are now occupying 74 million acres across the West.
“The removal of encroaching pinyon pine and juniper into sagebrush habitat has proven to significantly improve habitat for mule deer and other wildlife,” said Miles Moretti, president and CEO of the Mule Deer Foundation. “In addition, the ability to move quickly after wildfires can be the difference in the successful restoration of big-game winter ranges and other important wildlife habitats. The judicious use of categorical exclusions can reduce the amount of time for project implementation and jump-start recovery.”
Logan Glasenapp of New Mexico Wild stated the removal would “only lead to detrimental effects,” including the efforts to protect wildlife, public lands and “the general safety and livability of the human environment.” Other environmental groups state it will lead to less biodiversity and encourage the invasion of cheatgrass. Mary O’Brien, Utah forests program director for the Grand Canyon Trust, argued the BLM is using the CE “as an opportunity to graze the heck out of the newly ripped-up landscape,” and the science doesn’t indicate the removal of pinyon-juniper enhances habitat for sage grouse.
Despite the concern from O’Brien and others, the BLM stated for NEPA compliance, the CE “must demonstrate a benefit to sage grouse or mule deer habitat, not livestock.”
The BLM analyzed and considered pinyon-juniper management’s effects on grazing and found it will have a minimal impact on forage availability and the loss of shade trees that could concentrate livestock. The removal of livestock is not required unless there is a need to re-establish vegetation through reseeding.
The BLM also considered suggestions to allow for seeding of non-native species, the use of herbicides, the practice of chaining and determined these actions would not be added to the CE.
Salvage harvest CE
In addition to the existing CE allowing for salvage harvest not to exceed 250 acres, the BLM authorized an additional CE “to increase its flexibility to respond to disturbances across larger areas.”
The newly approved CE allows the harvesting of “dead or dying trees resulting from fire, insects, disease, drought, or other disturbances not to exceed 1,000 acres for disturbances of 3,000 acres or less.” For disturbances greater than 3,000 acres, harvesting will not exceed one-third of a disturbance area, and will not exceed 5,000 acres.
“The new 3,000-acre categorical exclusion would accelerate actions the public already broadly supports: recovering dead and dying trees after a fire, insect infestation, and other catastrophic events; converting dead timber into sustainable wood products we all use while creating jobs and revenue for local services; improving forest health and reducing future public safety risks, and ensuring there’s a forest for the next generation,” stated American Forest Resource Council president and CEO Travis Joseph in a press release.
The clearing would include removing live trees for skid trails and road clearing to construct permanent roads not to exceed one mile. The projects will encompass the grinding of residual slash, pile burning, underburning and the reestablishment of native species if necessary.
“The BLM’s final salvage logging categorical exclusion is a parting gift to the voracious timber industry in southwest Oregon,” said Susan Jane Brown, staff attorney and wildlands program director with Western Environmental Law Center in a press release. “Millions of acres burned this summer in Oregon wildfires, and rather than follow the best available science that recommends leaving these snag forests alone, and we can expect clearcutting of old forests that will foul waterways and eliminate habitat for species such as the iconic northern spotted owl. We will meet any attempts to sidestep the law, the science, and the public with swift legal action.”
Despite the BLM reporting the agency removed hazardous fuels on more than 782,000 acres in 2020, the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, ID, said nearly 8.8 million acres (15,000 square miles) have burned in the West this year, about 3.2 million acres (4,700 square miles) more than the 10-year average.
The two CEs will coincide with the Great Basin Fuel Breaks project, which calls for constructing 11,000 miles of fuel breaks and the restoration of sagebrush habitat on approximately 38.5 million acres of BLM-administered land. It will also support the Greater Sage-grouse Resource Management Plan, restoring the bird’s habitat and 250 other species that live in the sagebrush habitat.
“These are scorched-earth policies with no place in what is supposed to be open, transparent, and science-based management of 245 million acres of public land,” said Kya Marienfeld, Wildlands Attorney with the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance. — Charles Wallace, WLJ editor
Exclusions draw the ire of conservationists
— Pinyon-juniper, dead tree removal
JUMP: CE allows cutting of dead trees up to 3,000 acres
Over conservationists’ objections, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has finalized rules regarding a categorical exclusion (CE) on the removal of pinyon-juniper in sage grouse and mule deer habitat.
While environmental groups want to restore sage grouse habitat, the groups feel exclusions to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) would “take the public out of public land management, serve extractive industries, and downplay science in decision-making.”
The new CE would focus on pinyon-juniper removal of up to 10,000 contiguous or non-contiguous acres within sagebrush and sagebrush-steppe communities to manage pinyon-juniper encroachment. The removal would not only benefit sage grouse and mule deer habitat restoration but provide the potential of reestablishing a new habitat and reduce wildfire risk, according to BLM.
BLM states pinyon and juniper species are aggressively growing into other vegetation communities, including the sagebrush ecosystem, and are now occupying 74 million acres across the West.
“The removal of encroaching pinyon pine and juniper into sagebrush habitat has proven to significantly improve habitat for mule deer and other wildlife,” said Miles Moretti, president and CEO of the Mule Deer Foundation. “In addition, the ability to move quickly after wildfires can be the difference in the successful restoration of big-game winter ranges and other important wildlife habitats. The judicious use of categorical exclusions can reduce the amount of time for project implementation and jump-start recovery.”
Logan Glasenapp of New Mexico Wild stated the removal would “only lead to detrimental effects,” including the efforts to protect wildlife, public lands and “the general safety and livability of the human environment.” Other environmental groups state it will lead to less biodiversity and encourage the invasion of cheatgrass. Mary O’Brien, Utah forests program director for the Grand Canyon Trust, argued the BLM is using the CE “as an opportunity to graze the heck out of the newly ripped-up landscape,” and the science doesn’t indicate the removal of pinyon-juniper enhances habitat for sage grouse.
Despite the concern from O’Brien and others, the BLM stated for NEPA compliance, the CE “must demonstrate a benefit to sage grouse or mule deer habitat, not livestock.”
The BLM analyzed and considered pinyon-juniper management’s effects on grazing and found it will have a minimal impact on forage availability and the loss of shade trees that could concentrate livestock. The removal of livestock is not required unless there is a need to re-establish vegetation through reseeding.
The BLM also considered suggestions to allow for seeding of non-native species, the use of herbicides, the practice of chaining and determined these actions would not be added to the CE.
Salvage harvest CE
In addition to the existing CE allowing for salvage harvest not to exceed 250 acres, the BLM authorized an additional CE “to increase its flexibility to respond to disturbances across larger areas.”
The newly approved CE allows the harvesting of “dead or dying trees resulting from fire, insects, disease, drought, or other disturbances not to exceed 1,000 acres for disturbances of 3,000 acres or less.” For disturbances greater than 3,000 acres, harvesting will not exceed one-third of a disturbance area, and will not exceed 5,000 acres.
“The new 3,000-acre categorical exclusion would accelerate actions the public already broadly supports: recovering dead and dying trees after a fire, insect infestation, and other catastrophic events; converting dead timber into sustainable wood products we all use while creating jobs and revenue for local services; improving forest health and reducing future public safety risks, and ensuring there’s a forest for the next generation,” stated American Forest Resource Council president and CEO Travis Joseph in a press release.
The clearing would include removing live trees for skid trails and road clearing to construct permanent roads not to exceed one mile. The projects will encompass the grinding of residual slash, pile burning, underburning and the reestablishment of native species if necessary.
“The BLM’s final salvage logging categorical exclusion is a parting gift to the voracious timber industry in southwest Oregon,” said Susan Jane Brown, staff attorney and wildlands program director with Western Environmental Law Center in a press release. “Millions of acres burned this summer in Oregon wildfires, and rather than follow the best available science that recommends leaving these snag forests alone, and we can expect clearcutting of old forests that will foul waterways and eliminate habitat for species such as the iconic northern spotted owl. We will meet any attempts to sidestep the law, the science, and the public with swift legal action.”
Despite the BLM reporting the agency removed hazardous fuels on more than 782,000 acres in 2020, the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, ID, said nearly 8.8 million acres (15,000 square miles) have burned in the West this year, about 3.2 million acres (4,700 square miles) more than the 10-year average.
The two CEs will coincide with the Great Basin Fuel Breaks project, which calls for constructing 11,000 miles of fuel breaks and the restoration of sagebrush habitat on approximately 38.5 million acres of BLM-administered land. It will also support the Greater Sage-grouse Resource Management Plan, restoring the bird’s habitat and 250 other species that live in the sagebrush habitat.
“These are scorched-earth policies with no place in what is supposed to be open, transparent, and science-based management of 245 million acres of public land,” said Kya Marienfeld, Wildlands Attorney with the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance. — Charles Wallace, WLJ editor
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