[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 18 (Wednesday, January 28, 1998)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 4350-4351]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-1907]
[[Page 4349]]
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Part II
Department of Agriculture
_______________________________________________________________________
Forest Service
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36 CFR Part 212
Administration of the Forest Development Transportation System:
Management Regulations Revision and Temporary Suspension of Road
Construction in Roadless Areas; Proposed Rules
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 18 / Wednesday, January 28, 1998 /
Proposed Rules
[[Page 4350]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
36 CFR Part 212
RIN AB-67-0095
Administration of the Forest Development Transportation System
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking.
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SUMMARY: The Forest Service proposes to revise the regulations
concerning the management of the National Forest System transportation
system to address changes in how the road system is developed, used,
maintained, and funded. The existing road system on National Forest
System lands was largely funded and constructed to develop areas for
timber harvesting and the development of other resources. In the last
two decades, interest in the appropriate uses of the resources of the
national forests, as well as the costs associated with resource
development, including road-building, has generated much public debate.
At the same time, resource uses on the national forests have shifted
substantially toward recreation. The agency believes this is an
appropriate time to consider changes in public opinion, public demand,
and public use of national forest resources in the context of the
accumulated body of scientific information about the benefits and
environmental impacts of roads, and to consider adjustments in the
management of the forest road system to respond to these changes and,
thus, better serve present and future management objectives in a more
efficient manner. Public comments on the scope and nature of a proposed
revision of the Forest Services road management policy are invited. The
agency will consider all comments in developing the proposed rule.
DATES: Comments must be received in writing by March 30, 1998.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to: Gerald (Skip) Coghlan, Acting
Director, Engineering Staff, Forest Service, USDA, P.O. Box 96090,
Washington, D.C. 20090-6090, and also at wo@fs.fed.us on the
Internet.
All comments, including names and addresses when provided, are
available for public inspection and copying. Persons wishing to inspect
the comments are encouraged to call ahead (202-205-1400) to facilitate
entrance into the building.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gerald (Skip) Coghlan, Acting
Director, Engineering Staff, 202-205-1400.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The road system on National Forest System lands is extensive and
diverse. It includes an estimated 373,000 miles of inventoried forest
system roads. These roads are essential for the active management of
the resources of the National Forests. They carry an estimated 9,000
Forest Service administrative vehicles daily throughout the forests to
duties as varied as wildlife habitat improvement projects, maintenance
of recreation facilities, fire suppression, law enforcement, and search
and rescue activities. National Forest System roads also carry an
estimated 15,000 vehicles daily that are associated with timber
harvesting and the development of other resources.
Roads are also essential for public use and enjoyment of the
National Forests and Grasslands. The agency estimates that 1.7 million
vehicles involved in recreation travel forest roads every day, an
increase of over 10 times since 1950.
In addition to the 373,000 miles of inventoried system roads, there
are 60,000 miles of roads which exist on National Forest System lands,
created by repeated public use, that are not managed or maintained by
the agency or considered part of the forest road system.
Public use and demands on national forest resources have shifted
considerably during the past 10 years. There has been a decrease in
timber harvesting and other commodity uses and steadily-increasing
growth in the amount and type of recreation uses. The shift in public
use and associated changes in user expectations and access needs
requires new approaches to deciding the appropriate size and
configuration of the road system. In addition, current funding
mechanisms and levels are not adequate to maintain roads to the
standards originally planned, to assure minimum ecological impacts, as
well as to ensure efficient and safe use. Thus, the agency needs to
explore new sources of dependable funding as well as ways to better
manage roads with limited resources.
The accumulation of new scientific information is increasing the
understanding of the ecological and social impacts of existing roads,
new construction of roads in roaded and roadless areas, and the impacts
of the management activities associated with maintaining and
reconstructing roads. New developments in road-building technology have
fewer negative ecological impacts; however, ecological impacts from
existing roads are more extensive than previously thought. For example,
under some conditions, existing roads may cause increased frequency of
flooding and landslides, increased stream sedimentation, and associated
reductions in fish habitat productivity. There may also be concerns
associated with the fragmentation and degradation of habitat for some
wildlife species caused by roading, as well as reductions in travel
corridors of species with large home ranges. Research also indicates
that under some circumstances, roading may begin or accelerate the
invasion of exotic plant species that ultimately displace native
species.
In addition to the impacts of road-building and roads themselves,
there are impacts associated with the increased levels of human
activities in previously-inaccessible areas provided by new roads. For
example, increases in visitor-use have associated resource impacts,
including ground and habitat disturbance, increased pressure on
wildlife species from hunters and fishers, and increased expectations
for amenities. Also, increases in human access may be associated with
increases in the frequency of person-caused fires. A more detailed
listing of facts related to the nature and scope of the National Forest
Road System, public demand, funding, and environmental impacts of roads
are published as Appendix A at the end of this notice.
Rulemaking Objectives
The shifts in resource demands and public use coupled with the need
to ensure that decisions associated with the location, design,
construction, reconstruction, upgrading, decommissioning, and
maintenance of roads are informed by current scientific information
lead the Forest Service to conclude that it must thoroughly review its
road management policy and develop a comprehensive science-based policy
for the future. This policy should allow the Forest Service to balance
scientific information, public needs and funding levels when
determining the size, purpose, and extent of the future forest road
transportation system and any specific road building activities. The
following are among the expected outcomes and key features of such a
long-range policy:
1. Roads will be removed where they are no longer needed, and
ecological values will be rehabilitated and restored in formerly-roaded
areas. These outcomes will be accomplished by aggressively
decommissioning unneeded roads to reduce adverse environmental impacts.
[[Page 4351]]
2. Roads most heavily used by the public will be safe and will
promote efficient travel. These outcomes will be accomplished by
aggressively updating roads (reconstruction, design and maintenance)
and reducing environmental impacts in these areas.
3. New roads that are determined necessary for National Forest
System management will be designed more carefully to minimize
ecological damage, and limited funds will be spent appropriately. These
outcomes will be achieved by carefully analyzing factors surrounding
the decision to build new roads in roaded areas, as well as the
decision to build new roads in roadless areas, to assure that managers
make more informed decisions and that only necessary construction is
taking place.
The agency invites comments and suggestions on procedures for
improving management of the national forest road system.
Agency Actions
Several research efforts are underway to examine the National
Forest road system and its uses; to synthesize scientific information
on Forest Service roads; and to analyze attitudes toward roads as
expressed in the news media. Drafts of these reports are available from
Director, Pacific Northwest Research Station, P.O. Box 3890, Portland,
OR 97208-3890, 503-808-2100 and also at r6pnw@fs.fed.us on the
Internet.
An essential element of this comprehensive overhaul of forest road
policy is to develop improved analytical tools for land managers and
resource specialists. To that end, agency researchers and specialists
are developing an improved analysis process that assures that the
ecological, social, and economic impacts of proposed construction and
reconstruction of National Forest System roads are objectively
evaluated, and that there is a full consideration of public demand on
National Forest System roads in the context of current scientific
information. This process will undergo an independent technical and
scientific peer review before adoption.
Until the effects of roads can be more rigorously assessed, the
Forest Service is also proposing to issue an interim rule to
temporarily suspend road construction and reconstruction in roadless
areas for not more than 18 months. The proposed interim rule appears in
the same separate part of today's Federal Register with a request for
public comment and notice of the initiation of scoping under the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.
Suggestions on the scope and nature of a proposed revision of the
Forest Service's road management policy, as well as comments on the
agency's preliminary suggestions are invited. The agency will consider
all comments in developing the proposed rule.
Dated: January 22, 1998.
Mike Dombeck,
Chief, Forest Service.
Appendix A--Facts About the National Forest Road System
1. The National Forest Road System is extensive and diverse; it
includes an estimated 373,000 miles of forest roads.
a. One-fourth (23%) are called arterial or collector roads and
they serve all users, including passenger cars.
b. Over one-half (57%) are roads that are only passable by high-
clearance vehicles such as four-wheel drives.
c. One-fifth (20%) are closed by gates.
d. The Forest Service has identified an additional estimated
60,000 miles of ``uninventoried roads'' that were created by
repeated use but never build or maintained to any standards. The
actual number of miles of ``uninventoried roads'' is likely far
greater than this estimate. There are also additional public roads
on National Forest System lands, such as state and county roads that
are typically maintained by others.
e. There are more than 7,000 bridges on forest roads, three-
fourths of these are on the arterial and collector roads.
f. In 1996, new construction of National Forest System roads was
434 miles, or 0.1% of the total National Forest road system.
2. Roads are essential for public use and enjoyment of National
Forests and Grasslands.
a. An estimated 15,000 logging trucks and vehicles associated
with timber harvesting use National Forest roads each day, about the
same number as in 1950.
b. An estimated 1.7 million vehicles associated with recreation
activities travel forest roads each day, over 10 times more than in
1950. Recreation usage is projected to continue to increase.
c. An estimated 9,000 Forest Service administrative vehicles
travel forest roads each day, conducting duties essential to the
stewardship of forest resources, including special use
administration, wildlife habitat improvement projects, maintenance
and operation of recreation facilities, law enforcement, and fire
suppression.
3. Public use and demands on National Forest System lands have
shifted considerably during the past 10 years. The size and
composition of the National Forest System road system has not been
adjusted accordingly.
a. Recreation usage has increased from less than 250 million
Recreation Visitor Days to almost 350 million and is projected to
continue to increase.
b. Timber harvest has dropped to below 4 billion board feet from
a high of about 12 billion board feet annually.
c. The need for, and understanding of, ecological benefits that
these forest and rangelands provide has increased, such as clean
water, wildlife habitat, and habitat for endangered species.
4. While a significant portion of the 191,000,000 acres of the
National Forest System is roaded, a significant portion remains
roadless.
a. An estimated 34,000,000 acres are currently designated as
wilderness; an estimated 6,000,000 acres are designated as proposed
wilderness in forest plans.
b. An estimated 33,000,000 acres are currently unroaded in
blocks of 5,000 acres or more for which the existing forest plans
have proposed management that could include building new roads.
c. Of the 33,000,000 acres that are unroaded and available for
management activities that could include roading, an estimated
8,000,000 acres are classified as ``suitable for timber production.
5. Current funding levels are inadequate to maintain the roads
to planned standards that permit efficient and safe use and keep
ecological impacts at acceptably low levels.
a. About 40% of National Forest System roads are fully
maintained to the planned safety and environmental standards for
which they were designed.
b. The backlog of reconstruction needs on National Forest System
roads is considerable. For example, the backlog on arterial and
collector roads alone is estimated to be over $10 million, due to
their age (three-fourths are over 50 years old) and their lack of
adequate regular maintenance.
c. From 1991 to 1996, funding for decommissioning roads has only
financed a reduction of about 0.5% of National Forest System roads
per year.
6. New scientific information continues to increase our
understanding of the ecological and social impacts from existing
roads and associated management activities. In some instances,
ecological impacts from existing roads are more extensive than
previously thought. Examples of these impacts include: increased
frequency of flooding and landslides; increased stream sedimentation
and associated reduction in fish habitat productivity; increased
habitat fragmentation and degradation which reduce the travel
corridors needed by species requiring large home ranges; increased
frequency of person-caused fires as a result of access; and invasion
of exotic species that displace native species. In contrast,
recently constructed roads that are better designed and better
located than earlier roads, and result in fewer and less severe
ecological impacts.
[FR Doc. 98-1907 Filed 1-27-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M
