Environmental Assessment

AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT & ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES CHAPTER 3
Table 3-24 Changes in Fire Behavior Potential Following Vegetation and Fuel Reduction Treatment
Fire
Behavior
Potential
Extreme /
High
Existing
Condition
Acres
Alt 1 – No Action Alt 2 – Proposed Action Alt 3
Treatment
Acres
Untreated
Acres
3-45
Treatment
Acres
11,547 0 11,547 11,147converted
to moderate or
low
Moderate 4,112 0 4,112 4,076 converted
to low or
remain the
same
Low 11 0 11 11
(maintenance)
Untreated
Acres
400
(converted
from
extreme to
high)
Treatment
Acres
9,052converted
to moderate/
low
Untreated
Acres
2,495
36 2,794
converted to
low or remain
the same
1,318
0 0 11
Under Alternative 2, 11,147 acres of treated extreme / high were converted to 5,122 acres of moderate
and 6,025 acres to low. Under Alternative 3, 9,052 acres of treated extreme / high were converted to
5,575 acres of moderate and 3,477 acres of low.
Within the planning area and outside of treatment units there is an additional 6,222 acres rated as
high/extreme for fire behavior potential bounded by Road 23, the planning area boundary, and Roads
2510 on the west and 2310 on the east. No treatments are proposed in this area under either alternative.
The area is characterized by forested lavas, discontinuous fuel loadings, and poor road access. Despite
having a high or extreme fire behavior potential rating, the relatively discontinuous character of the fuel
bed, both vertical and horizontal, coupled with a landscape broken by lava outcroppings makes this area a
relatively low risk for an uncharacteristic wildfire event. As a result, this is a low priority for treatment.
Table 3-25 displays by alternative and treatment unit, the expected change in fire behavior potential
within each treatment unit, both vegetation and fuel reduction. Vegetation units located within the
boundaries of the larger fuel reduction unit (identified in parenthesizes after the fuel treatment unit) are
included with the fuel reduction unit in the Alternative 2 acreage figure, but not in the Alternative 3
figure. Under Alternative 3, the included vegetation units are adjacent to or located within the boundaries
of the adjacent or surrounding fuel treatment unit. Under both alternatives, the proposed treatments in the
vegetation treatment units also contribute to the resulting change in fire behavior potential.
Table 3-25 Post-Treatment Acreage Changes in Fire Behavior Potential by Alternative
Fuel Treatment Unit No. (Assoc. Veg Treatment Unit No. (Alt
2/Alt 3))
Post Treatment Fire Behavior Potential
Alternative 1 Alternative 2 Alternative 3
F01 (P02, P03, H02-04 / P302-305, C302, C303) High Low Low
F02 (0 / NA) Mod-Extreme Low NA
F03 (0 / 0) Moderate Low Moderate
F04 (P01, H01, H02 / P301, C301, C302) Mod-Extreme Moderate Moderate
F05 (P15, H15 / P333 / C326) Mod-Extreme Moderate High
F06 (0 / P312. C339) Extreme Low Low
F07 (0 / NA) Mod-Extreme Moderate NA
F08 (0 / NA) Mod-Extreme Moderate Moderate
F09 (SD02, SD08, P05-07, H08, H09 / P307-310, P315, P316, P324,
P346, C308, C339)
Mod-Extreme Moderate-High Moderate-High
F10 (0 / NA) Low Low NA
F11 (P10, P11, H11 / P317, P320, C307, C339) High Moderate Moderate
F12 (0 / NA) Low-Moderate Low NA
F13 (P17, H14 / P334, P339) Mod-Extreme Low Moderate