Environmental Assessment

AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT & ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES CHAPTER 3
5,000 plants located within proposed treatment units under each of the action alternatives. Assuming a
worst case scenario of 100 percent mortality, this would result in the loss of approximately 19 percent of
the known local population, approximately 17 percent of the known Deschutes National Forest
population, and approximately one (1) percent of known world population.
Any potential, currently uninhabited paintbrush habitat would be compromised by burning. This is due to
this species’ preference for mid- to late-seral shrub layers in this portion of its range. Current professional
opinion holds that this species will not re-enter a site until such time as a suitable host plant is well
established. The time period required is not clearly known, however, an estimate of 20 years at the
earliest is reasonable (Plant BE pages 11 and 14).
Vegetation treatments, including commercial and non-commercial harvest two units within Alternative 2
and four units within Alternative 3, would also not be expected to result in any measurable impacts
(although individual plants may be damaged or destroyed during or as a result of operations). Populations
would be identified, flagged, and excluded from treatment.
Burning of slash would result in the loss of existing or potential habitat by removing mid and late-seral
shrubs that the paintbrush depends on. Regeneration of paintbrush could take 20 years or more depending
on the recovery and regeneration of shrubs.
Long-term, proposed vegetation and fuel reduction treatments would reduce the risk of a high intensity
wildfire damaging or destroying large areas of habitat or large numbers of individuals. Losses would be
expected from both the wildfire and the associated firefighting efforts.
Subsoiling of roads, landings, and skid trails would have no immediately measurable impacts on the
paintbrush or its habitat. However, as this activity helps to rehabilitate soils and encourages the
regeneration, establishment, and growth of new vegetation, this would potentially increase available
habitat over the long period.
Management activities, particularly timber harvest and the burning of slash piles, create sites of exposed
soil that provide habitat for invasive plant species such as noxious weeds and non-native species such as
cheatgrass. There is no measurable difference between the two action alternatives associated with the
exposure of mineral soils and the creation of habitat for invasive species on existing or potential
paintbrush habitat. Both action alternatives would minimize the creation of new additional mineral soil
by utilizing existing landings and skid trails wherever possible. Alternative 2 would create approximately
714 acres and Alternative 3 approximately 775 acres of additional disturbed soils in the planning area.
The majority of these acres are located within existing or potential paintbrush habitat. Establishment of
invasive plants could remove these areas for colonization by the paintbrush, thus reducing existing or
potential habitat. Both alternatives would minimize the risk of establishing new populations of invasive
plants by requiring the washing of equipment prior to moving on to National Forest lands or between
areas. Areas with disturbed soils, including landings, skid trails, and areas that have been subsoiled,
would be monitored and new populations of invasives would be controlled or eradicated using appropriate
methods which may include the use of approved herbicides. This would reduce the risk of invasives
becoming established in new areas and reducing existing or potential paintbrush habitat.
Neither Alternative 2 nor Alternative 3 would have any measurable effect on the population, individuals,
or habitat of the pumice grape fern because no activities are planned there, with one exception which may
lie within a unit; it would be avoided during unit layout. Neither alternative would therefore contribute to
a trend towards federal listing or the loss of viability to the population or species (Plant BE page 15).
This species is primarily located in the pumice flats southeast of Pine Mountain.
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