Environmental Assessment

AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT & ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES CHAPTER 3
Based on the dead wood analysis, there is habitat for this species across the planning area and landscape.
There are no identified short-term direct or indirect effects on this species or its habitat under Alternative
1. Uncharacteristic wildfire events and bark beetle epidemics are likely to reduce or eliminate habitat for
this species in both the short and long-term. Long-term, the retention of dense stands with the resulting
slow diameter growth may delay the development of larger snags that provide nesting habitat for this
species.
No trees 21 inches dbh or greater or any existing snags (except those for safety reasons) would be
removed under either Alternative 2 or 3. Alternative 2 proposes to treat approximately 2,059 acres of
ponderosa pine habitat including 35 percent of the acres in structural stage 6 and 33 percent in structural
stage 7. The number of acres increases to approximately 2,560 acres with 44 percent of structural stage 6
and 37 percent of structural stage 7. In lodgepole pine habitat, Alternative 2 would treat approximately
709 acres or 13 percent of the acreage in structural stages 4-7; alternative 3 would treat approximately
804 acres or 15 percent of structural stages 4-7.
With the exception of vegetation and fuel reduction treatments proposed or implemented in adjacent
planning areas, none of the current, on-going, or reasonable and foreseeable actions would have any
cumulative or cumulatively significant effects on this species or its habitat. None of these actions would
remove habitat.
Management actions would not remove existing habitat, i.e. snags. Current and future treatments would
utilize thinning from below and would be expected to result in the development of larger diameter trees
(and ultimately snags) faster than no treatment alternatives. As a result, habitat would be developed and
be more widespread across the landscape. Populations would be expected to remain stable.
Alternative 1 would also result in the development of additional habitat although at a slower rate than the
action alternatives assuming there is no large scale bark beetle epidemic and/or uncharacteristic wildfire
event. It would create a gap in the landscape with different qualities, quantities, and distributions of
habitat than would likely result in treated areas. The risk of loss of existing and potential habitat would
remain high; uncharacteristic fire and/or bark beetle epidemics could result in a short-term flush and a
long-term deficit in habitat.
In the short-term, both alternatives would remove potential nest trees (16 to 21 inches dbh). Both
alternatives would also reduce canopy closure levels below the average (39 percent) for this species. As
noted in the previous discussion for the black-backed and white-headed woodpeckers, it is unlikely that
future management activities would maintain the high canopy closure levels indicated for this species
given the risk of bark beetle attack and subsequent loss of that component of the habitat. It is also
unlikely that most of the sites in the planning area are not capable of sustaining those levels without
accepting the high risk of bark beetle attack and/or uncharacteristic wildfire events.
Long-term, both alternatives are more likely to result in developing better habitat more quickly than
Alternative 1 due to the residual trees responding to the thinning. Both would also produce more and
larger diameter trees more quickly.
Hairy woodpeckers utilize both lodgepole pine and ponderosa pine habitats in a variety of seral stages.
Moderate sized snags are required for nesting. There are significant amounts of hairy woodpecker habitat
in the project area and adjacent lands presently. Snags are variable with localized concentrations.
Because neither the alternatives nor any ongoing or reasonably foreseeable project proposes to cut snags,
cumulative effects (i.e. additive removal of snags) will be rare, incidental, and not useful or relevant to
making an informed decision between the alternatives. The Opine project will treat approximately 2059
(35 percent of SS6 and 33 percent of SS7) acres of ponderosa pine habitat in stages 6 and 7 by Alternative
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