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Federal land management in the Pacific Northwest has shifted toward ecosystem management as a result of the northern spotted owl controversy. In 1993, President Clinton appointed the Forest Ecosystem Management Assessment team to formulate and assess the consequences of an array of ecosystem management options. Their efforts resulted in the eventual adoption of the Northwest Forest Plan (NFP).
As part of the NFP, more than 24 million acres of federal land has been allocated to one of the following seven categories: Congressionally Reserved Areas (CRA), Late-Successional Reserves (LSR), Managed Late-Successional Reserves, Adaptive Management Areas (AMA), Administratively Withdrawn Areas (AWA), Matrix lands, and Riparian Reserves (RR). Silvicultural activities are primarily limited to the LSRs, AMAs, Matrix and RRs. The detailed requirements that describe how land managers should treat these allocations are described in the "Standards and Guidelines for Management of Habitat for Late-Successional and Old-Growth Forest Related Species Within the Range of the Northern Spotted Owl" (USDA and USDI 1994). Some general descriptions and provisions include:
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The 7,430,800 acres of LSRs are managed to protect and enhance habitat for late-successional and old-growth related species. Currently, these reserves include a range of forest ages. Timber harvest operations are not allowed in LSRs under the Forest Plan. However, carefully controlled thinning activities are allowed in any stand of one of these reserves less than 80 years of age. Salvage operations also would be allowed on these reserves in areas where catastrophic loss exceeded 10 acres. In both cases, harvest proposals must be reviewed by an interagency oversight group to ensure sound ecosystem management. |
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Ten parcels of federal land totaling 1,521,800 acres have been identified as AMAs. The objective for each of the AMAs is to develop and test new management approaches for integrating and achieving ecological and economic health of federal lands. Current AMA projects range from investigating the effect on wildlife of different thinning levels to the influence of different Riparian Reserve widths. |
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Matrix lands are the federal land in which most timber harvest and silvicultural activities occur. In Washington and Oregon, the Plan requires leaving 15 percent of the trees ("green tree retention'') in all harvest units outside of the Coast Ranges and Bureau of Land Management lands in southern Oregon. The Plan encourages these trees to be left in small clumps with the expectation that they, along with the Riparian Reserves, would contribute to the creation of dispersal habitat. The Forest Plan adopted this prescription to improve the future condition of these forests. |
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The Riparian Reserves provide a protected area along streams, wet areas, ponds and lakes, covering about 2,627,500 acres of federal lands. The main purpose of the reserves is to protect the health of the aquatic system and its dependent species; the reserves also provide incidental benefits to upland species and provide for greater connectivity of late-successional forest habitat. |
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Key watersheds are not a designated area, but overlay all of the land allocations. All 24,455,000 acres of Forest Service, BLM and other federally administered lands within the range of the northern spotted owl are designated as either key watersheds or non-key watersheds.
Key watersheds are those that provide or are expected to provide high quality fish habitat and water quality. They are divided into two tiers. Tier 1 key watersheds are those that contribute directly to the conservation of anadromous salmonids, bull trout, and other resident fish species. Tier 2 key watersheds are sources of high quality water, though they may not contain at-risk fish species. Watershed analysis is required in all key watersheds, and it is also necessary in non-key watersheds if modifications to Riparian Reserves are desired.
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