Clearwater Basin Collaborative

Clearwater Basin CollaborativeRestoring America’s ForestsOct. 3-5, 2011, Truckee, CA

Photo: William H. MullinsKelly Creek

CBC Landscape AssessmentPreliminary Results

Landscape Health SubcommitteeRyan Haugo, The Nature Conservancy

9/26/12

Photo: William H. Mullins

WHY?

• Shared Vision (5-75 years) for forest management

• Where, how much, what types of forest management?

• What are the restoration needs in the Basin?

• Overview and core concepts

• Basin-wide summaries• Forest structure• Fire• Bark beetles• Mechanical limitations

• “Tale of two-subbasins”

• Wrap up & Discussion

Landscape Assessment30,000+ ft. level

(Terrestrial/Aquatic; Static/Dynamic)

MOU Project CollaborationOn the ground

CBC Agreement, CBC Principles, CBC Input for Forest Plan Revision

Forests are dynamic

Photo: John Marshall

Low Severity Forests

• Frequent, low severity fire• Low elevations, dry sites

• Infrequent, high severity fire• Higher elevations, wetter sites

High Severity Forests

• Mix of fire frequencies / severities• Many elevations, mesic sites

Mixed Severity Forests

Multiple tools

Photo: John Marshall

Western White Pine




• Wrap up

Forest Structure

• Tree size, density, canopy cover• Compare current to historic reference

– “Percent Departure”

• Historic = reference point only!

But…• Assume moving to historic = increased health and

resilience in future

Forest Structure

• Landfire Refresh 2008– Historic references– Current conditions

• USFS, USGS, BLM, TNC

• Satellite + ground

Clearwater Basin - “Sub-basins”

Clearwater Basin Forest Types

Forest Structure Departure

Low Severity Forests1,034,549 ac.

Mixed Severity Forests3,683,044 ac.

High Severity Forests1,618,045 ac.

66.3%

33.2%

73.3%

26.5%

<33% Departure34-66% Departure>67% Departure

79.6% 13.3%

7.1%

100,000's of acres

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14<33% Departure34-66% Departure >67% Departure

L M H L M H L M H L M H

Other USFSGeneral

USFSRoadless

USFSWilderness

L = Low Severity ForestsM = Mixed Severity ForestsH = High Severity Forests

Active Treatment Analysis

• What changes/ how many acres to eliminate forest structure departure

• 1st Order Approximation!

• Thinning from below: Removal of small and medium sized trees to canopy cover <70%.

• Stand replacement: Removal of all existing trees

• Other thinning: Any other thinning that is not stand replacement

• May be fire or mechanical treatment!

• Growth with fire: Growth but maintain moderately open canopy

• Growth without fire: Growth with closed canopy

Thinning / Stand Replacement (1.4 million ac.)Growth (0.9 million ac.)No Change (3.9 million ac.)

62%

23%

15%

6.3 million total forested ac.

100,000's of acres

0

2

4

6

8

10

GrowthWith Fire

GrowthWithout Fire

100,000's of acres

0

2

4

6

8

10

Historic Low SeverityHistoric Mixed Severity - White Pine ForestsHistoric Mixed Severity - All OtherHistoric High Severity

Thinning from Below

OtherThinning

StandReplacement

Fire or Mechanical

100,000's of acres

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14Thinning / Stand ReplacementGrowth No Change

L = Low SeverityM = Mixed SeverityH = High Severity

State, Private,Tribal

USFSGeneral

USFSRoadless

USFSWilderness

L HM L HM L HM L HM

Fire

• Missoula Lab “Large Fire Simulator”– Current fuel conditions and management

strategies

• Best available data, but…• Question accuracy within Clearwater Basin

Large Fire Probability

Bark Beetles

• 2002 – 2009 Aerial Detection Surveys

Photo: Yellowstone NP

‘02-’09 Bark Beetles

Mechanical Treatment Limitations

• Beyond 1,500 ft. of existing roads

• Slopes >55%, Slopes 35-55%

• Within 75ft of fish bearing streams: Non-FS lands

• Within 300ft of fish bearing streams: FS lands

• Within 150ft of non-fish bearing streams: FS lands

100,000's of Acres

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18Stream Buffers> 35% Slope> 1500 ft. from RoadsNo Apparent Limitiations

State, Private,Tribal

USFS General

1,096,000 ac.69%

891,000 ac.66%




• Wrap up

“Tale of Two Sub-basins”

Upper North Fork Clearwater828,000 acres

South ForkClearwater581,000 acres

0

2

4

6

8

10

Thinning / Stand ReplacementGrowth No Change

Upper North Fork Clearwater

South Fork Clearwater100,000's of A

cres 0

2

4

6

8

10USFS GeneralUSFS Roadless / WildernessState / Private / Tribal

A. Active Treatment

B. Ownership / Management

0

2

4

6

8

10


Lower North Fork Clearwater


Clearwater

Lochsa

Middle Fork Clearwater

South Fork Clearwater

Lower Selway

Upper SelwayMiddle Salmon-Chamberlain

Lower Salmon

Little Salmon

Hells Canyon

Palouse

RockHangman

100,000's of Acres 0

2

4

6

8

10

USFS GeneralUSFS Roadless / WildernessState / Private / Tribal

A. Landfire Active Treatment Categories

B. Ownership / Management Categories

Total Forest

Thinning / Stand

Replacement Growth

Thinning / Stand

Replacement GrowthThinning / Stand

Replacement GrowthHUC 8 Sub-basin ac. ac. ac. ac. ac. ac. ac.Lower North Fork Clearwater 717,000 13,000 19,000 14,000 21,000 61,000 93,000Upper North Fork Clearwater 828,000 20,000 38,000 73,000 136,000 5,000 9,000Clearwater 783,000 28,000 13,000 1,000 1,000 136,000 62,000Lochsa 747,000 23,000 32,000 88,000 125,000 6,000 9,000Middle Fork Clearwater 121,000 17,000 1,000 8,000 1,000 20,000 2,000South Fork Clearwater 581,000 176,000 5,000 52,000 1,000 32,000 1,000Lower Selway 649,000 14,000 10,000 144,000 96,000 0 0Upper Selway 606,000 0 0 151,000 115,000 0 0Middle Salmon-Chamberlain 471,000 22,000 8,000 139,000 48,000 1,000 1,000Lower Salmon 396,000 49,000 12,000 19,000 5,000 65,000 17,000Little Salmon 91,000 6,000 4,000 13,000 9,000 4,000 2,000Hells Canyon 107,000 9,000 15,000 3,000 4,000 2,000 3,000Palouse 174,000 12,000 6,000 0 0 27,000 13,000Rock 4,000 0 0 0 0 2,000 0Hangman 59,000 1,000 0 0 0 16,000 3,000Totals 6,336,000 390,000 164,000 705,000 562,000 377,000 214,000

USFS General USFS Roadless / Wilderness State / Private / Tribal




• Wrap up


SUMMARY• Better understanding of current conditions

• Identified restoration needs across Basin

• Snapshot look at how much of what types of treatments needed across Basin

• Provide estimates for mechanical treatment limitations

APPLICATIONS• Define and prioritize treatment and restoration

objectives for individual subbasins

• Set target levels of treatment

• Define landscape health needs for CBC agreement

• Provide input to Forest Plan Revision



NEXT STEPS• CBC interpretation of results

• Peer Review of methods

• Incorporate aquatic assessment

• Future considerations such as elk habitat, white pine restoration, fire risk

• Dynamic modeling

DISCUSSION

• Questions?

• Heading in the right direction?

• Other applications for CBC?


CBC VOTEPhoto: William H. Mullins

Landscape Health Subcommittee is requesting a vote from the full CBC to support the continued development of this assessment and the use of resulting information to inform the CBC’s work on forest management.

A: Early Development

D: Late-Seral Open

E: Late-Seral Closed

C: Mid-Seral Open

B: Mid-Seral Closed

A: Early Development

D: Late-Seral Open

E: Late-Seral Closed

C: Mid-Seral Open

B: Mid-Seral Closed

Growth w/ low severity fire

Grow

th w

/ fire

supp

ress

ion

Stand regeneration

Grow

th w

/ fir

e su

ppre

ssio

n

Thin from below

/prescribed fire

Growth w/ low severity fire

Thin above/fire??

Growth w/ fire suppression

Thin above/harvest selection

Thin below w

/prescribed fire

Grow

th w

/ fir

e su

ppre

ssio

n

Stan

d re

gene

ratio

n

Stand regeneration

Stand regeneration

Growth

w/ fi

re suppressi

on

Thin ab

ove/h

arvest

selec

tion/fire

Thin above/harvest selection/fire

Thin below/prescribed fire/growth

A. Active Treatment

B. Ownership Management Categories

C. Mechanical Treatment

% of S

ubbasin

020406080

100 Active Change Growth No Change

% of S

ubbasin

020406080

100 State/Private/TribalUSFS GeneralUSFS Roadless/Wilderness

% of non-R

oadless/W

ilderness

020406080

100 Stream Buffer >35% Slope >1500 ft. from Roads No Apparent Limitations

Upper North Fork

SouthFork

020406080

100


Percentage of S

ubbasin

020406080

100

USFS GeneralState, Private, TribalUSFS Roadless/Wilderness

A. Landfire Active Treatment Categories

B. Ownership / Management Categories

Lower North Fork Clearwater


Clearwater

Lochsa

Middle Fork Clearwater

South Fork Clearwater

Lower Selway

Upper SelwayMiddle Salmon-Chamberlain

Lower Salmon

Little Salmon

Hells Canyon

Palouse

RockHangman

020406080

100

Stream Buffer >35% Slope >1500 ft. from Roads No Apparent Limitations

C. Mechanical Treatment Limitations USFS General and State/Private/Tribal

Thinning / Stand

Replacement Growth No Change OtherUSFS

General

USFS Roadless / Wilderness

Historic White Pine

Total Forest

HUC 8 Sub-basin ac. ac. ac. % % % % ac.Lower North Fork Clearwater 88,000 133,000 495,000 70 15 16 50 717,000Upper North Fork Clearwater 98,000 183,000 547,000 5 21 74 32 828,000Clearwater 166,000 75,000 542,000 82 17 1 34 783,000Lochsa 117,000 166,000 465,000 5 19 75 26 747,000Middle Fork Clearwater 45,000 4,000 73,000 45 38 18 28 121,000South Fork Clearwater 260,000 7,000 314,000 12 68 20 16 581,000Lower Selway 159,000 106,000 385,000 0 9 91 26 649,000Upper Selway 152,000 116,000 339,000 0 0 100 4 606,000Middle Salmon-Chamberlain 163,000 56,000 253,000 1 14 85 2 471,000Lower Salmon 133,000 34,000 229,000 49 37 14 3 396,000Little Salmon 23,000 15,000 52,000 15 27 58 2 91,000Hells Canyon 13,000 22,000 72,000 12 69 19 1 107,000Palouse 38,000 18,000 117,000 69 31 0 26 174,000Rock 2,000 0 2,000 98 2 0 3 4,000Hangman 17,000 3,000 39,000 96 4 0 8 59,000Totals 1,473,000 939,000 3,924,000 28 22 50 23 6,336,000

Active Treatment Categories Ownership / Management

USFS Roadless / Wilderness

Active Treatment

No Mech. Limit.

Potential Mech.

Active Treatment

No Mech. Limit.

Potential Mech.

Active Treatment

HUC 8 Sub-basin ac. % ac. ac. % ac. ac.

Lower North Fork Clearwater 61,000 70 43,000 13,000 58 7,000 14,000

Upper North Fork Clearwater 5,000 85 4,000 20,000 71 15,000 73,000Clearwater 136,000 67 91,000 28,000 73 21,000 1,000Lochsa 6,000 81 5,000 23,000 71 16,000 88,000Middle Fork Clearwater 20,000 75 15,000 17,000 79 13,000 8,000South Fork Clearwater 32,000 69 22,000 176,000 68 120,000 52,000Lower Selway 000 63 0 14,000 67 10,000 144,000Upper Selway 000 27 0 0 19 000 151,000Middle Salmon-Chamberlain 1,000 53 1,000 22,000 51 11,000 139,000Lower Salmon 65,000 60 39,000 49,000 72 35,000 19,000Little Salmon 4,000 58 2,000 6,000 34 2,000 13,000Hells Canyon 2,000 49 1,000 9,000 13 1,000 3,000Palouse 27,000 73 19,000 12,000 83 10,000 0Rock 2,000 65 1,000 0 100 000 0Hangman 16,000 88 14,000 1,000 94 1,000 0Total 377,000 68 258,000 390,000 67 261,000 705,000

Other USFS General

Clearwater Basin Collaborative

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