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U.S. Forest Service gives consent, clarifying limits of its permission

By Dameon Pesanti, Columbian staff writer
Published: February 8, 2018, 7:29 PM
The U.S. Forest Service has given its consent to allow exploratory mining near Mount St. Helens.
Ascot USA Inc. wants to explore for minerals in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest about 12 miles northeast of Mount St. Helens and adjacent to and extending northeast from the boundary of the National Volcanic Monument.
On Tuesday, the agency released a final decision to consent to the Bureau of Land Management to give prospecting permit applications to Ascot.
In the consent document, Cowlitz Valley District Ranger Gar Abbas, was clear that his approval does not approve a mine.
“My consent decision to the BLM facilitates only prospecting (exploration) activities within the prospecting permit areas,” he wrote. “It is not a mineral leasing or development (mining) proposal.”
Abbas also explained that he chose an alternative that “provides Forest Service consent with specified and recommended conditions, and notices to best address the balance between resource use and resource protection, with an emphasis on the protection of riparian reserves.”
While the BLM has the authority to grant Ascot’s permits, the Forest Service had to consent to the project since it would occur in the national forest.
Now that the agency has, it’s up to the BLM to decide whether to issue the permits.
Ascot wants to drill up to 63 roadside exploration holes measuring 2-3 inches in diameter in search of copper, gold and molybdenum on a mining claim in the upper Green River Valley at Goat Mountain, where its subsurface rights are evenly split with the federal government.
The area is a popular destination for horseback riding, camping and hunting. But historically it was heavily used for logging, mineral prospecting and limited mineral development.
The project has been highly controversial since it was first proposed and has raised ire from conservation groups and politicians alike.
“Opening the door to drilling at the edge of Mount St. Helens is a short-sighted decision that undervalues the important benefits these public spaces offer both to our booming recreation economy and to families who come from near and far to enjoy their beauty,” said Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash. “This mountain should be managed for current and future generations to enjoy, and I hope the Trump administration will cease their efforts to jeopardize that by allowing it to be explored for drilling.”
The Forest Service’s decision is based on an environmental assessment and was released after a 45-day pre-decision administrative review period, during which objections to the proposal were addressed.
More than 200 comments were submitted to the plan, but only objections from those from who had previously submitted timely, specific written comments regarding the proposed project were accepted, unless they were based on new information that came up after designated comment opportunities.
The Green River is a state-designated gene bank for wild winter steelhead, meaning hatchery fish are verboten within. It’s also a candidate for a federal Wild and Scenic River designation. Some of the land in question was purchased by the U.S. Forest Service in the 1980s with money from the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which is meant to serve the interests of recreation and conservation.
The Washington, D.C.-based conservation organization American Rivers has twice declared the Green River, with its headwaters running close to the proposed drilling area, as one of the most endangered rivers in the nation.
 
Article: http://www.columbian.com/news/2018/feb/08/exploratory-mining-approved-at-area-near-mount-st-helens/[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/12″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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Slippery Slope: Sen. Cantwell Among Voices Speaking Out Against Drilling Permits

By Jordan Nailon / jnailon@chronline.com
Feb 8, 2018

On Thursday, the U.S. Forest Service announced its long awaited decision to approve a request for a prospective mining permit near Mount St. Helens. The decision came after years of roiling debate on the proposal, so naturally a pyroclastic flow of disapproval followed in the aftermath of the explosive decision.

Senator Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., was one of the first to offer her dissenting opinion to the USFS decision to allow a Canadian company, Ascott Resources, to conduct exploratory drilling for gold, copper and other minerals next to the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument. Despite Forest Service assertions to the contrary, Cantwell believes the permit paves the way for the establishment of a working mine within an ecologically sensitive section of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest.

“Opening the door to drilling at the edge of Mount St. Helens is a short-sighted decision that undervalues the important benefits these public spaces offer both to our booming recreation economy and to families who come from near and far to enjoy their beauty,” said Cantwell in a press release. “This mountain should be managed for current and future generations to enjoy, and I hope the Trump administration will cease their efforts to jeopardize that by allowing it to be explored for drilling.”

Thursday was not her first time speaking out against the plan to mine near Mount St. Helens. In 2016, Senator Cantwell sent a letter to U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell that expressed her opposition to the plan. In that letter, Cantwell wrote, “Given the incompatibility of this project with the primary purposes for which the lands were acquired and the broader negative LWCF implications, I respectfully request that you refrain from providing consent for prospecting permits for the Goat Mountain Project.”

On Friday, a coalition of more than 20 conservation groups released a press release detailing their ongoing opposition to the approval of the drilling permits. Their deep well of concerns included negative impacts to fish and recreation and degraded water quality in the Green River system.

“Tens of thousands of people have expressed opposition to this proposal due to its impacts on recreation, clean water and native fish in and around one of our most treasured National Monuments. Yet the agencies continue to advance this dangerous proposal,” said Matt Little, executive director of the Cascade Forest Conservancy, in a press release. “Allowing mining activities in a pristine river valley alongside an active volcano is simply ludicrous. We will do all we can to stop it.”

The drilling permits, which were requested by the Bureau of Land Management on behalf of Ascot Resources, will allow the company to drill 63 holes from 21 drill pads in order to evaluate available deposits. The permits allow operations on 900 acres of public lands in the Green River Valley, including the reconstruction of 1.69 miles of decommissioned roads. Cascade Forest Conservancy claims that the activity will lead to mining operations around the clock through summer months, including the pumping of up to 5,000 gallons of ground water per day.

“Mount St. Helens is no place for a mine,” said Tom Uniack, executive director for Washington Wild, in the release. “The greater economic and social value of this incredible area lies with the equestrian, mountain biking and other world-class recreational opportunities accessible to local residents and visitors alike.”

Other groups note that lands impacted by the mining operations were acquired through the Land and Water Conservation Act Fund in order to promote recreation and conservation. They contend that the presence of mining operations will compromise the ability for the public to appreciate those areas. Previously, a federal judge invalidated Ascot’s drilling permits after the Cascade Forest Conservancy, then known as the Gifford Pinchot Task Force, filed a lawsuit. An update to the Environmental Assessment of the project in 2017 paved the way for the new permits to be approved.

“This project would severely impact recreation opportunities due to noise, dust, exhaust fumes, lights, vehicle traffic, the presence of drill equipment, and project area closures,” said Tom Buchele, Managing Attorney of the Earthrise Law Center, in the release. “I cannot fathom how the Forest Service could legally conclude that drilling would not interfere with recreation without violating the LWFCA.”

The proximity of the Green River to the Goat Mountain drilling site is another common concern. That river, which is designated as Natural Scenic River as well as a Wild Steelhead Gene Bank, flows through the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument and into the North Fork Toutle River before emptying into the Cowlitz River. The Green River and North Fork Toutle have both been established as wild steelhead gene banks by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife in order to help the recovery of native steelhead stocks.

“This prospecting is a threat to wild steelhead in the Green River and the rest of the Toutle and Cowlitz River system,” said Steve Jones, director of Clark-Skamania Flyfishers, in the release. “Washington fisheries managers made the upper Green River a Wild Steelhead Gene Bank in 2014 because this habitat offered the best hope for sustaining wild fish in that system. This river drainage needs to be conserved, not exploited.” 

Additionally, the Cowlitz River provides drinking water to thousands of downstream residents, including serving as the primary source of drinking water for residents of Kelso. The city of Kelso recently passed a resolution against the mine due to concerns about leaching mine effluent and the possibility of failing toxic tailing ponds due to mineral mining operations in an active volcanic zone.

“With outstanding recreation, as a wild steelhead sanctuary, and as a source of clean drinking water for downstream communities, the Green River, a candidate Wild and Scenic River is the last place for a mine,” said David Moryc, director for Wild and Scenic Rivers for American Rivers, in the release. “The Forest Service should not be green-lighting mining on our public lands that were purchased explicitly for conservation and recreation purposes.”

 
Article: http://www.chronline.com/eruption-of-criticism-follows-decision-to-allow-mining-near-mount/article_4f3d24da-0e27-11e8-88f3-776631e5654b.html
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/12″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row row_type=”row” use_row_as_full_screen_section=”no” type=”full_width” angled_section=”no” text_align=”left” background_image_as_pattern=”without_pattern” css_animation=””][vc_column width=”1/12″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]The Forest Service decision could allow drilling later this year in the upper Green River Valley if the federal Bureau of Land Management approves permits for the work.

By Hal Bernton
he U.S. Forest Service signed off on exploration for copper, gold and other minerals on 900 federal acres that lie just outside the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument in Southwest Washington.
The decision announced Thursday could allow Ascot USA to start drilling later this year in the upper Green River Valley if the federal Bureau of Land Management approves permits for the work.
Ascot first proposed exploration in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest more than a half-decade ago some 12 miles northeast of Mount St. Helens. That request has been strongly opposed by conservation groups, which in 2012 filed a federal lawsuit to block initial Forest Service approval of two Ascot prospecting applications. In a 2014 decision, a U.S. District Court judge found flaws in an environmental review, which the Forest Service then was asked to address.
The proposal also has drawn scrutiny from Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., who in 2016 wrote the Forest Service to object. In a letter to the then Forest Service chief, she said the federal acreage that drew interest from Ascot was purchased with money from the Land and Water Conservation Fund and should be closed to prospecting.
Forest Service officials say the consent does not authorize mining, only the drilling of up to 63 roadside holes — each around 2 to 3 inches in diameter.
“There is not currently a proposal to develop a new mine in this location, and any potential future proposal would be subject to an entire new and comprehensive environmental analysis and decision process,” wrote Gar Abbas, the Cowlitz Valley district ranger, in a draft decision released last year.
Jody Weil, a Portland-based spokesperson for the Bureau of Land Management, expects the agency will make a decision on the work permits in the coming weeks.
Opponents of exploration say they will continue to try to block the prospecting.
“Tens of thousands of people have expressed opposition to this proposal due to its impacts on recreation, clean water and native fish, in and around one of our most treasured national monuments,” said Matt Little, executive director of the nonprofit Cascade Forest Conservancy. “Allowing mining activities in a pristine river valley alongside an active volcano is simply ludicrous. We will do all we can to stop it.”
 
Article: https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/environment/forest-service-signs-off-on-copper-gold-exploration-near-mount-st-helens/
 
Originally published February 10, 2018 at 8:00 am
Updated February 10, 2018 at 1:01 am[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/12″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row row_type=”row” use_row_as_full_screen_section=”no” type=”full_width” angled_section=”no” text_align=”left” background_image_as_pattern=”without_pattern” css_animation=””][vc_column width=”1/12″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]CORVALLIS, Ore. — Old forests that contain large trees and a diversity of tree sizes and species may offer refuge to some types of birds facing threats in a warming climate, scientists have found.
 
In a paper published today in Diversity and Distributions, a professional journal, researchers in the College of Forestry at Oregon State University reported that the more sensitive a bird species is to rising temperatures during the breeding season, the more likely it is to be affected by being near old-growth forest.
Researchers studied 13 bird species that have been tracked annually in the U.S. Geological Survey’s annual Breeding Bird Survey, one of the most comprehensive efforts of its kind in North America. Only two — the Wilson’s warbler and hermit warbler — showed negative effects from rising temperatures over the past 30 years, but actual counts of both species show that their populations are stable or increasing in areas that contain high proportions of old-growth forest.
A team led by Matthew Betts, professor in the College of Forestry, reached their conclusions by analyzing data for bird populations, forest structure and climate across northwestern North America. The researchers used satellite imagery to determine the amount of old-growth forest within about 450 yards of each 25-mile-long bird survey route.
The findings provide an additional reason for old-growth forest conservation, said Betts. “Managers hoping to combat the effects of climate change on species’ populations may now have an additional tool – maintaining and restoring old-growth forest.” He noted that this is important because management recommendations from biodiversity and climate studies have traditionally been sparse. Such studies have tended to focus on moving species to cooler climates or simply reducing carbon emissions.
Wilson’s warbler winters in Mexico and breeds during the late spring and early summer along the West Coast and across northern North America from Alaska to New England and the Canadian Maritimes. Although it occurs in early-stage as well as mature forests, it is declining at a rate of about 2 percent per year in the Pacific Northwest.
The hermit warbler also winters in Mexico but breeds exclusively along the West Coast as far north as Washington. Its populations are relatively stable but declining in landscapes with low amounts of old-growth forest.
Additional research will be needed to identify the specific features of mature forests that buffer the effects of warming temperatures on birds. One possibility, the researchers said, is that the large trees themselves function as “heat sinks” during warm periods and thus moderate temperatures. Multiple canopy layers may also provide climate buffering effects.
The study was supported by the National Science Foundation through the Long Term Ecological Research program at the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest and the Department of the Interior’s Northwest Climate Science Center. Co-authors included Ben Phalen, Sara J.K. Frey, Josee S. Rousseau and Zhiquiang Yang, all at Oregon State. Phalen is also affiliated with the University of Cambridge in the UK.
Read the original Oregon State University press release here, with additional links to photos and videos.
This research was funded in part by the Northwest Climate Science Center. Learn more about the project here.
Photo: Wilson’s Warbler – Tom Koerner, FWS

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Grants: Money Will Fund Five Projects in the County; Grays Harbor, Thurston County Also Get Funding

By The Chronicle

Jan 26, 2918

Lewis County groups have received $1,000,794 in grants for five projects that will protect and restore salmon habitat. 

Neighboring counties of Grays Harbor and Thurston received $483,911 and $1,254,429, respectively, for various projects. 

“Salmon are vitally important to Washington’s economy and to our way of life. They are one of our state’s most precious resources,” Gov. Jay Inslee said in a press release. “These projects will help tackle some of the fundamental problems that are destroying our salmon populations. By making these investments we are taking steps to increase the number of salmon so there will be enough fish for future generations, orcas and for the communities and jobs that rely on the fishing industry.”

In Lewis County, a $599,723 grant was awarded to the Cowlitz Indian Tribe to improve salmon habitat near the Cispus River. The work will take place in the Cowlitz River, near the confluence with Yellowjack Creek.

The tribe will use the money to place large logs and tree root wads in over a quarter-mile of the river to create additional habitat for Chinook, coho salmon and steelhead. The improvements will change the flow of the river, creating riffles and deep, cold pools where fish can rest and hide from predators, according to a press release. It will also slow water to reduce erosion and the amount of fine sediment in the river. 

Staff and volunteers from the Cascade Forest Conservancy will plant trees and shrubs on 22.5 acres of land identified by the U.S. Forest Service for its lack in riverbank forest diversity or density. 

Two grants totaling $187,973 and $55,750 were awarded to Lewis County. The first will be used to remove a barrier to fish passage in a Stearns Creek tributary. Lewis County Public Works will remove a culvert that carries the creek under Pleasant Valley Road. After it is removed, fish will have access to 2.4 miles of spawning habitat and 1.5 acres of rearing habitat. Lewis County will contribute $188,500 from a federal grant and donations of labor.

The second grant awarded to the Lewis County Public Works Department for $55,750 will design a project to remove a barrier to fish passage in Berwick Creek. The barrier is a concrete box that carries the creek under Logan Hill Road. Fish are unable to pass through the box because the slope is too steep, stated the release. The replacement of the box will give coho salmon, winter steelhead and cutthroat trout seasonal access to almost a half-mile of habitat.

It will also move 500 feet of the creek channel to its historic floodplain, which will provide a more natural channel. Work will also take place to remove 250 feet of bank armorning, add floodplain terraces and streamside plantings, as well as add large woody materials that will provide more varied types of habitat. The county will contribute $55,750 to the project through labor donations. 

The Lewis County Conservation District has been awarded $60,776 to design the replacement of culverts blocking fish passage under Lucas Creek Road. The money will be used for preliminary designs and to obtain permits to remove two culverts that are preventing two-thirds of the fish from passing through because of the steepness and the high outfall drop. The project will open 3.4 miles of habitat for coho salmon, steelhead, coastal cutthroat and residential trout.

The last grant, totaling $96,572 will also go to the Lewis County Conservation District. The money will be used to remove three barriers to fish passage in the Middle Fork Newaukum River. The barriers are undersized culverts. Once fixed, additional habitat will be available for fish. The district will contribute $100,000 from a federal grant. 

In all, $53 million was awarded for 163 projects in the state by the Washington Salmon Recovery Funding Board and the Puget Sound Partnership.

“These projects are keeping us from losing salmon entirely,” David Troutt, chair of the Salmon Recovery Funding Board, said. “Salmon are in trouble, but we know what to do. We have federally-approved recovery plans in place and the people to make them happen. We must continue these investments if we are to return salmon to healthy and sustainable numbers.”

For a full list of projects, go online to www.rco.wa.gov.

 
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A Questionable Piece of Legislation Could Drastically Change Our National Forests

Currently sitting in the Senate: a bill to expand the Forest Service’s ability to cut down trees without going through proper environmental checks.

By Leslie Nemo

January 24, 2018
 

East of the Cascade Mountains in Washington and Oregon, lavish emerald forests stretch to the craggy ends of the Pacific Ocean. In this region, any tree that’s 21 inches across or wider is off limits to harvesting, including the 100-year-old Ponderosa Pines with pale bark and sprawling canopies, and the young Grand Firs with cone-like tops that thrive in dark, damp patches. Twenty-one isn’t just a random number, either: It’s a proxy for age, meant to keep these irreplaceable giants—and the rich habitats they foster—in the ground for centuries to come.

But now, the future of these trees, along with much of America’s timberlands, is in danger. In November, the House passed Rep. Bruce Westerman’s (AR-R) Resilient Federal Forests Act by a vote of 232 to 188. (Westerman had previously tried to push a less radical version in 2015 and 2016.) The bill, which is currently being reviewed by a Senate committee, exempts all forest managers with the U.S. government from National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Endangered Species Act requirements, allowing them to radically alter any tract of federally owned land through logging.

Supporters of the legislation argue that it would reduce the likelihood of wildfires. In reality, however, the proposed changes would permit authorities to cut down the trees that are most resistant to burning, and degrade forest habitats before they can regenerate. The bill is also light on science, raising the question of whether feeding logging companies is the real motivation. (Records reveal that Westerman has received more than $200,000 in campaign contributions from the industry.) While the Senate version has already been watered down in parts, for Tracy Coppola, a lawyer focused on national forests for Earthjustice, few portions are acceptable. “It’s one of the worst bills we’ve ever seen for a forest,” she says. (The National Audubon Society opposes the Resilient Federal Forests Act.)

The Resilient Federal Forests Act grants nearly all vetting rights for logging projects on federal properties to the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Under its extended powers, the two agencies can conclude if their actions will impact endangered or threatened species or the environment without consulting experts from other groups. Usually, the outcome of these reviews depends on the Forest Service’s relationship with local U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials, Mike Anderson, the senior policy analyst for the The Wilderness Society, says. But ultimately, every federal forest-management team will be able to act on its own. “I can’t think of a national forest where people wouldn’t be concerned about this,” he says. Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument is at risk, too: A short clause in the bill’s text could repeal its monument status and open up tens of thousands of acres to logging.

The proposed legislation would also let BLM and the Forest Service regulate their own behavior by exempting them from standard environmental protocols. Depending on how they label their actions, the departments wouldn’t be required to accept public comments or issue environmental impact statements—two procedures required by NEPA. The Forest Services can currently bypass review when they need to move quickly or clear up roadsides or campgrounds, but only 250 acres at a time. Not only does the Westerman bill increase the number of projects that get a free pass, it also boosts the size cap for each parcel to 10,000 acres (about two-thirds the size of Manhattan).

Beyond old-growth stands, the bill authorizes the two agencies to log huge tracts of land under the guise of building early successional habitat. These shrub-, grass-, and debris-heavy patches sprout up naturally after cyclical fires and provide vital shelter for woodpeckers, insects, and other creatures. When the Forest Service creates early successional forests, however, it often does so by clear-cutting, leaving little of the same woody byproducts. The results are not nearly as long-lived or nutrient-rich.

What’s more, Westerman’s proposal ignores the effective and diplomatic forestry-management practices that have emerged during the past decade. Since the early 2000s, conservation organizations have been meeting with logging and other industry representatives to air out their opposing and common views of Forest Service actions. Often, the groups submit a joint comment to the agency, detailing tactics that would satisfy every party involved. Shiloh Halsey, the conservation science manager for the Cascade Forest Conservancy, takes part in these meetings regularly. Recently, Halsey represented his organization in a cohort discussing how the Forest Service should treat land around Mount Adams, a dormant volcano in the Cascades. The goal was to submit a recommendation that would allow logging, but also reduce wildfires and protect old-growth trees in the area—a difficult balancing act. “There was lots of negotiation and give and take on all sides, and everyone came out with a better understanding of how to move forward in the future,” Halsey says. Without mandatory input from outside the government, forest managers would miss out on the nuanced and innovative solutions that come from these collaborative efforts.

That’s not to say that resilient forest plans aren’t necessary. In fact, Halsey and many others believe that the Forest Service’s firefighting strategies could use a major update. As of last September, fire suppression cost the agency $2 billion, making 2017 its most expensive year on record. The Forest Service reserves most of its budget for putting blazes out, not preventing them; and it isn’t exactly known for whipping up new action plans. National forest managers should be revising their goals every 10 years, but that timeline rarely pans out, Coppola says.

Still, if the federal government really wants to build hardy habitats, it can’t cut environmental scientists out of the loop, Halsey says. The work he does with the Cascade Forest Conservancy has already led to the adoption of novel, sustainable practices by the logging industry—a goal the Resilient Federal Forest Act claims it wants to achieve. “We are looking for long-term solutions that benefit local communities,” Halsey says, “while also keeping forests truly resilient.”

 
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