|
Flathead NF
Webpages for:
Wedge/Roberts
West
Side Reservoir
2003
Fire Maps
|
2003 WAS
ANOTHER BAD FIRE YEAR ON THE FLATHEAD
The fires were
concentrated in the North and South Forks of the Flathead and the
Bob Marshall.
-
Wedge Canyon Fire: Started
on July 18 and burned 54,404 acres of National Forest, Glacier
Park, state and private lands. Fire burned in the the
north end of the North Fork not far from the Canadian
border. It eventually jumped the river and burned in
Glacier Park. Seven homes and 29 outbuildings were
destroyed.
-
Roberts Fire:
Started on
July 23 and burned 52,874 acres of National Forest, Glacier
Park, state and private lands. Burned in the southern end
of the North Fork just north and in between Columbia Falls and
Hungry Horse. After it jumped the river and burned into
the park, it threatened Apgar for several days.
-
West Side Reservoir Fires:
Started by lightning storm on August 18 on the east slope of the
Swan Range above Hungry Horse Reservoilr. All of the land
that burnt was National Forest land.
Beta/Doris = 5358 acres
Blackfoot = 14,994 acres
Doe
= 3077 acres
Ball
= 7520 acres
Total
= 30,949 acres
The Flathead
Forest has completed the NEPA analysis on these two projects and
finally issued their decision (ROD) - 15 and 16 months after the
fires burned out.
The fires of 2003 burned 66,246 acres on the
Flathead National Forest. The FNF will salvage 6191 acres or 9.3% of
the the total burned forest service acres. The same projects will
close a combined total of 23 miles of road and 27 miles of motorized
trail. FNF will rip up 73 miles of already closed road. Before this
project 187 miles of road were open in the grizzly bear subunits
affected by the fires. The SALVAGE projects will close 12.3%
of those roads.
Therefore, FNF intends to close a higher
percentage of roads in a TIMBER SALVAGE project than the
percentage of burned acres they intend to log. These projects are
really road closing and road ripping projects.
For that reason, MFMU has appealed them both.
|
