Flathead NF has issued an Environmental
Assessment on a project in the Spotted Bear District. There are three
alternative action plans besides the no-action alternative. The preferred
option would offer 9300 MBF of mostly dead lodgepole for sale and close or
decommission(rip up!) 30.6 miles of road that is presently open year long
or seasonally. The total mileage scheduled for road rip is 48 miles.
Many of these roads access the higher areas on both sides of the South
Fork in the Spotted Bear area which are used by hunters, firewood cutters,
huckleberry pickers and Sunday drivers looking for a view of the
"Bob". Addition Cr., Jungle Cr., Soldier Cr., and Clark Cr.
drainages will have most or all of their roads ripped out. Sullivan Cr.,
Cedar Cr., and Clark Cr. will have major year- long closures. These are
all in addition to the massive closures and road removals that have
already occurred or are scheduled to occur in the area.
Road rip, which is euphemistically called decommissioning by FS, involves removing the culverts, kelly-humping, ripping and seeding the
roadbed. Culvert removal results in huge sediment delivery to the streams
in the first few years. Check out the road rip in the Big
Creek Drainage to see what this would look like.
Thanks to a large letter writing campaign by MFMU the FS received 300
or so comment letters against road rip or road closures. This was
way more than the number of letters in favor of road rip.
The NEPA process has been completed. MFMU appealed the
decision to rip out 48 miles of road and close others. Our
appeal was denied.
ALTHOUGH OUR APPEAL ON THIS DECISION WAS REJECTED, WE HAVE NOT SURRENDERED THESE
ROADS TO THE RIPPERS.
