Highway 89 Safety Enhancement and Forest Ecosystem Restoration Project

Transcription

1 Highway 89 Safety Enhancement and Forest Ecosystem Restoration Project Special Uses Memo Prepared by: Jennifer Womack Special Uses Administrator for: Shasta McCloud Management Unit Shasta-Trinity National Forest June 30, 2016

2 The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual s income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA s TARGET Center at (202) (voice and TTY). To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC , or call (800) (voice) or (202) (TTY). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. 2

3 Table of Contents Introduction... 4 Special Use Permit Operations with Infrastructure and Facilities... 4 Special Use Permit Operations without Infrastructure and Facilities... 9 Location Maps: Special Use Permit Areas Inside Project Boundary Resource Protection Measures for Special Use Permit Areas Standard Operating Procedures for Special Use Permit Areas

4 Introduction There are several Special Use Permit areas inside the project boundary that have facilities and infrastructure that needs to be protected during implementation. Those permit areas are described below in Special Use Permit Operations with Infrastructure and Facilities. There are also several special use permit operations that operate inside the project area that do not have infrastructure or facilities but need to be notified in advance of operations so they can adjust their operations (outfitter guides and recreation events) or we can adjust our timeframe to meet their event timeframe to avoid impacts. These operations can also be found below in Special Use Permit Operations without Infrastructure and Facilities. Special Use Permit Operations with Infrastructure and Facilities Mt. Shasta Rod and Gun Club The Mt. Shasta Rod and Gun Club holds a Special Use Permit for a gun range at Snowman s Hill in the NE ¼, NE ¼, SW ¼ of section 33, T40N, R3W, M.D.B.M. It has been in operation since 1984 and caters to standard rifle and pistol target use. The gun range is authorized for 4 acres which contains a rifle, trap, and pistol range as well as an entrance road and sign, three target berms with shooting stands, 10 by 12 concrete block storage shed located behind the target wall for target storage, earthen backstop with native surface access road, 2 by 2 warning signs along the perimeter of the range and a 5 wide cleared firebreak around the perimeter of the gun range. Mt. Shasta Long Rifles The Mt. Shasta Long Rifles club holds a Special Use Permit for a gun range at Snowman s Hill in the NE ¼, NE ¼, SW ¼ of section 33, T40N, R3W, M.D.B.M. It has been in operation since 1983 and caters more specifically to black powder gun use. The gun range is authorized for 5.2 acres which contain a black powder rifle and pistol range with an access road, parking area for about 15 vehicles, shooting stand, picnic table, and a wooden canopy. They are also authorized for a five foot wide fire break around the perimeter of the range. California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) Caltrans holds a Special Use Permit for a weather station at Snowman s Hill in the NE ¼, SE ¼, of section 33, T.40N, R.3W, M.D.B.M. and was first issued in This permit covers about.2 acres and consists of a remote weather station and closed circuit television to monitor weather 4

5 and travel conditions on Highway 89. The closed circuit television portion has a 10 by 10 by.33 concrete pad to support the closed circuit facilities and a 16 by 15 fenced concrete pad for the weather station equipment. There is also a 150 conduit to the existing PP&L pole located adjacent to the weather station which carries 240 volt distribution and telephone line buried 3 to provide relay of information and power to the site. The camera is linked to the Caltrans website and provides regularly updated photos of the Highway 89 and Ski Park Highway intersection. Great Shasta Rail Trail Association The McCloud River Railroad (subsidiary of the McCloud River Lumber Company) was authorized under a series of Special Use Permits dating from 1930 over approximately 15 miles of NFS lands for portions of an 80 mile rail line connecting McCloud to Burney, California. The most recent owner, McCloud Railway, filed for abandonment of the rail line in Several local non-profit organizations collaborated to form the Great Shasta Rail Trail Association (GSRT) in cooperation with the Shasta Land Trust (SLT) and filed with the Surface Transportation Board (STB) to preserve the railroad as a Rail Trail. Through grants and fundraising, in 2015 SLT purchased the private sections of the trail and in 2016, transferred ownership to the GSRT.. The permit for the miles ( acres) of NFS land to maintain and operate a railway line on National Forest System lands from McCloud to Burney will be re-authorized to The Great Shasta Rail Trail Association who will manage a public trail under a Notice of Interim Trail Use from the STB. The railroad right of way portion from McCloud to Mount Shasta has not yet been identified for abandonment with the STB and is currently permitted to the McCloud Railway Company. This portion of the McCloud Railway Company permit has two portions that are authorized under permit and include the Big Canyon Creek Crossing and a short segment of re-alignment near Ski Park Hwy. The re-alignment portion can be found in the SE ¼, NE ¼, of section 32, T.40N, R3W, M.D.B.M. and is 1.95 acres. The Big Canyon Creek Crossing can be found in the SW ¼ of the NW ¼ of section 24, T.40N, R5W, M.D.B.M. and consists of a gravel fill that extends outside of the railroad right of way. City of Mount Shasta The City of Mount Shasta holds a Special Use Permit for 42 acres of NFS land for the City s leach field, access road, monitoring wells and a 10 foot right of way for the sewage effluent transmission line which is for 5,350 feet. The line supplies gray water to the leach field when the capacity of the municipal water treatment plant is exceeded. This is located in section 26, T.40N, R.4W. The first Special Use Permit was issued in McCloud Partners, LLC (Lakin Dam Pipeline) 5

6 McCloud Partners, LLC holds a Special Use Permit for a short section of buried water pipeline in the SW ¼, NW ¼, NE ¼, of section 7, T.39N, R.1W, M.D.B.M. The permitted portion of the pipeline lies between the new Middle Falls parking area and the trail overlook on the McCloud Falls Loop. This waterline right of way is 20 feet wide by 620 feet long and is about.28 acres of land. The pipeline is a 22 in diameter buried metal waterline which carries water for approximately 8 miles from the Lakin Dam reservoir on the McCloud River to the old sawmill property in the town of McCloud, California. There are two water diversion licenses 5051 (permits up to 6.78 CFS) and 826 (permits up to 5.57 CFS) associated with the waterline and owned by McCloud Partners, LLC. The McCloud River Lumber Company was the original owner of the old sawmill in McCloud and constructed the waterline to provide water for a log pond, mill operations and log watering on the sawmill property. When the McCloud River Lumber Company exchanged land with the Forest Service beginning in the 1930 s, they reserved an easement for their pipeline. A short portion of the waterline location was inadvertently omitted from the easement legal description and had been under permit beginning in The pipe is generally buried to a depth of 5 feet below the ground surface but does contain shallower segments and some exposed segments (e.g. Mud Creek crossing). The waterline passes through the eastern third of the Highway 89 project and will require protection measures. Over the past two years McCloud Partners LLC have implemented repairs on the line and associated infrastructure and have flagged and posted the location of the line across NFS lands. The line is operational and currently provides water for McCloud Partners LLC and general fire suppression needs. Pacific Power Corporation (PacifiCorp) PacifiCorp holds a Special Use Permit for both above and below ground electrical transmission and distribution lines as well as the associated roads for power line operation and maintenance. The total permit area for Siskiyou County is acres. The locations of the above ground power line portions under Special Use Permit in the project area can be found in the SW ¼, SW ¼ of section 26, T.40N, R.4W; NE ¼, SE ¼, and SW ¼, NE ¼, of section 32, T.40N, R.3W; S ¼, N ¼ and NW ¼, SW ¼ of section 2, T.39N, R2W; N ½ of section 1, T.39N, R.2W; N ½ section 6, T.39N, R.1W; N ½ of section 5, T.39N, R.1W; N ½, NE ¼, and the NE ¼, NW ¼ of section 4, T.39N, R.1W; and the N ½ of section 3, T.39N, R1W with above ground moving East until you reach Ash Creek guard station then moving underground from the guard station to the boundary of section 2. There is an additional above and below ground power line portion in SE ¼, NE ¼, of section 33 T.40N, R.3W. 6

7 The first permit was issued in The permit does not include all of PacifiCorp s power lines that can be seen running along Highway 89 because many of those lines were already constructed and located within a reserved easement in the deed when the Forest Service acquired the land. AT&T AT&T holds a Special Use Permit for 4,650 feet of above ground and 1,001 feet of buried fiber optic line in section 32, T.40N, R.3W, M.D.B.M. The permit area covers 3.43 acres or 1.07 miles. This permit lies partially within PacifiCorp s existing right of way (co-located on the power poles) and was issued in In addition to service to McCloud along the PacifiCorp pole line, the fiber line is buried within a utility right of way to the cellular site location on private land at the top of Snowman s Hill. Pacific Bell Telephone Company (now AT&T) Pac Bell holds a Special Use Permit for 3.5 miles (4.2 acres) of buried telephone line which parallels the West Firebreak Road (40N69) across Big Canyon in sections 14, 13, 24, 25 and 30, T.40N, R.3W, M.D.B.M. The line is located within a 10-foot wide easement across NFS lands. These buried lines are right on the boundary of the Mt. Shasta Block inside the 40N24 road. Pacific Bell Telephone Company Master (now AT&T) Pacific Bell holds a Master Permit that authorizes several buried phone lines across NFS lands in the Mt. Shasta area: U miles across section 34, T.40N., R4W. (Azalea) U miles across section 26 (co-located on PacifiCorp distribution pole line) US miles across section 23, 35, 36 (co-located on the PacifiCorp Transmission towers). U miles across sections 13, 14 (T.40N., R.4W.) and section 18 (T.40N., R.3W.) to serve the Mt. Shasta Ski Bowl and Gray Butte Communication Site. U acres buried phone line across sections 30, 19 (T.40N., R3W) and section 24 (T. 40N., R4W) which serves the Communication Site located in Section 30 (NFS) and Section 19 (pvt) on Everitt Hill. Citizens Telecommunications Company of California, Inc. Citizens serves the community of McCloud and points east and holds a permit for acres for both aerial and buried telephone lines. The line is attached to the Pacific Power pole lines 7

8 across Snowman s Hill in sections 32 and 33 (T.40N., R. 3W.) and is buried along the Great Shasta Rail Trail alignment in sections 34, 35, and 36 (T.40N., R2W) near Esperanza and through sections 31, 32, 34, 35, 36 (T40N., R1W) and section 31 (T.40N., R1E.) near Kinyon with a spur south to Highway 89 and the Ash Creek Guard Station. Northland Cable Television, Inc. Northland Cable holds a Special Use Permit for approximately 10,600 feet of fiber/coaxial cable attached to the Pacific Power pole line in sections 32 and 33, T.40N, R.3W, M.D.B.M. The permit area covers 2.43 acres or 2 miles. This use is located within PacifiCorp s existing right of way (co-located on the power poles) and was issued in Mt. Shasta Board and Ski Park (Wintun Development Corporation) Mt. Shasta Board and Ski Park holds a Special Use Permit for about 525 feet of buried power line that starts at the existing Caltrans weather station along Highway 89 and travels east to the luminaire (street light), then crosses Highway 89 to a second luminaire. The power line lies entirely within the Caltrans right of way Easement. The permit area is about 0.12 acres or about 0.1 miles and is located in Section 32, T.40N, R.3W, M.D.B.M. This permit was originally issued in 1999 in order to provide lighting for public safety at the turning lane located at the intersection of the Ski Park Highway with Highway 89. 8

9 Special Use Permit Operations without Infrastructure and Facilities Permit Holder Operation Permit Location in Project Area Expiration Art's Guide Service Fishing Permit 12/31/2016 McCloud River Confluence Outfitters, LLC Fishing Permit 12/31/2019 McCloud River Jack Trout Fly Fishing Fishing/Bus Tour Permit 12/31/2020 McCloud River, McCloud Falls Rick Cox Fly Fishing Fishing Permit 12/31/2020 McCloud River Shasta Trout Fishing Permit 12/31/2020 McCloud River The Fly Shop Fishing Permit 12/31/2015 McCloud River Three River Guide Fishing Permit 12/31/2016 McCloud River Wild Waters Fly Fishing Fishing Permit 12/31/2016 McCloud River SC Guide Service Fishing Permit 12/31/2016 McCloud River Clearwater Lodge Fishing Permit 12/31/2016 McCloud River Reel Adventure's Guide Fishing Permit 12/31/2016 McCloud River Service 1st Choice Outfitters Fishing Permit 12/31/2016 McCloud River Scott Saiki's Guide Service Fishing Permit 12/31/2016 McCloud River Western Angler's Guide Fishing Permit 12/31/2016 McCloud River Service The Northern CA Guide Fishing Permit 12/31/2016 McCloud River Shasta Vortex Adventures Metaphysical/Bus 12/31/2020 McCloud Falls Tour Permit Great Shasta Rail Trail Association - Biktoberfest Recreation Event 12/31/2019 Algoma CG to Bigelow Road on River Trail Table 1. Special Use Permit Operations without Infrastructure and Facilities 9

10 Location Maps: Special Use Permit Areas Inside Project Boundary Figure 1. Map: Special Use Permit Areas Inside Project Boundary (Mt. Shasta Block) 10

11 Figure 2. Map: Special Use Permit Areas Inside Project Boundary (Snowman's Block) 11

12 Figure 3. Map: Special Use Permit Areas Inside Project Boundary (McCloud Block) 12

13 Figure 4. Special Use Permit Areas Inside Project Boundary (McCloud Block) 13

14 Resource Protection Measures for Special Use Permit Areas Permit Holder City of Mount Shasta Resource Protection Measure During project activities, protect the vaults, sewer caps, valves and marker stakes for the City of Mount Shasta s leach field lines and effluent transmission line. No heavy equipment will enter, or digging be done inside the leachfield to avoid crushing or damaging the lines. Heavy equipment is allowed on roads in the plantation. Protect features from damage during underburning. Applicable Unit PacifiCorp AT&T Citizen Utilities Pacific Bell Telephone Caltrans Mount Shasta Rod and Gun Club During project activities, protect transmission and distribution powerlines. The powerline companies will be notified as soon as possible when burning will occur near powerlines. PacifiCorp point of contact and a line patrolman will need to meet with the US Forest Service and the purchaser/contractor completing the work near PacifiCorp s facilities, prior to work initiation, to review safe working distances, any possible tree work that we may have to assist with and any other potential safety issues working near high voltage lines. During project activities, protect the above ground and buried AT&T fiber optic and cable television line at Snowman s Hill. During project activities protect the Citizens Utilities telephone lines. During project activities protect the Pacific Bell buried telephone lines. During project activities, protect the CalTrans weather station equipment (including the closed circuit television equipment, powerline, and phone/fiber line associated with the weather station). Protect the structures at the gun range and retain some trees for shading at rifle stands. Clear brush and thin trees around gun range boundary to prevent wildfire starts from the gun range. Maintain access road and parking area if damaged during project work , 3-266, 3-146, 3-267, 3-268, 3-374, 3-370, 15-4, 15-50, 15-6, 3-295, 3-361, 15-7, 15-8, 5-71, 5-66, 5-73, 5-33, FU-103, 5-73, , , , 26-1, , 26-86, , , 36-71, 26-70, 26-69, 26-8, 26-77, 26-67, 26-10, , 26-59, FU-113, 26-12, , , , , 26-13, 26-63, 26-64, 26-16, 26-17, , , , 3-361, 5-70, , 3-361, 5-33, 5-70, 5-71, 5-73, 5-75, , , some portions of 5-73 and

15 Permit Holder Mount Shasta Longrifles McCloud Partners LLC Great Shasta Rail Trail Resource Protection Measure Clear brush and thin trees around gun range boundary to prevent wildfire starts from the gun range. Protect the wooden structure in the Mount Shasta Longrifles Gun Range. Maintain access road and parking area if damaged during project work. During project activities, protect the buried Lakin Dam pipeline and above ground vents. During project activities, protect Great Shasta Rails Trail features. Work with Rails to Trails to develop treatments in the railroad ROW, excluding the portion from McCloud to Mount Shasta (In some situations the FS owns the merchantable trees on the private land parcels but the railroad retained rights to the land). Applicable Unit FU-103, some potential portion of 5-66 and , , , , 26-3, 26-4, 26-6, 26-66, 26-72, 26-73, , , , , 14-71, 14-72, 14-84, 14-87, 14-88, 14-89, 14-91, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 15-47, , , , , , Table 2. Resource Protection Measures for Special Use Permit Areas Standard Operating Procedures for Special Use Permit Areas Notify Special Use Permit administrators of Project activities and timing of implementation, including timber harvest, prescribed fire, noncommercial thinning, and road activities. Inform permittee(s) of scheduled project activities to minimize the potential for conflicts between authorized special use activities and allow for short-term modification of special use activities, where necessary. Environmental Consequences for All Alternative The implementation of the proposed project (for any of the alternatives) will have no effect on the permitted infrastructure or activities as long as the Resource Protection Measures and Standard Operating Procedures are followed. 15