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COMMENTS ON "DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
STATEMENT FOR MANAGING CALIFORNIA SPOTTED OWL HABITAT IN THE SIERRA NEVADA FORESTS
OF CALIFORNIA, AN ECOSYSTEM APPROACH"
Submitted to the U.S. Forest Service
by
The State of California
The Resources Agency of California
California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
California Department of Fish and Game
July 10, 1995
Introduction
The State of California welcomes the opportunity to present its official comments on the "Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Managing California Spotted Owl Habitat in the Sierra Nevada National Forests of California, an Ecosystem Approach," (DEIS). The ten national forests of the Sierra Nevada--some 9.3 million acres--are in many ways a critical resource to the people of California. Whether viewed as producers of high quality water, recreational wonderlands, a source of valuable forest products, or habitat for a vast array of plant and animal species, the Sierra Nevada national forests have value beyond measure to the State. The primary goals of the State with respect to the national forests are to assure that forest ecosystems are healthy, fire risks are acceptably low, and that a sustainable level of economic opportunity is provided to forest communities.
Although data are still not available to statistically establish clear population trends for the California spotted owl, biologists indicate that the species is not in imminent danger on national forest lands in the Sierra Nevada. However, owl habitat is threatened, particularly by risk of fire. This lack of imminent threat to the owl provides the opportunity for the Forest Service to move carefully in planning for protection of the species in collaboration with the State and other stakeholders, rather than moving forward with an independent solution that is out of proportion to the problem.
The Forest Service has indicated publicly that the draft EIS is just that, a draft. The agency says it will receive comments with an open mind and that it is willing to consider new alternatives, to conduct further analyses, and to consider all comments in developing and selecting the alternative to be implemented. We hope the Forest Service’s openness extends to a fundamental reconsideration of the entire process used to plan for the protection of the owl. In the spirit of openness, the State of California offers these comments on the DEIS.
Our comments on the DEIS fall into two major parts. The first part addresses the process that must be engaged to get us back on track in planning for the California owl and the Sierra Nevada national forests in general. The second major part examines technical problems with the DEIS related to fire, wildlife, socioeconomic analysis, and other issues.
| CalOwl Fire Maps |
| For the full detailed
CalOwl document, download this Adobe Acrobat PDF file |