Study: Colorado forests not doomed

Posted on February 21, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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New dawn for Colorado’s beetle-killed forests.

Intensive research shows vigorous regrowth in beetle-killed tracts

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — After years of uncertainty over the future of Colorado’s forest landscapes, a new study by U.S. Forest Service scientists puts the recent pine epidemic into perspective.

The insect outbreak ultimately will result in more diverse and resilient forests in the long run, adding structural complexity and species diversity, researchers with the USFS Rocky Mountain Research Station concluded after carefully monitoring regrowth in beetle-killed stands.

New growth is surging under the dying lodgepole canopy with the vertical growth rate of lodgepole and fir doubling in beetle-killed areas that were left untreated after the epidemic. Harvested stands also showed strong lodgepole regrowth, with aspen gaining ground in some places.

“Forests come and go … It’s not a crisis, but this was an amazing synchronism,” Forest Service biogeochemist Chuck Rhoades said of the massive pine beetle outbreak that will alter the forest landscape of the Southern Rockies for generations to come.

The bugs swarmed across vast swaths of the Canadian Rockies; they’ve invaded the Front Range and moved east to the Dakotas, especially the forests of the Black Hills.

“This event is not over, but the fear part should be over,” said Rhoades, who, with a team of researchers from the Fort Collins-based Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station, has been carefully studying regeneration in beetle-killed areas. “But the idea of forest health and maintaining forest ecosystem processes is something we’ll always be thinking about,” he said. (more…)

Filed under: Colorado, Environment, Forest health, forests, pine beetles, pine beetles and wildfires, public lands, US Forest Service | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Ski industry wins water rights lawsuit against Forest Service

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Bob Berwyn
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A judge rules this week that the Forest Service can’t force ski areas to transfer water rights to the federal government. Bob Berwyn photo.

Judge orders Forest Service to go back to the drawing board on developing permit language to govern water originating on national forest lands

By Bob Berwyn

FRISCO — A long-running dispute over water rights at ski areas operating on public land was resolved — at least temporarily — this week, as Federal District Court Judge William Martinez ruled that the U.S. Forest Service violated its own regulations and other federal laws when it adopted a new water rights clause to be added to ski area permits.

Martinez stayed away from the takings issue raised by the ski industry, but slammed the Forest Service for issuing a new rule without providing a chance for formal input and public comment. Read the ruling here.

He vacated the water rights clause, enjoined the Forest Service from enforcing it and remanded the matter back to the agency for further action to be guided by the court ruling. Specifically, Martinez said the Forest Service failed to develop the new water rights clause under formal public processes required under federal regulations.

He also ruled that the Forest Service violated federal regulations because the agency did not evaluate the economic costs of forcing some smaller ski areas to to assign their water rights to the Forest Service without compensation.

“Given how critical and valuable water is to ski area operations, we are pleased that the court has stopped this unreasonable and unlawful policy in its tracks,” said Michael Berry, president of the National Ski Areas Association. “We look forward to working in cooperation with the Forest Service to develop a water policy in the future that respects property rights and state water law.” (more…)

Filed under: business, Colorado, ski industry, Ski Resorts, skiing and riding, US Forest Service, White River National Forest | Tagged: , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Colorado: Udall pushes for additional wildfire funding

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Bob Berwyn
Recovery in an area burned by the Waldo Canyon Fire, near Colorado Springs, Photo courtesy PSICC.

Recovery in an area burned by the Waldo Canyon Fire, near Colorado Springs, Photo courtesy PSICC.

Emergency funds sought to help preparedness

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — With some fire experts expecting another bad fire season next summer, a pair of Democratic senators from the Rocky Mountain region are trying to boost funding for the Forest Service.

An amendment to the Supplemental Appropriation for Disaster Assistance offered by Senators Mark Udall (D-Colo.) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.) would allocate an additional $653 million for firefighting and fire prevention.

The funds would be used to pre-position ground crews, hot shots, and air support in places where wildfire risk is very high. The funds also would be available for the acquisition of additional large air tankers and the removal of hazardous fuels in the wildland-urban interface, the fire-prone areas between cities and the backcountry. (more…)

Filed under: climate and weather, Colorado, Drought, Environment, forest fires, forests, politics, US Forest Service | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Colorado: U.S. Forest Service rejects appeal of Peak 6 expansion at Breckenridge Ski Area

Posted on November 29, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Opponents of controversial expansion considering legal action

The Peak 6 expansion at Breckenridge Ski area would add about 550 acres of new terrain.

*Read all Summit Voice Peak 6 stories

By Bob Berwyn

FRISCO — Barring legal action, Breckenridge Ski Area could start implementing the controversial Peak 6 expansion as soon as early December after regional Forest Service officials rejected an appeal filed by a coalition of conservation groups, skiers and local residents. Read the appeal here.

Scott Armentrout, Supervisor of the Gunnison, Uncompahgre and Grand Mesa National Forests, the appeal reviewing officer, wrote Nov. 14 that he found that the approval for the project did not violate any federal laws, regulations or policies and recommended upholding White River National Forest Supervisor Scott Fitzwilliams’ decision to approve the 550-acre expansion.

The formal decision was made by appeals deciding officer Brian Ferebee, a deputy regional forester for resources. Read the full appeal decision here, and a summary of the appeal decision here.

“I agree with the ARO’s analysis as presented in the enclosed letter. All appeal issues raised have been considered and the record is adequate to support the Forest Supervisor’s decision,” Ferebee wrote in his Nov. 19 decision letter. “I affirm the Forest Supervisor’s decision to approve the Breckenridge Ski Area Peak 6 Project. I deny requested relief to set aside the decision or complete additional analysis.” (more…)

Filed under: Breckenridge Peak 6 expansion, Breckenridge Ski Resort, Colorado, endangered species, Environment, public lands, ski industry, Ski Resorts, skiing and riding, Summit County Colorado, Summit County news, US Forest Service, Vail Resorts, White River National Forest | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Lawsuit challenges Forest Service’s SoCal Adventure Pass

Posted on October 26, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Hikers claim adventure pass program is illegal under federal law and pursuant to an earlier court ruling

Public lands advocate continue their challenge to the Forest Service fee program with a lawsuit in Southern California. Bob Berwyn photo.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Public land activists continue to try and chip away at various Forest Service fees, most recently with a lawsuit challenging the agency’s Southern California adventure pass.

In September, a similar lawsuit was filed challenging the agency’s practice of letting private companies that operate Forest Service campgrounds charge fees for adjacent day-use areas.

Four hikers have gone to court claiming the pass program is not authorized under federal laws that set strict limits on where and when fees can be charged for use of public lands. The adventure pass program requires forest visitors to display a pass on their vehicle when they park on the Angeles, Cleveland, Los Padres, and San Bernardino National Forests, even when they do not use any developed facilities.

In the civil suit filed Oct. 24, Alasdair Coyne and Richard Fragosa, both of Ojai, John Karevoll of Running Springs, and Peter Wiechers of Kernville are asking the Los Angeles District Court for relief from having to pay a fee just to go for a hike in many popular parts of the four forests. Read the lawsuit here. (more…)

Filed under: hiking, public lands, US Forest Service | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Colorado: More time to comment on White River National Forest draft oil and gas drilling plan

Posted on October 25, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

A map from the draft EIS shows areas with surface-use stipulations in one of the plan’s alternatives. Courtesy White River National Forest.

Agency will take input through Nov. 30

By Summit Voice

FRISCO — Colorado citizens and other stakeholders will have an extra 30 days to comment on the new draft oil and gas leasing plan for the White River National Forest. Released in late August, the draft plan cuts some areas for energy development and sets protective stipulations in other areas.

The energy industry sees the plan as overly restrictive, while conservation advocates say it still leaves too many areas open for drilling. The extended comment period runs through Nov. 30. (more…)

Filed under: Colorado, energy, Environment, forests, gas drilling, oil drilling, public lands, White River National Forest | Tagged: , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Critics plan appeal of Breckenridge Peak 6 expansion

Posted on September 18, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

DU Law Clinic may help with administrative or legal challenge

The Peak 6 expansion at Breckenridge will very likely be appealed and a legal challenge is not out of the question. Click on the map a couple of times to see the full-size version.

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — The U.S. Forest Service approval of the Peak 6 expansion at Breckenridge Ski Area probably won’t go unchallenged. Longtime critics of the project scrutinizing the the final environmental study say they are likely to appeal several elements of the decision, including, fundamentally, whether the expansion meets the stated purpose and need.

Vail Resorts claimed from the start that the new lifts and terrain will ease congestion at Breckenridge by spreading out skiers on peak visitation days, but at least some of the data in the Final Environmental Impact Statement seem to contradict that conclusion.

Skiers and snowboarders will still have to use the busiest lifts out of the Peak 8 base area to reach the new terrain. At one point in the document the Forest Service appears to flat-out acknowledge that the expansion won’t significantly shorten lift wait times on Peak 7 and Peak 8.

All the documents for the Peak 6 project are at this Forest Service website. Extensive background stories about Peak 6 are online at this Summit Voice page. Some of the ongoing community concerns and criticisms of the Forest Service decision are spelled out on the Save Peak 6 Facebook page.

(more…)

Filed under: Breckenridge, Breckenridge Peak 6 expansion, Breckenridge Ski Resort, Colorado, endangered species, Environment, Summit County Colorado, Summit County news | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments »

Forest Service goes batty with live webcast from Texas

Posted on September 17, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Visitors gather at Bracken Cave near San Antonio, Texas, to experience the nightly flight of millions of Mexican free-tailed bats. Photo courtesy of: Bat Conservation International.

Educational online seminar aimed at building awareness about bat conservation and ecology

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — As white-nose syndrome devastates bat colonies across the country, resource managers and conservation biologists have been struggling to help people understand how just important the flying mammals are to American agriculture and ecosystems.

For many people bats are one of those semi-mythical animals — associated with Halloween and vampires, Meanwhile, their role  as incredibly valuable pollinators and voracious predators of insects is overlooked.

Next week, the Forest Service will try and create more awareness about bats with a live educational webcast (Sept. 18) from Bracken Cave near San Antonio, Texas, home of the world’s largest bat colony, to help students across the country learn about one of the most misunderstood yet beneficial creatures in the world.

The webcast is a part of BatsLIVE! A Distance Learning Adventure, a free education program that aims to bring the best of bat information and research to help children understand the value of bats and the conservation challenges they face. (more…)

Filed under: biodiversity, endangered species, Environment, US Forest Service | Tagged: , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Forest mortality declines across the U.S.

Posted on September 16, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Pine beetles running out of food, spruce beetle infestation growing

Mountain pine beetle mortality is on the decline across the western U.S.

Spruce and fir mortality is on the increase in Colorado.

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — Tree mortality from insects and diseases has dropped dramatically in the past few years, mainly because mountain pine beetles are running out of food, according to a new report from the U.S. Forest Service.

But the next significant cycle of insect infestation has already reached epidemic proportions in the south-central Rockies, where spruce beetles are devastating stands of mature spruce trees. The spruce beetle outbreak has been especially intense in the San Juans, where the bugs have killed almost every single mature tree from the creek bottoms all the way up to high-elevation krummholz.

It will be interesting to see if the numbers go back up after this summer’s drought weakened trees across the region.

(more…)

Filed under: climate and weather, Colorado, Drought, Environment, Forest health, forests, pine beetles, US Forest Service | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 4 Comments »

White River NF to hold info sessions on oil and gas plan

Posted on September 7, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Public comment still wanted on draft version

A map from the draft EIS shows areas with surface-use stipulations in one of the plan’s alternatives. Courtesy White River National Forest. Click on the map to see the draft study, including all the maps, online.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — A draft plan that outlines several options for oil and gas development on the White River National Forest is still open for public comment, and the Forest Service is holding a couple of open house session to gather input and help explain the plan to the public.

The draft plan includes alternatives that cut the amount of land available from 416,000 acres to about 260,000 acres and outlines strict stipulations for drilling activities to protect surface resources, especially in roadless areas, where no surface occupancy would be permitted.

After the 60-day comment period, Forest Supervisor Scott Fitzwilliams will choose from the options outlined in the draft for a final plan.

The open houses are set for Sept. 12, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Colorado River Valley Field Office located at 2300 River Frontage Road, Silt, CO 81652, and Oct. 2, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Carbondale and Rural Fire Protection District Headquarters Building located at 301 Meadowood Drive, Carbondale, CO 81623. (more…)

Filed under: Colorado, energy, Environment, forests, gas drilling, oil drilling, public lands, US Forest Service, White River National Forest | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

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