1998 Report of the Forest Service

Goal 2: Provide Multiple Benefits for People within the Capabilities of Ecosystems

Objective 2.1: Quality recreation experiences with minimal impacts to ecosystem

stability and condition.

Americans cherish their public lands for values that the Forest Service manages-- wilderness, clean water, forest products, protection of rare species, old-growth forests, and a connection with their history. Americans also want a great deal from the agency in terms of recreation settings, experiences, activities, facilities, and services, and they will expect even more in the future. FY 1998 saw recreation continue to emerge as the fastest growing use on the national forests and grasslands.

This national heritage of forests and grasslands has provided special places for generations of Americans. With help from partners and through revenue enhancement tools, the Forest Service offered a rich array of activities and adventures unparalleled in scope and diversity. Although spanning the entire Recreation Opportunity Spectrum, the agency's unequaled recreational niche continued to be the "wild" end of "wildlands" experiences. It managed 63 percent of the National Wilderness Preservation System in the contiguous United States and a much larger percentage of wilderness experiences. It administered 4,348 miles of the Wild and Scenic Rivers System; 412 units of the National Wilderness Preservation System; 133,000 miles of trails; more than 250,000 heritage sites; and over 23,000 campgrounds, picnic areas, trailheads, boat ramps, and visitor facilities.

Recreation is one of four emphasis areas in the Natural Resource Agenda, which also highlights recreation benefits and four critical focus areas: settings and experiences, service and satisfaction, community connections, and relationships. In FY 1998, the agency developed A Strategy for Recreation that tiered from the Natural Resource Agenda and began to implement the focus area items.

The enjoyment of scenery is central to recreation experiences--people come for the natural settings and quality landscapes found in the NFS. The agency began development of the Built Environment Image Guide to further enhancement of settings and experiences and establish a Forest Service brand of recreation.

Through the use of expanded technology, delivery of high-quality service and satisfaction was addressed through implementation of the interagency National Recreation Reservation Service (NRRS). The service featured "one-stop shopping" for more than 20,000 Forest Service and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recreation facilities and activities at 700 locations nationwide.

The agency began development of sustainable and community-supported tourism opportunities that support natural and cultural resources stewardship. Community connections improved as the agency worked at becoming a better partner through use of customer satisfaction surveys to evaluate Forest Service efforts and the satisfaction realized by communities.

Recreation special uses, including outfitter, guide, and concessionaire operations, add diversity to the Forest Service's recreation program. Activities provided under special use permit are often those that the agency does not otherwise offer. In 1998, the Forest Service enhanced relationships and focused on steering rather than rowing through successful efforts to reengineer and streamline the recreation special uses application process. Eighty percent of program delivery at campgrounds and other recreation facilities was accomplished through private sector concessionaires. The agency administered more than 26,000 recreation special use permits in 1998.

While use at developed recreation sites is increasing, the condition of recreation facilities has continued to decline. During 1998, the agency reviewed and assessed the total backlog of recreation deferred maintenance for developed sites, trails, heritage structures, and water systems. Meaningful measures provided the Forest Service with consistent quality data to determine the 1998 deferred maintenance backlog of $1.7 billion. Reconstruction and repair of this backlog better serves national forest recreation users. Fees generated through the Recreation Fee Demonstration Program helped slow the rate of backlog growth. On NIPF lands, the agency helped to meet demands by helping owners complete stewardship management plans.

^# Sources include Annual Reports of the Forest Service (FY's 1995-97); final MAR for FY's 1995-98.

* PAOT-days are calculated by multiplying site capacity times the number of days per year the site is open to the public.

Volunteers in the Senior, Youth, and Volunteer Programs contributed work valued at $25.2 million on recreation-related projects in FY 1998. This represents 66 percent of the total work contributed by the 98,271 volunteers in the program.

On Forest Service and DOI lands, the "Leave No Trace" program provides users with guidance on respecting nature and how to enjoy recreation and wilderness values while preserving them for future users. This information is consistent across agency boundaries, and meets the Year 2000 National Performance Review goal of "one-stop shopping" to provide better service to the public.

In FY 1998, the WO Recreation, Heritage, and Wilderness Resource Staff conducted three program reviews of the Recreation Fee Demonstration Program in Regions 5, 6, and 9. In Region 5, major findings included the need for more effective communications with recreation users to address low compliance and fee protests. The key Region 6 finding related to the number of fee projects in the Region and the public confusion with so many different fees--a team is now working on better fee coordination. In Region 9, major findings related to employee safety and cash security, and both issues have since been addressed.

Objective 2.2: Protected and restored heritage resources that are available for the education and use of current and future generations.

Heritage resources located on national forest lands provide many benefits to the American people, including key connections to the Nation's historic and prehistoric past. These resources include the physical remains of prehistoric and historic cultures, locations of cultural or religious significance, written records, and oral histories. Public interest in heritage tourism is increasing through public educational experiences and opportunities. Heritage sites have been and will continue to be instrumental in helping researchers and managers answer questions about changes in climate, vegetation, society, and ecosystems over time.

Collaborative efforts have been critical to the success of the Forest Service's Heritage Resource Program. Close coordination with individual State Historic Preservation Offices (SHPO), tribal governments, and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation will continue to occur at the national forest level.

Heritage inventories of NFS lands continued to identify sites for future scientific evaluation, protection, and interpretation efforts.

^# Sources include Annual Reports of the Forest Service (FY's 1995-97); final MAR for FY's 1995-98.

In FY 1998, volunteers contributed 70,000 hours of work in evaluating and interpreting heritage sites. Volunteer programs allow the agency to leverage limited funds and complete important projects. University partnerships and Passport in Time (PIT) volunteer outreach projects continue to build support for the Heritage Resources Program and an awareness of the inherent value of heritage resources.

Designating sites on the National Register of Historic Places requires collaboration and coordination between individual SHPO offices, the Forest Service, and the National Park Service. In FY 1998, a total of 887 sites were so designated.

Objective 2.3: Improved urban environments and enhanced community livability through healthy landscapes.

S&PF's Urban and Community Forestry (U&CF) program provides leadership in protecting, managing, and improving urban forest ecosystems for nearly 80 percent of the Nation's population, who live in 45,000 towns and cities. The U&CF program helps local communities recognize the value of their forests, builds capacity to manage community forest resources, and supports community vitality through public involvement, commitment, and action.

The Forest Service, in partnership with State forestry agencies, provides technical and financial assistance to local governments and nonprofit organizations. In doing so, the program is an effective link between an array of governmental and private resources and grassroot organizations to raise and address natural resource related environmental issues at community, county, State, regional, and national levels. Intense public interest in the program is evidenced by the annual participation of approximately 10,000 communities and people from 7,000 volunteer organizations in the program. The number of requests for Federal assistance and grants is eight times greater than the capacity of the existing program.

^# Sources include Annual Reports of the Forest Service (FY's 1995-97); final PMAS for FY's 1995-98.

Volunteer involvement is helping to accomplish urban forest management projects while expanding public knowledge of agency programs. Private sector support and involvement is another strategy that holds promise for expanding and improving the urban forestry program. In any given community, many organizations need to be contacted to determine their interest in participating or funding urban forestry activities. These education efforts build support for the program, and are directed at community members as well as within the Forest Service and State forestry agencies.

The U&CF program is an integral part of the Administration's Urban Resources Partnership (URP) Initiative. Involving six Federal agencies, State and local governments, and non-profit organizations in the underserved communities of large urban areas, this initiative has allowed the Forest Service to provide funding and technical assistance to urban forest education and restoration efforts in Atlanta, Chicago, New York, Seattle, Denver, East St. Louis, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Buffalo, Boston, and South Florida. The Federal Government has invested $9.5 million since 1994, and leveraged an additional $14 million in funding and community labor. Federal and local agencies provided 26,000 hours of technical assistance to 310 projects.

The URP program also provides national leadership in delivering and demonstrating state-of-the-art urban ecological assessments, using GIS and other new technologies. Grants which allow towns and cities to develop their own capacities for protecting and improving their natural environments have recently been awarded to Atlanta, Canton/Akron, Chesapeake Bay (MD/VA), and Puget Sound (WA) communities, Los Angeles, New York City, and the Highlands region of New Jersey and New York.

In FY 1998 one field review was conducted of the URP program. Key recommendations resulting from that review include:

· Improve evaluation and documentation of projects or their components to ensure full compliance with authorities of the funding agencies;

· Improve consistency of matching costs, i.e., the valuation and appropriateness of costs for type of service rendered;

· Eliminate cash advances outstanding beyond the 30-day maximum time limit;

· Improve the project field data and supporting information to enable better decisionmaking;

· Improve project file documentation;

· Guard against situations that could be perceived as conflicts of interest; and

· Provide additional training in program authorities and administration of grants and agreements to URP coordinators and Forest Service/NRCS representatives to local steering committees.

Objective 2.4: Economically healthy and diversified rural communities operating under strategic plans for sustainable development.

Through the Economic Action Programs (EAP's) of S&PF, the Forest Service strengthens rural communities and increases investments in sustainable development. Rural community assistance programs target resource-dependent rural areas experiencing economic problems, enabling them to diversify their economies and enhance their quality of life. The Forest Service helps to bring communities together to develop broad-based local strategic plans and solve resource, economic, and social challenges.

In the past year, the Forest Service provided technical and financial assistance to help more than 2,500 rural communities strengthen, diversify, and expand their local economies, improve transportation networks, and increase access to technology. Examples are summarized in Tables 30-32.

The Forest Service has shared technologies, programs, and funding with the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) for many years. Last year both agencies worked with the National Endowment for the Arts to provide rural communities with Forest Service landscape architects to support Resource Conservation Development areas. Landscape architects worked with rural communities on projects ranging from locating bicycle trails to designing recreation sites and improving aesthetic values.

^# Sources include Annual Reports of the Forest Service (FY's 1995-97); final MAR for FY's 1995-98.

In FY 1998, a joint review was conducted of EAP's in Region 9 and the Northeastern Area. The review found that these units are effectively combining financial assistance to help communities and organizations generate positive economic and social outcomes. Several States have demonstrated innovative and effective mechanisms to document project outcomes.

More involvement is needed among groups representing nonconsumptive and nonwood forest products, and rural and urban communities are being encouraged to network more. Coordination between State and Federal natural resource planners and State economic development planners needs to be strengthened. Title VI civil rights compliance and outreach should be improved. Sustainability measures should be linked with criteria and indicators in monitoring EAP outcomes.

Objective 2.5: A sustainable yield of forest products that contributes to meeting the Nation's demands and to restoring, improving, or maintaining forest ecosystem health.

National forests are the primary source of timber from Federal lands. They supplement the role of private lands, and reduce potential fluctuations in the Nation's timber supply. Today, national forest timber sales are designed to incorporate multiple objectives, including insect and disease prevention and control, wildlife habitat management, fuels treatment, and reconstruction or construction of roads needed for long-term access.

^# Sources include Annual Reports of the Forest Service (FY's 1995-97); final MAR for FY's 1995-98.

As documented in Tables 33-38 of the Statistical Appendix, the Forestland Management program provides wood for American consumers, jobs and income to local communities, and other tree and special forest products in demand by the public.

The revised and improved Wood Handbook, Agricultural Handbook No. 72, has just been published. There have been other revisions since the original handbook was first issued in 1935. This popular handbook provides engineers, architects, and others with properties of wood and how to use wood efficiently in construction.

The demand for softwood sawtimber is projected to grow, and the role of NIPF landowners is expected to increase. Technical and financial assistance to NIPF landowners interested in timber management helps meet national demands for wood products and provides sustained supplies while supporting healthy ecological conditions. Timber management research contributes to local, regional, and national economies and supports improvements in technology and product diversification.

By working with managers of NIPF lands, timber sale layout and design conducted under approved Stewardship Management Plans is more ecologically sound. As NIPF lands provide an increasing percent of the Nation's timber supply, the need to provide proper planning and timely assistance is becoming more crucial.

In California, the Forest Service is participating with DOI agencies, and local community, industry, and environmental organizations in the Quincy Library Group. This coalition has developed a strategy that provides for multiple goods and services on NFS lands, including commercial thinning and fuel reduction. Through these kinds of collaborative efforts, timber harvesting opportunities and resource improvements can be successfully accomplished together.

In FY 1998, the Forest Management Staff conducted four program reviews and one unannounced audit in four regions focusing on timber sale preparation, harvest administration, timber theft prevention, and timber sale appraisals. Key findings included:

· timber accountability audits have not been completed to standard by some field units;

· some timber theft prevention and bid monitoring plans do not meet standards;

· security and accountability of tracer paint does not meet standards by some field units;

· the WO should provide the field with better direction on and training in suspension and debarment; and

· the transaction evidence appraisal system needs to be incorporated into some Regional Appraisal Handbooks.

Action Plans were finalized based upon the specific findings of each of these reviews, and implementation of the recommendations is currently in progress.

Objective 2.6: A sustainable supply of forage on suitable and capable lands for livestock and wildlife.

Seventy percent of the area within active grazing allotments on NFS land meets or is moving toward land and resource management plan objectives that result in healthy, native populations of wildlife, aquatic, and TES species. A key mechanism in this process is the scheduled NEPA analysis of many allotments leading to strategies, projects, and management guidelines that will improve forage conditions on public lands. Approximately 800 decisions based on these studies were signed in FY 1998.

^# Sources include Annual Reports of the Forest Service (FY's 1995-97); final MAR for FY's 1995-98.

Customer service is an important part of the range management program and it has a direct bearing on the agency's ability to accomplish other performance outputs, such as allotments managed to standard. Levels of grazing use in FY 1998 are displayed in Tables 39-40.

As more energy is directed toward allotment analysis, field personnel presently have less time available to construct new improvements, or to properly administer existing allotments. When these studies are completed and decisions are implemented, the emphasis will shift back to physical range improvements and an increase in the number of allotments administered to standard.

In FY 1998, the Forest Service, FWS, BLM, local agency officials, tribal leaders, and citizens worked with the States of Arizona and New Mexico to develop a natural resource conservation and community development strategy that includes an analysis of grazing issues. Through these efforts, the participants are working to maintain grazing in upland areas while increasing protection for TES species habitat in streamside zones. This collaboration on providing forage while protecting habitat is improving overall sustainability of southwestern rangelands.

In FY 1998, one program review related to this objective was completed in Region 6, focusing on grazing resource management planning and inventory. Results of this review included a plan for accelerating progress toward meeting planned accomplishment goals for signed NEPA decisions. A team approach, including both regional office and forest personnel, was designed to help achieve this.

Objective 2.7: Available mineral resources that comply with environmental and health standards.

Exploration, development, and production of energy and minerals on NFS lands contribute to economic growth, create jobs in rural communities, and raise revenues for the U.S.Treasury and the States. Related energy production levels are shown in Table 41. The agency is ensuring that minerals activities are conducted in an ecologically acceptable manner by completing NEPA analyses in a timely fashion, monitoring operations, and implementing related research findings.

^# Sources include Annual Reports of the Forest Service (FY's 1995-97); final MAR for FY's 1995-98.

The Forest Service role in mineral development varies. The agency prepares site-specific NEPA documents for proposed operations, determines if design or mitigation measures are necessary, and monitors and inspects operations. By processing development proposals on time, the agency ensures that mineral resources are available to meet demand. In recent years, the agency has been more successful at meeting this objective, in part by securing funding for NEPA analyses from potential operators.

Most mining activities require extensive coordination and review with the DOI. For example, on the Thunder Basin National Grassland in Wyoming, the Office of Surface Mining is responsible for managing on-the-ground operations of a coal mine, BLM monitors resource production, and the Minerals Management Service collects royalties. The Forest Service ensures surface protection and monitors the operation to ensure that production is conducted in an ecologically sound manner.

On a national level, several Memoranda of Understanding call for close cooperation, coordination, and sharing resources with the BLM. While not specific to the minerals and geology program, they open the door to helping each other process, administer, and oversee energy and nonenergy developments.

Objective 2.8: Better resource management decisions based on the best available scientific and management information.

The task of planning for the full range of multiple-use management activities has become more complex as a result of increasing demands for a limited resource base. Research and land and resource management planning efforts help agency managers quantify and understand the social and economic trade-offs among various policy options.

The Forest Service research organization provides information about relationships between the resource and natural and human-caused change. Most resource management issues today cut across disciplines. For example, fish habitat issues link to timber management, livestock grazing, and road maintenance issues. Integrating research efforts across disciplines increases the cost-effectiveness of research efforts and helps NFS managers understand issues and solutions from a broader, ecosystem perspective.

In FY 1998, over 1,500 technical reports, brochures, articles, and audio-visual materials were completed to assist in the transfer of research information to a wide variety of end users. Approximately 6 percent of all Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) field plots were reinventoried in 1998, moving toward an annual goal of 20 percent within this program that covers all public and private forests in the United States and its territories.

The complexity and data-intensive nature of the existing forest planning process demands substantial time and funding to acquire, analyze, and interpret information. Three land and resource management plan (LRMP) revisions were initiated in FY 1998 based on the need to change existing direction as the basis for plan decisions.

The Secretary of Agriculture's Committee of Scientists, supported by the EMCT and other agency staff, has completed its review of Forest Service planning regulations and issued a draft set of recommendations that will lead to a proposed rule in FY 1999.

Nearly 70 monitoring reports at various scales were completed in FY 1998. Inventory and monitoring provide the information needed to initiate LRMP revisions, leading to an anticipated 23 completions by the year 2000. Five of the nine regions produced a State of the Region evaluation report, down from nine in FY1997, primarily due to changes in content requirements and in regional staffing. Since this is a relatively new item, it may take several years for the regions to refine the processes needed to conduct useful evaluations for this type of report. In FY 1999 full compliance is expected.

^# Sources include Annual Reports of the Forest Service (FY's 1995-97); final MAR for FY's 1995-98.

Interagency efforts in 1998 included large-scale assessments such as the Southern Appalachian Assessment. The results of this assessment have been developed an shared by a number of Federal and State agencies, including the Forest Service, National Park Service, Tennessee Valley Authority, and Army Corps of Engineers. Completed over a 2-year span at relatively low cost, the assessment has already provided invaluable support for several agency planning efforts.

Objective 2.9: A safe environment for the public and employees on NFS lands.

Through the Law Enforcement and Investigations program, the agency seeks to reduce criminal activities associated with loss and damage to natural resources and structures, and increase forest patrols to create a safer environment for visitors and employees.

^# Sources include Annual Reports of the Forest Service (FY's 1995-97); final MAR for FY's 1995-98.

In FY 1998, the Forest Service continued to work toward reducing criminal activities associated with loss and damage to natural resources and structures below FY 1997 levels. Specific examples of related investigations include: timber theft, arson, archeological resources, and illegal drug cultivation.

Annual performance measures for law enforcement are under development. Several indicators, such as the number of incidents that occurred and the number of investigations conducted, are used to indicate relative levels of activity in law enforcement, but are not appropriate for distribution to the field as targets. Many such measures are complex, and require careful interpretation. For example, while increased numbers of violation notices issued might suggest greater levels of performance, the goal is to actually issue fewer notices in a safer environment characterized by greater public compliance.

Law enforcement issues cut across jurisdictional boundaries. Interagency efforts enable Federal, State, and county law enforcement operations to share resources and expertise. For example, Forest Service law enforcement officers worked closely with Border Patrol agents within national forests, located on or near international borders, to combat and mitigate the natural resource and public safety impacts of illegal drug smuggling and illegal immigration.

At a more local level, cooperative agreements provided funds to county law enforcement agencies to purchase equipment and perform patrols on NFS land. Detection and eradication of marijuana were conducted to meet the President's goals as identified in the 1998 National Drug Control Strategy.

Objective 2.10: NFS resources and land title are protected through conflict-free and legally defensible boundary lines, administration of special use authorizations, and provision of quality geometronics data for planning and management.

Through the Landownership Management program, the Forest Service surveys, marks, and maintains boundary lines to standard, administers special use authorizations to meet public health and safety standards, responds to applications for new authorizations, and provides geometronics data for planning and management.

Landlines established by legal surveys, which are clearly marked and posted, provide managers with defined boundaries for resource activities and development, while protecting property rights of adjoining landowners. Maintaining secure and clear landline boundaries prevents encroachments, landownership disputes, and timber trespasses. Accomplishments by category and region are shown in Table 42.

The agency is cooperating with BLM and contracting with private sector firms to achieve long-term landline goals. Through an interagency agreement, the Forest Service participates in the FS-BLM 9800 Fund Transfer Program to share and/or transfer the costs of surveying, marking, and posting boundary lines. This program ensures that public land boundaries are marked consistently, are marked only once, and that people needed to complete the job at either agency are available. In FY 1998, reimbursements totaled about $1.4 million.

Special use authorizations, including communication sites, public and private roads, hydropower license renewals, and energy related transmission rights-of-way, are all a part of the goods and services provided from NFS lands. Over 6,000 applications are submitted annually, and the total number processed in a timely fashion in FY 1998 continued to increase over prior years. These permits also provide support to other Federal, State, and local agencies in fulfilling their missions.

^# Sources include Annual Reports of the Forest Service (FY's 1995-97); final MAR for FY's 1995-98.

The types and numbers of permits and stages or levels at which a permit would be considered complete or fully administered for a given category are under review. As a result, these accomplishments will be measured and reported within a standardized and automated system by FY 2001.

The number of rights-of-way acquisition cases continued to decline in FY 1998 for two main reasons. First, current levels of forest management activities that often require road access rights-of-way have declined over the past 2 years. Second, some regions have increased their acquisition of temporary rights-of-way in lieu of perpetual multiple-use access.

Objective 2.11: An efficient and effective infrastructure that supports public and administrative uses of NFS lands.

Forest Service facilities are maintained to provide for a healthy and safe work environment, and to meet legal and safety requirements. This results in higher employee productivity, improved public image, and better customer service through better access. Adequate facilities and equipment also increase productivity in environmental resource development and use. At the same time, roads and facilities that are maintained to an acceptable standard help conserve resources and protect ecosystems by mitigating adverse environmental impacts.

^# Sources include Annual Reports of the Forest Service (FY's 1995-97); final MAR for FY's 1995-98. See Tables 42-45 in the Statistical Appendix for more detail.

Half of all Forest Service-owned facilities are at least 30 years old, and more than one-third of them are over 50 years old. These aging facilities are now beginning to deteriorate rapidly. The triage approach to infrastructure maintenance and repair required by recent annual appropriations cannot keep up with overall needs. To keep these facilities safe and accessible, the agency is exploring private funding, concessionaire operations, public/private ventures, and matching grants through programs such as the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (T21) to supplement regular agency appropriations.

Sharing facilities with other Federal agencies is helping to address facility maintenance and repair needs. In Colorado, the Forest Service and BLM share visitor centers and administrative offices, which saves money and supports one-stop shopping for customers who need services from both agencies. Similarly, the Forest Service and other USDA agencies share office space to reduce the cost of rent, utilities, and maintenance.