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USDA Forest Service
Daniel Boone
National Forest
1700 Bypass Road
Winchester, KY 40391

Phone: 859-745-3100
FAX: 859-744-1568

Limits of Acceptable Change: April 2006 Newsletter

Dear Friend of the Red River Gorge, 

We continue to work through Step 5 of the LAC process (specify measurable standards for resource & social indicators for each opportunity zone). Step 5 is a key component of the entire LAC process. To update yourself on what has been accomplished in Step 5, see the article in this newsletter.

The next two LAC workshops on Step 5 have been scheduled for Tuesday, April 25 and Tuesday, June 20.

We are preparing for a field trip in the Red River Gorge on Saturday, May 13. The field trip is open to the public. The purpose is to help LAC participants with Step 6 (identify alternative opportunity zones) and Step 7 (identify needed management actions) of the LAC process. We will look at different areas of the Gorge and discuss how the zoning step will occur. For planning purposes, please let us know if you will be attending the field trip. There is no fee. Transportation will be provided (first come – first served basis). Call (859) 745-3132 or send an e-mail to teling@fs.fed.us. You will find more details about the field trip in this newsletter.

Thank you for your continued involvement in the LAC process. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Tim Eling
Limits of Acceptable Change Coordinator

Next LAC Workshops April 25 and June 20.
Field Trip set for May 13, 2006

The next two LAC workshops are scheduled. The first will be on Tuesday, April 25, 2006, and the second will be on Tuesday, June 20, 2006. Both workshops will be at the Clark County Cooperative Extension Service in Winchester, KY from 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

A field trip to the Red River Gorge is set for Saturday, May 13, 2006. The field trip will be from 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. We will meet at the Gladie Cultural-Environmental Learning Center at 9:30 a.m.
Directions: The Clark County Cooperative Extension Service is located on Fortune Drive, 1/4 mile north of I-64 at exit 96.

FIELD TRIP TO RED RIVER GORGE ON MAY 13, 2006 – PLEASE RSVP

There will be a free public field trip in the Red River Gorge on Saturday, May 13, 2006. We will meet at the Gladie Cultural-Environmental Learning Center at 9:30 a.m. We will go to several locations for short hikes and return to Gladie by 3:00 p.m. The purpose of this field trip is to allow LAC participants a better understanding of on-the-ground conditions prior to establishing opportunity zones during Step 6 of the LAC process. We will review some of the results of the inventory conducted in Step 4. For instance, we will review a variety of campsites and trails to get a better understanding of what the various condition classes represent.

The field trip will allow participants to see the difference between a condition class 2 campsite and a condition class 5 campsite. This knowledge should help us determine standards during the Step 5 LAC workshops. We will look at lightly used areas vs. concentrated use areas in the Gorge. This knowledge should be beneficial as we specify where opportunity zones should be drawn on maps during Step 6. For instance, the opportunity zone called “Pristine” should probably not be applied at a highly visited area such as Half-Moon.

Lastly, we will look at some of the management actions that the Forest Service has already been using to minimize impacts from recreation use. Some examples may include fencing, signing, and management of parking locations.
We want to start thinking about what possible management actions we would want to develop during Step 7. We plan on getting a couple of vans to shuttle people to the trailheads. Please RSVP if you think you want to attend this field trip so we can plan accordingly.

WHAT: LAC field trip to Red River Gorge

WHEN: Saturday, May 13, 2006. 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

WHERE: Gladie Center at 9:30 a.m.

DIRECTIONS: The Gladie Center is located on KY 715 approximately 5 miles east of intersection with KY 77.

RSVP: Please let us know if you can attend by sending an e-mail to teling@fs.fed.us or calling (859) 745-3132.

BRING: Clothes and footwear suitable for hiking, sack lunch, and drinking water

CONTACT US:

Tim Eling is the coordinator for the Red River Gorge Limits of Acceptable Change (LAC) process. You may contact Tim at the Winchester Office (headquarters for the Daniel Boone National Forest) or the Stanton Office of the Cumberland Ranger District (local office for the Red River Gorge area).

STATUS OF STEP 5 OF LAC PROCESS

“Establish measurable standards for resource and social conditions”
Several public workshops have been held for Step 5 of the LAC process during this past winter. We have been establishing measurable standards for the resource and social indicators developed during Step 3. Below is a draft table that was developed for displaying standards for resource indicators. Across the top are the six opportunity zones developed during Step 2. Along the left side are resource indicators grouped into 1 of the 6 main inventory categories (system trails, user trails, campsites, destination points, rockshelters, climbing areas). The table will be filled in with measurable standards for each of the six zones.

For instance, a standard for condition class of system trails may be “no worse than cc 4” for the roaded natural opportunity zone. What this means is that we will allow system trails in the roaded natural zone up to a condition class of 4. If the trail moves into a condition class 5, then we have exceeded our limit of acceptable change and some sort of action is needed to bring the condition back into standard. Before selecting standards for indicators, the descriptions of the six opportunity zones must be reviewed in order to understand what the overall desired future condition is for that zone. For example, the description for the pristine opportunity zone states that there are no official system trails. Therefore, there should be no standard developed for condition class since there should be no trails.

Address:

Daniel Boone National Forest         
Red River Gorge LAC Process
1700 Bypass Road
Winchester, KY 40391

Daniel Boone National Forest
Red River Gorge LAC Process
705 W. College Ave
Stanton, KY 40380

E-mail:

teling@fs.fed.us

Phone:

Tim Eling, LAC Coordinator:
(859) 745-3132 Winchester
(606) 663-2852 Stanton

Fax:

(859) 744-1568 Winchester

(606) 663-9097 Stanton

Website:

http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/boone/lac

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Author: Tim Eling
Last Updated: April 25, 2006