Appendix D – Past, Present and Reasonably Foreseeable Future Activities

Appendix D - Past, Present and Reasonably 

Foreseeable Future Activities Relevant to the 

Cumulative Effects Analysis

The Council on Environmental Quality issued an interpretive memorandum on June 24, 2005 regarding 

analysis of past actions, which states, “agencies can conduct an adequate cumulative effects analysis by 

focusing on the current aggregate effects of past actions without delving into the historical details of 

individual past actions.”

The cumulative effects analysis in this document is also consistent with Forest Service National 

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Regulations (36 CFR 220.4(f)) (July 24, 2008), which state, in part:

CEQ regulations do not require the consideration of the individual effects of all past actions to 

determine the present effects of past actions. Once the agency has identified those present 

effects of past actions that warrant consideration, the agency assesses the extent that the effects 

of the proposal for agency action or its alternatives will add to, modify, or mitigate those effects. 

The final analysis documents an agency assessment of the cumulative effects of the actions 

considered (including past, present, and reasonable foreseeable future actions) on the affected 

environment. With respect to past actions, during the scoping process and subsequent 

preparation of the analysis, the agency must determine what information regarding past actions 

is useful and relevant to the required analysis of cumulative effects. Cataloging past actions and 

specific information about the direct and indirect effects of their design and implementation 

could in some contexts be useful to predict the cumulative effects of the proposal. The CEQ 

regulations, however, do not require agencies to catalogue or exhaustively list and analyze all 

individual past actions. Simply because information about past actions may be available or 

obtained with reasonable effort does not mean that it is relevant and necessary to inform 

decision making. (40 CFR 1508.7)

The table below provides a summary of past, present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions that 

overlap in time and space with the Lang Dam project and could contribute cumulative effects to the 

resources in the project area. 

Action Agency Description Resources Affected

Past Actions

410 Road Hazardous 

Fuels Reduction USFS

Approximately 94 acres of fuels reduction 

completed in 2015 to create defensible 

space and reduce fire potential around the 

410 Road area and near-by structures 

south of Highway 26 near Cougar 

Reservoir. 

Fuels, Vegetation, Soil, 

Water, Recreation, 

Wildlife, Fisheries, Roads 

and Access 

Management, Invasive 

Plants

Present Actions
Appendix D – Past, Present and Reasonably Foreseeable Future Activities

Action Agency Description Resources Affected

7-Thin Stewardship 

Reoffer

(Bridge EA)

USFS

Originally sold in 2014, the 7-Thin 

Stewardship Reoffer project is anticipated 

to operate in 2016. Approximately 80 

acres of thinning and three acres of gaps. 

Fuels, Vegetation, Soil, 

Water, Recreation, 

Wildlife, Fisheries, Roads 

and Access 

Management, Invasive 

Plants

Buck Thin

(Horse Creek EA and 

the Castle Project CE)

USFS

Originally sold in 2014, Buck is a timber 

sale which includes units from the Horse 

Creek EA and the Castle Project CE. Only 

units from the Castle Project which fall with 

the Lang Dam Project Area are 

addressed. Approximately 51 acres of 

thinning.

Fuels, Vegetation, Soil, 

Water, Recreation, 

Wildlife, Fisheries, Roads 

and Access 

Management.

Transmission and 

Electric Line

Bonneville 

Power 

Administration 

and Lane 

Electric

Installation and ongoing maintenance of 

about 4 miles (~9 acres) of transmission 

line.

Wildlife, Invasive Plants, 

Vegetation

Reasonably Foreseeable Future Actions

Green Mountain EIS USFS

The project proposes to harvest 

approximately 4,398 acres. Proposed 

harvest treatments include thinning, gap 

creation, dominant tree release, 

regeneration harvest, and skips. Postharvest fuels treatments would include pile 

and burn and post-harvest underburn. 

Transportation related activities would 

include temporary road construction, road 

maintenance, road decommissioning, road 

storage, and bridge replacement. Field 

surveys and effects analysis for this project 

are completed.

Final EIS and Record of Decision are

anticipated in 2017. Implementation 

anticipated to begin in 2018.

Vegetation, Soil, Water, 

Recreation, Wildlife, 

Scenic Quality, Fisheries, 

Road and Access.

Lower South Fork 

Floodplain 

Enhancement EA

USFS

Placement of wood in channels and 

floodplain, stream reconstruction, levee 

removal, and sediment augmentation in the 

Lower South Fork McKenzie River below 

Cougar Dam.

To provide wood for the in-stream work,

the project proposes to harvest 655 acres 

via thinning and gap creation.

 

 

 

Fisheries, Wildlife, 

Recreation, Water, Soil, 

and Vegetation.
Appendix D – Past, Present and Reasonably Foreseeable Future Activities

Action Agency Description Resources Affected

Lower 19 Road 

Hazardous Fuels 

Reduction

USFS

Hazardous fuels reduction and scotch 

broom treatment in the 19 Road/410 Road 

area. The treatment would cover a 520 

acre area and broken into 13 units.

Decision Memo anticipated in 2017. 

Implementation anticipated in 2017.

Fuels, Vegetation, Soil, 

Water, Recreation, 

Wildlife, Fisheries, Roads 

and Access 

Management, Invasive 

Plants