IIA

105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 858

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JULY 10, 1997

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural

Resources

AN ACT

To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct a pilot

project on designated lands within Plumas, Lassen, and

Tahoe National Forests in the State of California to

demonstrate the effectiveness of the resource management activities proposed by the Quincy Library Group

and to amend current land and resource management
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plans for these national forests to consider the incorporation of these resource management activities.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Quincy Library Group

5 Forest Recovery and Economic Stability Act of 1997’’.

6 SEC. 2. PILOT PROJECT FOR PLUMAS, LASSEN, AND TAHOE

7 NATIONAL FORESTS TO IMPLEMENT QUINCY

8 LIBRARY GROUP PROPOSAL.

9 (a) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the

10 term ‘‘Quincy Library Group-Community Stability Pro11 posal’’ means the agreement by a coalition of representa12 tives of fisheries, timber, environmental, county govern13 ment, citizen groups, and local communities that formed

14 in northern California to develop a resource management

15 program that promotes ecologic and economic health for

16 certain Federal lands and communities in the Sierra Ne17 vada area. Such proposal includes the map entitled

18 ‘‘QUINCY LIBRARY GROUP Community Stability Pro19 posal’’, dated June 1993, and prepared by VESTRA Re20 sources of Redding, California.

21 (b) PILOT PROJECT REQUIRED.—

22 (1) PILOT PROJECT AND PURPOSE.—The Sec23 retary of Agriculture (in this section referred to as

24 the ‘‘Secretary’’), acting through the Forest Service
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1 and after completion of an environmental impact

2 statement (a record of decision for which shall be

3 adopted within 200 days), shall conduct a pilot

4 project on the Federal lands described in paragraph

5 (2) to implement and demonstrate the effectiveness

6 of the resource management activities described in

7 subsection (d) and the other requirements of this

8 section, as recommended in the Quincy Library

9 Group-Community Stability Proposal.

10 (2) PILOT PROJECT AREA.—The Secretary shall

11 conduct the pilot project on the Federal lands within

12 Plumas National Forest, Lassen National Forest,

13 and the Sierraville Ranger District of Tahoe Na14 tional Forest in the State of California designated as

15 ‘‘Available for Group Selection’’ on the map entitled

16 ‘‘QUINCY LIBRARY GROUP Community Stability

17 Proposal’’, dated June 1993 (in this section referred

18 to as the ‘‘pilot project area’’). Such map shall be

19 on file and available for inspection in the appro20 priate offices of the Forest Service.

21 (c) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN LANDS, RIPARIAN PRO22 TECTION AND COMPLIANCE.—

23 (1) EXCLUSION.—All spotted owl habitat areas

24 and protected activity centers located within the

25 pilot project area designated under subsection (b)(2)
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1 will be deferred from resource management activities

2 required under subsection (d) and timber harvesting

3 during the term of the pilot project.

4 (2) RIPARIAN PROTECTION.—

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Scientific Analysis

6 Team guidelines for riparian system protection

7 described in subparagraph (B) shall apply to all

8 resource management activities conducted

9 under subsection (d) and all timber harvesting

10 activities that occur in the pilot project area

11 during the term of the pilot project.

12 (B) GUIDELINES DESCRIBED.—The guide13 lines referred to in subparagraph (A) are those

14 in the document entitled ‘‘Viability Assessments

15 and Management Considerations for Species

16 Associated with Late-Successional and Old17 Growth Forests of the Pacific Northwest’’, a

18 Forest Service research document dated March

19 1993 and co-authored by the Scientific Analysis

20 Team, including Dr. Jack Ward Thomas.

21 (3) COMPLIANCE.—All resource management

22 activities required by subsection (d) shall be imple23 mented to the extent consistent with applicable Fed24 eral law and the standards and guidelines for the

25 conservation of the California spotted owl as set
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1 forth in the California Spotted Owl Sierran Provence

2 Interim Guidelines, or the subsequently issued final

3 guidelines whichever is in effect.

4 (d) RESOURCE MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES.—During

5 the term of the pilot project, the Secretary shall implement

6 and carry out the following resource management activi7 ties on an acreage basis on the Federal lands included

8 within the pilot project area designated under subsection

9 (b)(2):

10 (1) FUELBREAK CONSTRUCTION.—Construction

11 of a strategic system of defensible fuel profile zones,

12 including shaded fuelbreaks, utilizing thinning, indi13 vidual tree selection, and other methods of vegeta14 tion management consistent with the Quincy Library

15 Group-Community Stability Proposal, on not less

16 than 40,000, but not more than 60,000, acres per

17 year.

18 (2) GROUP SELECTION AND INDIVIDUAL TREE

19 SELECTION.—Utilization of group selection and indi20 vidual tree selection uneven-aged forest management

21 prescriptions described in the Quincy Library

22 Group-Community Stability Proposal to achieve a

23 desired future condition of all-age, multistory, fire

24 resilient forests as follows:
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1 (A) GROUP SELECTION.—Group selection

2 on an average acreage of .57 percent of the

3 pilot project area land each year of the pilot

4 project.

5 (B) INDIVIDUAL TREE SELECTION.—Indi6 vidual tree selection may also be utilized within

7 the pilot project area.

8 (3) TOTAL ACREAGE.—The total acreage on

9 which resource management activities are imple10 mented under this subsection shall not exceed

11 70,000 acres each year.

12 (4) RIPARIAN MANAGEMENT.—A program of ri13 parian management, including wide protection zones

14 and riparian restoration projects, consistent with ri15 parian protection guidelines in subsection (c)(2)(B).

16 (e) COST-EFFECTIVENESS.—In conducting the pilot

17 project, Secretary shall use the most cost-effective means

18 available, as determined by the Secretary, to implement

19 resource management activities described in subsection

20 (d).

21 (f) FUNDING.—

22 (1) SOURCE OF FUNDS.—In conducting the

23 pilot project, the Secretary shall use, subject to the

24 relevant reprogramming guidelines of the House and

25 Senate Committees on Appropriations—
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1 (A) those funds specifically provided to the

2 Forest Service by the Secretary to implement

3 resource management activities according to the

4 Quincy Library Group-Community Stability

5 Proposal; and

6 (B) excess funds that are allocated for the

7 administration and management of Plumas Na8 tional Forest, Lassen National Forest, and the

9 Sierraville Ranger District of Tahoe National

10 Forest.

11 (2) PROHIBITION ON USE OF CERTAIN

12 FUNDS.—The Secretary may not conduct the pilot

13 project using funds appropriated for any other unit

14 of the National Forest System.

15 (3) FLEXIBILITY.—Subject to normal re16 programming guidelines, during the term of the pilot

17 project, the forest supervisors of Plumas National

18 Forest, Lassen National Forest, and Tahoe National

19 Forest may allocate and use all accounts that con20 tain excess funds and all available excess funds for

21 the administration and management of Plumas Na22 tional Forest, Lassen National Forest, and the

23 Sierraville Ranger District of Tahoe National Forest

24 to perform the resource management activities de25 scribed in subsection (d).
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1 (4) RESTRICTION.—The Secretary or the forest

2 supervisors, as the case may be, shall not utilize au3 thority provided under paragraphs (1)(B) and (3) if,

4 in their judgment, doing so will limit other nontim5 ber related multiple use activities for which such

6 funds were available.

7 (5) OVERHEAD.—Of amounts available to carry

8 out this section—

9 (A) not more than 12 percent may be used

10 or allocated for general administration or other

11 overhead; and

12 (B) at least 88 percent shall be used to im13 plement and carry out activities required by

14 this section.

15 (6) AUTHORIZED SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDS.—

16 There are authorized to be appropriated to imple17 ment and carry out the pilot project such sums as

18 are necessary.

19 (7) BASELINE FUNDS.—Amounts available for

20 resource management activities authorized under

21 subsection (d) shall at a minimum include existing

22 baseline funding levels.

23 (g) TERM OF PILOT PROJECT.—The Secretary shall

24 conduct the pilot project during the period beginning on
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1 the date of the enactment of this Act and ending on the

2 later of the following:

3 (1) The date on which the Secretary completes

4 amendment or revision of the land and resource

5 management plans for Plumas National Forest,

6 Lassen National Forest, and Tahoe National Forest

7 pursuant to subsection (i).

8 (2) The date that is five years after the date of

9 the commencement of the pilot project.

10 (h) CONSULTATION.—(1) Each statement required

11 by subsection (b)(1) shall be prepared in consultation with

12 the Quincy Library Group.

13 (2) CONTRACTING.—The Forest Service, subject to

14 the availability of appropriations, may carry out any (or

15 all) of the requirements of this section using private con16 tracts.

17 (i) CORRESPONDING FOREST PLAN AMENDMENTS.—

18 Within 180 days after the date of the enactment of this

19 Act, the Regional Forester for Region 5 shall initiate the

20 process to amend or revise the land and resource manage21 ment plans for Plumas National Forest, Lassen National

22 Forest, and Tahoe National Forest. The process shall in23 clude preparation of at least one alternative that—

24 (1) incorporates the pilot project and area des25 ignations made by subsection (b), the resource man-
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1 agement activities described in subsection (d), and

2 other aspects of the Quincy Library Group Commu3 nity Stability Proposal; and

4 (2) makes other changes warranted by the anal5 yses conducted in compliance with section 102(2) of

6 the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42

7 U.S.C. 4332(2)), section 6 of the Forest and Range8 land Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16

9 U.S.C. 1604), and other applicable laws.

10 (j) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than February 28

12 of each year during the term of the pilot project, the

13 Secretary after consultation with the Quincy Library

14 Group, shall submit to Congress a report on the sta15 tus of the pilot project. The report shall include at

16 least the following:

17 (A) A complete accounting of the use of

18 funds made available under subsection (f)(1)(A)

19 until such funds are fully expended.

20 (B) A complete accounting of the use of

21 funds and accounts made available under sub22 section (f)(1) for the previous fiscal year, in23 cluding a schedule of the amounts drawn from

24 each account used to perform resource manage25 ment activities described in subsection (d).
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1 (C) A description of total acres treated for

2 each of the resource management activities re3 quired under subsection (d), forest health im4 provements, fire risk reductions, water yield in5 creases, and other natural resources-related

6 benefits achieved by the implementation of the

7 resource management activities described in

8 subsection (d).

9 (D) A description of the economic benefits

10 to local communities achieved by the implemen11 tation of the pilot project.

12 (E) A comparison of the revenues gen13 erated by, and costs incurred in, the implemen14 tation of the resource management activities de15 scribed in subsection (d) on the Federal lands

16 included in the pilot project area with the reve17 nues and costs during each of the fiscal years

18 1992 through 1997 for timber management of

19 such lands before their inclusion in the pilot

20 project.

21 (F) A schedule for the resource manage22 ment activities to be undertaken in the pilot

23 project area during the calendar year.

24 (2) LIMITATION ON EXPENDITURES.—The

25 amount of Federal funds expended on each annual
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1 report under this subsection shall not exceed

2 $50,000.

3 (k) FINAL REPORT.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning after completion

5 of 6 months of the second year of the pilot project,

6 the Secretary shall compile a science-based assess7 ment of, and report on, the effectiveness of the pilot

8 project in meeting the stated goals of this pilot

9 project. Such assessment and report—

10 (A) shall include watershed monitoring of

11 lands treated under this section, that should ad12 dress the following issues on a priority basis:

13 timing of water releases, water quality changes,

14 and water yield changes over the short and long

15 term in the pilot project area;

16 (B) shall be compiled in consultation with

17 the Quincy Library Group; and

18 (C) shall be submitted to the Congress by

19 July 1, 2002.

20 (2) LIMITATIONS ON EXPENDITURES.—The

21 amount of Federal funds expended for the assess22 ment and report under this subsection, other than

23 for watershed monitoring under paragraph (1)(A),

24 shall not exceed $150,000. The amount of Federal

25 funds expended for watershed monitoring under
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1 paragraph (1)(A) shall not exceed $75,000 for each

2 of fiscal years 2000, 2001, and 2002.

3 (l) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.—Nothing in

4 this section exempts the pilot project from any Federal

5 environmental law.

Passed the House of Representatives July 9, 1997.

Attest: ROBIN H. CARLE,

Clerk.