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APPENDIX A
Interagency Scientific Committee (ISC)
Early assessments and decision documents on forest management of Federal lands in the Pacific Northwest were primarily focused on the conservation of the northern spotted owl, a species strongly associated with certain late-successional forests of the Pacific Northwest. In 1989, an interagency scientific team was assembled to address the conservation of this species. Their effort was completed in 1990 and produced a conservation strategy for the spotted owl. [ Thomas, J.W.; Forsman, E.D.; Lint, J.B. [and others]. 1990. A conservation strategy for the northern spotted owl: a report of the Interagency Scientific Committee to address the conservation of the northern spotted owl. Portland, OR: United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service; United States Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, and National Park Service. 427 p. ] This endeavor set a precedent for the involvement of science in policy issues through a scientific-assessment process.
As the Forest Service initiated this conservation strategy (Bureau of Land Management did not implement this strategy), implementation was delayed by two major concerns: (1) the conservation plan did not follow the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) decision process, including procedural errors, and (2) the plan was oriented toward only one species, raising questions as to its effectiveness for managing ecosystems that included late-successional forests. Federal agencies were directed by the courts to follow the NEPA process, which meant completing an environmental impact statement (EIS) before implementing the conservation strategy. Once the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) was produced, it was legally challenged based on the lack of protection for other vertebrate species, as required under the National Forest Management Act. Subsequent rulings found that the protection measures for other vertebrates had not been addressed sufficiently, although this was not within their charge.
Scientific Panel on Late-Successional Forest Ecosystems
In May 1991, while the EIS was being written on the conservation strategy for northern spotted owl management, a report was requested by Congress to assess viability of species and groups of species associated with late-successional forests. Four scientists (K. Norman Johnson, Oregon State University; John Gordon, Yale University; Jerry Franklin, University of Washington; and Jack Ward Thomas, Pacific Northwest Research Station), known as the Gang-of-Four, led a team to evaluate a set of alternatives for the management of late-successional forests (Alternatives for Management of Late-Successional Forests of the Pacific Northwest). [ Johnson, K.N.; Franklin, J.F.; Thomas, J.W.; Gordon, J. 1991. Alternatives for management of late-successional forests of the Pacific Northwest. A report to the Agriculture Committee and the Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives. 59 p.] Their report, completed in October 1991, indicated that the long-term viability (population persistence) of species associated with late-successional forests within the range of the northern spotted owl was questionable, meaning that they had low to medium viability ratings. In June 1992, Congress attempted to resolve the owl habitat management issue by using the options developed in this report; however, no new legislative guidelines were produced at that time.
The Scientific Panel on Late-Successional Forest Ecosystems report addressed great gray owls only in the context of a wide array of species associated with late-successional forests. Consequently, management alternatives for these species were broad, whereas only the spotted owl, marbled murrelet, and anadromous fish had specific guidelines.
Scientific Analysis Team (SAT)
In response to the ruling that the protection measures for other vertebrates had not been addressed sufficiently in the plan for the northern spotted owl (ISC), the Chief of the Forest Service convened another scientific committee in July 1992 called the SAT. The SAT’s objectives included the evaluation of the long-term viability of all species that may be associated with late-successional forests, and the development of recommendations for mitigation measures that would assure a medium-high viability for those species. Their analysis of the species associated with late-successional forests also had to consider the ramifications of the Federal Government’s implementation of the ISC’s recommendations for the northern spotted owl, including protection measures for anadromous fish and marbled murrelets.
The SAT’s report [ Thomas, J.W.; Raphael, M.G.; Anthony, R.G., [and others]. 1993. Viability assessments and management considerations for species associated with late-successional and old-growth forests of the Pacific Northwest. The Report of the Scientific Analysis Team. Portland, OR: United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Forest System; Pacific Northwest Research Station. 530 p.] was the first time that management guidelines appeared specifically for the great gray owl. During the formulation of this report, the SAT recognized that the range and habitat overlap of great gray owls with the spotted owl was small and that the National Forest land management plans at the time did not provide explicit conservation measures for this species. Consequently, they concluded that management guidelines needed to be developed for the great gray owl to ensure its long-term viability.
Even though the recommendations of the SAT were never implemented directly from the report, their findings were firmly established in subsequent assessments. Several procedures were developed during the SAT that strongly influenced future scientific assessments:
1. Viability Standard
The team evaluated each species associated with late-successional forests for the likelihood of its long-term viability under the alternatives found within the ISC’s plan for the northern spotted owl. Mitigation options were developed for each species that had been judged to attain viability likelihoods of medium, medium-low, or low under the ISC’s plan. Mitigation was designed to achieve at least medium-high likelihood of viability for each species.
2. Expert Panel Evaluation
The SAT initiated the expert panel process by bringing together a group of scientists, both internal and external to the process, to assess the viability of large groups of species under different management alternatives. The EIS process for the ISC’s northern spotted owl plan also used internal and external experts but only assessed one species. In addition, the Gang-of-Four did similar viability assessments on vertebrates associated with late-successional old-growth forests, but unlike the panel process of the SAT, they did not use panel members external to their assessment team.
3. Buffer Concept of Mitigation
In the SAT’s report, the strategy of locating certain species associated with late-successional forests and then designating buffers around known locations was developed as a mitigation option. For example, in regards to birds, potential nest sites are first surveyed and located. After that, known locations are then given a "no cut" buffer of one to two tree heights around the nest location, with a larger buffer modifying activities nearby.
Of the 38 species evaluated in the SAT’s report, 29 had at least a medium-high likelihood of viability under the ISC plan and did not require additional mitigation. The great gray owl was one of the few birds identified as needing special mitigation measures to assure at least a medium-high likelihood of viability. These measures were stated in the SAT’s report as follows (p. 297): [ Thomas, J.W.; Raphael, M.G.; Anthony, R.G., [and others]. 1993. Viability assessments and management considerations for species associated with late-successional and old-growth forests of the Pacific Northwest. The Report of the Scientific Analysis Team. Portland, OR: United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Forest System, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 530 p.]
Great Gray Owl--Within the range of the northern spotted owl, the great gray owl is most common in lodgepole pine forests adjacent to meadows. However, it is also found in other coniferous forest types. In some locations, such as on the Willamette National Forest west of the Cascades Crest, at least some shelterwood harvesting seems to be beneficial for the species by opening up otherwise closed canopy cover for foraging. In doing so, consequences to species such as northern goshawk and American marten must be evaluated. Specific mitigation measures for great gray owl, within the range of the northern spotted owl, include the following: provide a no-harvest buffer of 300 ft around meadows and natural openings and establish 1/4-mile protection zones around known nest sites. Within one year, develop and implement a standardized protocol for surveys; survey for nest locations using the protocol. Protect all future discovered nest sites as previously described.
Forest Ecosystem Management Assessment Team (FEMAT)
On April 2, 1993, President Clinton convened a Forest Conference in Portland, Oregon to address the increasing political, social, and environmental concerns surrounding the management of Federal forests. The President created three working groups to help resolve these ongoing issues. One of those groups was a scientific team that focused on the development of options for the management of Federal forests, the Forest Ecosystem Management Assessment Team (FEMAT). The team developed, analyzed, and produced a report [ Forest Ecosystem Management Assessment Team. 1993. Forest ecosystem management an ecological, economic, and social assessment. Portland, OR: United States Department of Agriculture; United States Department of the Interior [and others]. [Irregular pagination].] with 10 different options; followed by the President selecting one of these options, number 9. For the great gray owl, FEMAT made no changes to management guidelines that were presented in the SAT report.
