Matrix (Connectivity/Diversity Blocks and General Forest Management Area)

Objectives

Produce a sustainable supply of timber and other forest commodities.

Provide connectivity (along with other allocations such as Riparian Reserves) between Late-Successional Reserves.

Provide habitat for a variety of organisms associated with both late-successional and younger forests.

Provide for important ecological functions such as dispersal of organisms, carryover of some species from one stand to the next, and maintenance of ecologically valuable structural components such as down logs, snags, and large trees.

Provide early-successional habitat.

Land Use Allocation

In the Matrix, there are approximately 54,900 acres of BLM-administered land in the General Forest Management Area and 26,900 acres in Connectivity/Diversity Blocks. Connectivity/Diversity Blocks vary in size and are distributed throughout the Matrix.

Management Actions/Direction

Apply the management actions/direction in the Special Status and SEIS Special Attention Species section.

Conduct timber harvest and other silvicultural activities in that portion of the Matrix with suitable forest lands, according to management actions/direction summarized below and in the Timber section.

Provide a renewable supply of large down logs well distributed across the Matrix landscape in a manner that meets the needs of species and provides for ecological functions. Down logs will reflect the species mix of the original stand. Models will be developed for groups of plant associations and stand types that can be used as a baseline for developing prescriptions.

Leave 120 linear feet of logs per acre greater than or equal to 16 inches in diameter and 16 feet long. Decay class 1 and 2 logs will be credited toward the total. Down logs will reflect the species mix of the original stand. Where this management action/direction cannot be met with existing coarse woody debris, merchantable material will be used to make up the deficit.
In areas of partial harvest (eg. Connectivity/Diversity Blocks, density management), apply the same basic management actions/direction as in Number 1 above, but they can be modified to reflect the timing of stand development cycles where partial harvest is practiced.
Retain coarse woody debris already on the ground and protect it to the greatest extent possible from disturbance during treatment (e.g., slash burning and yarding) which might otherwise destroy the integrity of the substrate.

Retain green trees and snags throughout the General Forest Management Area.

Retain six to eight green conifer trees per acre in regeneration harvest units.
Retain snags within a timber harvest unit at levels sufficient to support species of cavity nesting birds at 40 percent of potential population levels. Meet the 40 percent minimum throughout the Matrix with per acre requirements met on average areas no larger than 40 acres.
In addition to the previous green tree retention management action/direction, retain green trees for snag recruitment in timber harvest units where there is an identified, near term (less than three decades) snag deficit. These trees do not count toward green tree retention requirements.

Provide Connectivity/Diversity Blocks spaced throughout the BLM Matrix. Manage the blocks as follows:

Maintain 25 to 30 percent of each block in late-successional forest at any point in time. Inclusions of Riparian Reserves and other allocations with late-successional forest within the gross mapped Connectivity/Diversity Blocks count toward this percentage. Blocks may be comprised of contiguous or noncontiguous BLM-administered land. The size and arrangement of habitat within a block will provide effective habitat to the extent possible.
Manage available forest land within each block on a 150 year area control rotation.
When an area is regeneration harvested, retain 12 to 18 green trees per acre within harvest units.

Modify site treatment practices, particularly the use of fire and pesticides, and modify harvest methods to minimize soil and litter disturbance. Plan and implement treatments to:

Minimize intensive burning, unless appropriate for certain specific habitats, communities, or stand conditions. Prescribed fires should be planned to minimize the consumption of litter and coarse woody debris.
Minimize soil and litter disturbance that may occur as a result of yarding and operation of heavy equipment.
Reduce the intensity and frequency of site treatments.

Retain late-successional forest patches in landscape areas where little late-successional forest persists. This management action/direction will be applied in fifth field watersheds (20 to 200 square miles) in which federal forest lands are currently comprised of 15 percent or less late-successional forest. (The assessment of 15 percent will include all federal land allocations in a watershed.) Within such an area, protect all remaining late-successional forest stands. Protection of these stands could be modified in the future when other portions of a watershed have recovered to the point where they could replace the ecological roles of these stands.

Retain 100 acres of the best northern spotted owl habitat as close as possible to a nest site or owl activity center for all known (as of January 1, 1994) spotted owl activity centers.