Land Management Plan Strategy - Suitable Land Uses (Aguanga)

Land Management Plan Strategy - Suitable Land Uses

Prospectus - Place-Based Program Emphasis

Aguanga

Theme: Aguanga Place forms a scenic backdrop along California State Highway 79. The Aguanga Place supports dispersed remote recreation use, developed camping, and wilderness use in Agua Tibia Wilderness, as well as administrative uses. The Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail corridor links the Laguna Mountains with the San Jacinto Mountains to the north. This Place is an important wildlife habitat corridor between the Agua Tibia Wilderness, the San Jacinto Mountains, and the Santa Ana Mountains.

Setting: The ridge between Aguanga and Palomar Mountains and the summits and slopes of the Agua Tibia Wilderness form a backdrop to southern Riverside County, the city of Temecula, and the rapidly developing rural communities of the Temecula Valley along the California State Highway 79 corridor. Elevations range from 3,000 feet at Dripping Springs to 5,000 feet at Eagle Crag. Rapid urbanization will dramatically change the rural character of the private land surrounding the Aguanga landscape. Aguanga includes the Temecula Creek and upper San Luis Rey River Watersheds. Drainages are typically dry, sandy and strewn with boulders. The headwaters for both the San Luis Rey and Santa Margarita Rivers originate in this Place and represent some of the least developed coastal draining watersheds remaining in southern California. The rural community has been dependent on groundwater from basins recharged by annual runoff from the national forest. Rapid urbanization is likely to change the demand for water as city sub-divisions with fully developed infrastructures replace the rural ranches that have been dependent on well water.

In general, steep chaparral-covered mountains give way to stands of pine and oak at higher elevations with stringers of big cone Douglas-fir stands along the northeast facing drainages. In the past, this area was characterized by its expansive stands of old-growth chaparral including distinctive stands of redshank and tree-sized manzanita. However, large fires in the past 15 years have burned nearly the entire western half of the area. The Agua Tibia Wilderness has important stands of bigcone Douglas-fir, and includes the Agua Tibia Research Natural Area (RNA), emphasizing one of the most impressive stands of bigcone Douglas-fir and canyonoak forest. The Agua Tibia RNA also represents the southern range extension for several plant species, such as madrone, pink honeysuckle, broadleaf stonecrop, and woodland pinedrops, indicating habitat affinities with more northerly ranges. The high levels of ozone and other air pollutants in the region are known to affect the health and vigor of these vegetative communities.

Numerous communities along California State Highway 79 are at risk from wildland fire. Community protection projects have been accomplished adjacent to several of these communities and more are planned. Recent drought has resulted in mortality of the chaparral species, which is expected to increase fire suppression and community protection needs. A lack of Fire Safe Councils is a barrier to maximizing community protection efforts.

The vegetation age class varies between 3-100 years. One federally endangeredbarberry (Berberis nevinii), and two federally threatened plants, slender-horned spineflower (Dodecahema leptoceras), and Vail Lake ceanothus (Ceanothus ophiochilus) occur in the Aguanga Place. Other sensitive plants include rainbow manzanita (Arctostaphylos rainbowensis) Orcutt's brodiaea (Brodiaea orcuttii), Payson's jewelflower (Caulanthus simulans), Mojave tarplant (Hemizonia mohavensis), Lakeside ceanothus (Ceanothus cyaneus), Orcutt's linanthus (Linanthus orcuttii), Hall's monardella (Monardella macrantha hallii), and San Felipe monardella (Monardella nana leptosiphon).

Habitat between the Agua Tibia/Palomar Rangidentified as a link for top carnivores such as mountain lions. The fragmentation of wildlife habitats is recognized as a threat to the conservation of biodiversity.

The Aguanga Place is popular for developed, dispersed, and wildernerecreation sites include Dripping Springs, Oak Grove, and Indian Flats Campgrounds and San Luis Rey Picnic Area. Access points into the national forest originate from California State Highway 79. Camping, hiking, and hunting are popular activities within this Place. There areopportunities to develop educational and interpretive services regarding recreation opportunitinatural resources, public safety, etc. There are some abandoned, unreclaimed mines located within this Place, along with active high-grade tourmaline mining. The Aguanga Place supppermitted livestock grazing.

There is a maintenance backlog on National Forest System roads making access difficult for vehicles, including fire engines. Access to National Forest System lands by the public and for administrative purposes could be improved with acquisition of rights-of-way through private parcels. Trail use is moderate. Cutca Trail, the Dripping Springs Trail loop, and the Pacific CreNational Scenic Trail provide most of the trail related recreation. There are opportunities to improve parking at the Barker Valley Trailhead and to upgrade developed campground faciliparticularly Indian Flats Campground.

Existing Wilderness:

• Agua Tibia Wilderness 15,890 acres

Recommended Wilderness:

• Cutca Valley (Agua Tibia Wilderness) 3,821 acres

Established Research Natural Areas:

• Agua Tibia 517 acres

Special Interest Areas:

• Pine Mountain 273 acres

Total national forest acres--Aguanga Place: 47,895

Desired Condition: The Aguanga Place is maintained as a natural appearing landscape functioning as a rural backdrop for southern Riverside County. The valued landscape attributes to be preserved over time are the remote, undeveloped character of the backdrop, pockets of bigcone Douglas-fir in high elevation drainages, and the undisturbed character within the foreground and from key vista points along the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail. Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) of the airshed encompassing Agua Tibia Wilderness (designated Class I area) is also desired.

Program Emphasis: Conservation easements for wildlife connectivity on land outside Congressional boundaries are needed in order to maintain habitat links to the Santa Ana Mountains and San Jacinto Ranger District.

Maintain the scenic integrity of the rural backdrop and the remote and rural character of the Aguanga Place. Develop multiple lines of defense against wildland fire and enhance defensible space. Protect bigcone Douglas-fir stands and communities adjacent to the national forest by maintaining the existing fuelbreak system, continuing large chaparral burns adjacent to the communities in the eastern portion of the Aguanga Place, and by treating chaparral vegetation adjacent to bigcone Douglas fir stands. Evaluate the effects of high levels of ozone on the Agua Tibia Wilderness air resource.

Coordinate planning along the eastern boundary for access, boundary management, land adjustment, and water extraction with adjacent communities. Emphasize high water quality in the West Fort of the San Luis Rey River and Temecula Creek Watersheds. Acquire rights-of-way to maintain access. Foster outdoor learning opportunities for neighboring communities. Maintain working relationships with the tribal governments. Revise existing wilderness plan for the Agua Tibia Wilderness.

Protect the natural appearance, opportunity for solitude, and air quality resources in the Agua Tibia Wilderness. Maintain a scenic buffer along the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail corridor. Balance trails usage with trailhead facilities and improve parking at popular destinations. Accommodate dispersed recreation and equestrian use where feasible. Improve road access to the Agua Tibia Wilderness and trail access within the wilderness. Increase road and trail maintenance to support management objectives, including fire suppression and prevention. Improve campground facilities and replace outdated facilities per the respective facilities master plans. Manage grazing on a sustainable basis in concert with other resource uses and needs.

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