Forest Plan Revision: May 2018 Status Update

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If you are interested in obtaining either a printed set of the documents (which will be at least 4 spiral-bound books totaling 2,000+ pages in length) or copies of the documents saved on an electronic media, please respond to the plan revision address provided at the end of this Update with your name and/or name of your organization (if applicable), specify your preference of hardcopy and/or electronic copy for the documents, and include a current mailing address.

The Coconino National Forest is considering different options for meeting with stakeholders and engaged citizens to share the revised Plan, address specific topics of interest, and answer questions, including an open house meeting and/or meeting with individuals or groups by invitation. If you or your organization is interested in meeting with us to discuss the revised Plan, please respond to the plan revision email address provided at the end of this Update by Friday September 1 with your name and/or name of your organization (if applicable), and if desired, a short list of Forest Plan-related topics or questions you are interested in discussing. Please also specify the format that would best meet your needs and availability (e.g., open house, our participation in your organization’s meeting, etc.). Your response will help us decide how to best meet the needs of those interested in additional information about the revised Plan.

Monitoring Plan Transition

This fall/winter we will begin to transition the monitoring plan within the revised Plan to meet the requirements of the 2012 Planning Rule, which requires all forest plans prepared under the previous 1982 Planning Rule to include the monitoring requirements of the new Rule. Most of the 2012 Planning Rule requirements have been included in the revised Plan; however, the remaining requirement is for the inclusion of focal species. Focal species are used in lieu of management indicator species, which are required by the 1982 Planning Rule, to assess progress towards meeting diversity and ecological sustainability requirements. The revised Plan will not initially include focal species, and instead include the three previously identified management indicator species: Mexican spotted owl, pygmy nuthatch, and pronghorn.

As we wrap-up the completion of the revised Plan, we intend to begin the process for the selection of focal species, which will involve working with the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Arizona Department of Game and Fish. As we do so, we will keep the public informed of our progress at appropriate times. Once focal species have been selected and appropriate notice has been provided to the public, we will adjust the monitoring plan in the revised Plan to include those focal species. At the same time, we intend to remove the management indicator species that were required by the 1982 Planning Rule. At this point, the Forest will have completed the monitoring plan transition as required by the 2012 Planning Rule. 

90-Day Appeal Window

Per requirements in the 1982 Planning Rule, there will be a period of time following the completion of the revised Plan for appeals to be filed. The appeal window will end 90 days after the date of the Notice of Availability (NOA) is published in the Federal Register. The Coconino National Forest anticipates publishing the NOA sometime in November 2017 which would have the appeal filing period closing sometime in February 2018.

Contact Us

As we move through this final phase of the forest plan revision process, we will continue to keep you informed of our progress. If you have questions, please contact Vernon Keller, Forest Planner, at (928) 527-3415 or vkeller@fs.fed.us. To update your existing contact information, please email us at: coconino_national_forest_plan_revision_team@fs.fed.us

Thank you again for your continued interest in the future of the Coconino National Forest!

 

 

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