Figure 4-1: Acres affected by insects within a 5-miIe radius of the Dirty Ike Fire, 

 1999 - 2002 (USPS Insect and Disease Activity Maps 2003). 



Acres Affected by Insects 1999 - 2002 



(A 

 0) 



U 



< 



80 

 70 

 60 

 50 

 40 

 30 

 20 

 10 

 



ni999 

 H2000 

 02001 

 D2002 



Western Mountain Douglas-fir Western Fir Engraver 

 Pine Beetle Pine Beetle Beetle Balsam Bark 



Beetle 



Within the context of 330 acres burned on School Trust land, the 

 proposed action would harvest fire-killed trees on approximately 204 

 acres, much of which was stand replacement fire. Such action would 

 reduce hiding cover for grizzly bears through removal of tree boles. 

 While areas that experienced stand replacement fire currently have 

 open understories, devoid of forbs and shrubs, tree boles do inhibit 

 sight-distance, thusly providing hiding cover (McTague and Patton 

 1989). Much like the Alternative A: No Harvest (No Action), the 

 affected area will be gradually re-vegetated through natural 

 succession. Thus, under the Alternative B: Harvest, hiding cover will 

 likely be replaced in approximately 20 years through natural 

 vegetative succession. Additionally, the proposed action would 

 relocate a gate within section 2, T I2N, R 17 W for a more effective 

 closure against all-terrain vehicles. However, grizzly bear activity has 

 not been observed in the affected area in several years. Thus, fire- 

 salvage operations would likely have little direct or indirect effect on 

 grizzly bears. 



Future harvest operations to salvage insect-killed timber would be 

 more likely to affect grizzly bears. Although grizzly bear activity has 

 not been observed within the affected area in recent years, the rapid 

 growth and expansion of grizzly bears in the Blackfoot Valley, and 

 observed activity 14 miles east of the affected area, allow one to 



Dirty Ike Salvage Environmental Assessment 



4-11 



