An estimated 4.4 miles of new road would be constructed under this harvest proposal. Construction would 

 begin on State land, from the French Creek road in Section 14. A bridge will be installed to cross the creek. 

 The bridge will be gated and locked to prevent unauthorized use. An estimated 3.2 miles of new road would be 

 constructed on State land to tie in with an existing road in the Gladstone Creek drainage. An additional 1.2 

 miles of road would be constructed in the Gladstone drainage to access harvest units. 



ISSUES, CONCERNS AND PUBLIC COMMENT 



Notices of the proposed harvest were published in the Helena Independent Record on July 30, August 3 and 

 August 10, 1997. An initial proposal was mailed to special interest groups, interested individuals, specialists in 

 DNRC, the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks (DFWP) and landowners in French and Gladstone Creek. 

 The primary' issues that resulted from the scoping effort include: 



1) Right-of-wav and Access Issues - Landowners in Gladstone and French Creek are concerned that road 

 development associated with the proposed harvest will increase use by the public, create trespass 

 problems and increase littering. 



2) Bull Elk Survival - The DFWP is concerned the proposed timber harvest will reduce elk security in an 

 area that already has low bull elk survival due to high access levels and low security resulting from 

 subdivisions and/or previous logging efforts in the hunting district (423). 



3) Weeds - There is concern the disturbance associated with the proposed harvest would create 

 conditions favorable for the spread of no.xious weeds. 



4) Sensitive Species There is concern the proposed sale would adversely affect sensitive species. 



To address the concerns identi/ied in the scoping effort, the following mitigations were incorporated in the 

 harvest proposal. 



The new road construction between French and Gladstone Creeks will be closed by locked 

 gate to restrict unauthorized use and access. 



Disturbed sites will be promptly seeded with grass, weed infestations will be monitored and 

 treated until revegetation of disturbed sites is complete. A road use and weed control 

 agreement between DNRC and private landowners has been established for portions of the 

 existing road in Gladstone Creek. 



