1.10.1.3 Cumulative Watershed Effects (Issue #3) 



Cumulative watershed effects can be characterized as impacts on water quaUty 

 and quantity that result from the interaction of disturbances, both human- 

 caused and natural. Timber harvest activities can affect the timing of runoff, 

 increase peak flows and increase the total annual water yield of a particular 

 drainage. 



1.10.1.4 Cold Water Fisheries (Issue #4) 



Land management activities such as timber harvest and road construction can 

 impact fish habitat primarily by accelerating sediment delivery above natural 

 levels to local stream channels and by decreasing large woody debris through 

 the removal of recruitable trees near the stream channel. 



1.10.1.5 Air Quality (Issue #5) 



Prescribed burning of logging slash can produce large amounts of smoke that 

 may adversely impact air quality. This is of particular concern adjacent to 

 populated areas such as Missoula that are subject to cold air inversions, which 

 trap pollutants in the valley bottom. 



1.10.1.6 Noxious Weeds (Issue #6) 



Following disturbance events such as timber harvest activities, invasion and 

 spread of noxious weeds is more prevalent than in undisturbed areas. Noxious 

 weed invasion and spread detrimentally influences surface cover, erosion and 

 native species growth. 



1 . 10. 1 .7 Natural Forest Conditions (Issue #7) 



Due to extensive timber harvesting near the turn of the century and decades of 

 effective fire exclusion in the project area, the timber -stands in the project area 

 today are very different in structure and species composition than the stands 

 that occupied the site prior to European settlement. Some species are 

 dependent, or at least prefer the type of forest stand that existed in the pre- 

 settlement era, which no longer occurs on the site. 



1.10.1.8 Heavy Truck Traffic and Public Safety (Issue #8) 



1.10.1.8.1 Dust 



Dust produced by log truck traffic adjacent to residential areas could 

 reduce visibility and be a nuisance to local residents. 



1.10.1.8.2 Cochise Drive 



Heavy truck traffic on Cochise Drive could create a safety problem due to 

 its narrow width. 



1.10.1.8.3 Entering Highway 93 from Cochise Drive 



Log trucks entering Highway 93 could create a potential hazard to 

 motorists. 



Deadman Gulch Timber Sale Environmental Assessment 1-4 



