Land class 



Category C (noncommercial): 



Unproductive forest land 

 Productive unsuitable forest land: 



Noncommercial forest soils 



Isolated patches 

 Productive unavailable forest land: 



Crest zone 



Special zone 



Use conflicts 



Total — Category C 



Category D (deferred): 



NONFOREST LAND 

 TOTAL ALL LAND 



REGION 4 - BOISE UNIT 



The Cascade and Garden Valley Ranger Dis- 

 tricts of the Boise National Forest were used as 

 the Intermountain Region's contribution to 

 this effort. These two Districts are in the Idaho 

 Batholith, a land formation well known for its 

 unstable and highly erodible character. Much 

 of the area is quite rugged and steep in addition 

 to being highly erodible. The management of 

 the land is further complicated by the fact that 

 the area is a very important source of water. 

 Also, the major streams support anadromous 

 fish. The South Fork of the Salmon River, for 

 example, is an important salmon spawning 

 area. 



Thus, these two Ranger Districts contain 

 major areas which are extremely sensitive, but 

 they also include some of the most productive 

 timber land in the Intermountain Region of the 

 Forest Service. Twenty percent of the commer- 

 cial forest land in the study area has the capac- 

 ity to produce in excess of 100 cubic feet of 

 wood per acre per year. The landforming pro- 

 Land class 



Area in acres 



682,557 



108,285 

 287 



210 

 15,974 

 20,605 



827,918 



22,207 



355,924 

 1,774,710 



cesses that shaped the area involved glaciation 

 and left a lot of area of low productivity. Inven- 

 tory procedures of the past have not ade- 

 quately reflected this. As was indicated by data 

 in table 2, over 23,000 acres previously classed 

 as productive forest land lacked the required 

 productive capacity when stocking capability 

 was considered. 



Demands for timber land for nontimber uses 

 have also increased significantly in recent years. 

 The rugged mountain scenery, the fishing 

 streams and lakes, as well as the large and small 

 game animals and birds attract large numbers of 

 people. Around some of the lakes and along the 

 more popular fishing streams, significant recre- 

 ation complexes have already been developed 

 and others are planned. In addition, the study 

 area joins an established primitive area into 

 which visitors to local dude ranches and camps 

 make wilderness excursions. 



Summary of the Boise Unit 



Following is a summary of the area in the 

 Boise Unit by broad land management 

 categories : 



Area in acres 



Category A (commercial): 



Full yields expected 151,720 

 Modified yields expected 47,045 

 Total - Category A " 198,765 



37 



