USFS proposes trailhead relocation

The Sisters Ranger District is proposing to relocate and designate a new trailhead for the Chush Falls area.

The local ranger district also wants to decommission Forest Service system roads; close Forest Service system roads; convert Forest Service roads to a trail; remove the damaged Snow Creek snowmobile bridge; and reroute a portion of the Cross District Snowmobile Trail.

The project is located about 11 air miles southwest of Sisters.

The Chush Falls Trailhead Relocation Project draft environmental assessment (EA) is available for public comment.

Comments will help craft the final decision regarding the project.

The draft EA discloses the environmental effects of the action alternatives as required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

The draft EA describes two alternatives, including the No Action alternative.

The proposed action (Alternative 2) would designate a permanent trailhead outside the Three Sisters Wilderness for Chush Falls, a popular day-use area in the wilderness.

The proposed action would decommission about 1.33 miles of Forest Service System roads; close about 1.45 miles of Forest Service roads; and convert about 1.39 miles of Forest Service roads to a Class 2 trail to reduce impacts to the wilderness.

The proposed action would also designate a new snowmobile route using the existing forest road system and remove the remnants of the Snow Creek snowmobile bridge that was destroyed during the 2012 Pole Creek fire. The new snowmobile route would provide continued winter recreation connections with the Cross District Snowmobile Trail. The timing of the removal of the remains of the bridge needs to be coordinated with the road decommissioning associated with the project.

The project area is about 3,007 acres (the size of the project area is primarily determined by the new snowmobile route location).

The draft EA will have a 30-day public comment period. The 30-day public comment period will begin on the date of the publication of a legal notice in The Bulletin, the newspaper of record. Comments should be within the scope of the proposed action, have a direct relationship to the proposed action, and must include supporting reasons for the responsible official to consider.

Comments will be reviewed and addressed in a Response to Comments section of the decision.

There are three ways for you to obtain a copy of the draft EA:

• Request a hard copy - one will be mailed to you or you can come by the district office to pick up your copy.

• Request a copy of the draft EA on a compact disk (CD).

• Download the draft EA (link provided with online version of this story at www.nuggetnews.com">www.nuggetnews.comwww.nuggetnews.com.

Submit your comments to Chush Falls Trailhead Relocation Project, District Ranger, Kristie Miller, P.O. Box 249, Sisters, Oregon 97759; FAX 541-549-7746. Email comments should be sent to comments-

[email protected] Those submitting electronic comments must do so only to the email listed above, must put the project name in the subject line, and must either submit comments as part of the email message or as an attachment in only one of the following three formats: Microsoft Word, rich text format (rtf), or Adobe Portable Document Format (pdf). Include your mailing address if you are submitting comments by email.

For more information about the project or a copy of the EA, please contact Michael Keown, Environmental Coordinator, Sisters Ranger District, P.O. Box 249, Sisters, Oregon; or 541-549-7735.