Contact: LPFW Public Affairs, 805-252-4277

AGENCY RE-OPENS PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD FOR BIG SUR GRAZING PROPOSAL

Livestock Grazing Proposed in Sensitive Habitat and
Wilderness Along 24,000 Acres of Pristine Coastline

For the third time in six years, the Forest Service is re-releasing a proposal to dramatically expand livestock grazing along the fragile Big Sur coastline in the Los Padres National Forest.

The agency has prepared a new environmental assessment for the grazing expansion, and will accept public comments on the proposal until August 29, 2005.

The new plan would allow livestock grazing to expand across nearly 24,000 acres on four existing grazing allotments, named the Gorda, Salmon Creek, Alder Creek, and San Carpoforo allotments. The plan would also create three new grazing allotments on the Kozy Kove, Sea Sea, and Sur Vista ranches.

Cattle and other livestock grazing on these coastal allotments threatens several federally-listed species, including the endangered Smith’s blue butterfly, the threatened South-Central Coast steelhead, and the threatened California red-legged frog, and negatively impacts sensitive vernal pool habitats and rare plant species. The decision also illegally increased grazing levels in a protected wilderness area, conflicted with recreation uses, and would have lead to further damage of Native American sites and areas of cultural significance.

The agency's most recent proposal is not much different than previous attempts to expand livestock grazing along the Big Sur coast. The agency proposed almost the exact same grazing scheme in 1999, but withdrew the decision after the Ventana Wilderness Alliance (VWA) and the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) filed an appeal, citing an inadequate review of impacts and a failure to comply with federal laws.

In 2004, the agency revised its grazing expansion plan and formally approved it in December 2004. As approved, the grazing would have damaged sensitive habitats for endangered species, polluted clean rivers, and interfered with newly-designated wilderness areas.

ForestWatch joined forces with VWA, CBD, and the Ventana Chapter of the Sierra Club to formally appeal this decision. In response to our appeal, the Forest Service withdrew its decision and went back to the drawing board in March 2005.

The new plan appears to suffer from the same legal and scientific deficiencies that plagued the agency's previous proposals. Under NEPA, the Forest Service must prepare an Environmental Impact Statement before approving any action with significant environmental effects, such as authorizing livestock grazing in endangered species habitat and wilderness.

Instead, once again, the agency is only preparing a shorter, less-rigorous Environmental Assessment. The agency's EA fails to explore a reasonable range of alternatives, including not grazing; fails to consider public comments; fails to consider cumulative environmental impacts; inadequately assesses grazing impacts to water quality, soils, recreation, invasive species, and scenic resources; and ignores numerous published studies showing significant impacts caused by grazing.

In its revised analysis, the agency also provides new justification for expanding grazing into the newly-designated Silver Peaks Wilderness Area. Allowing grazing in these pristine areas violates the Wilderness Act, which allows grazing in wilderness only if such grazing was permitted in an area before wilderness designation.

Cattle have previously damaged riparian habitat for steelhead along Prewitt and Plaskett Creeks in the Gorda Allotment, and cattle can injure or kill steelhead eggs and young fish by treading through anadromous fish streams. Where livestock graze in or near Smith’s Blue Butterfly habitat, trampling kills or stunts the growth of seacliff buckwheat, the butterfly’s host plant.

The project area has a high degree of biological significance; it contains habitat for numerous endangered and other sensitive species; includes portions of and is adjacent to the Congressionally-designated Silver Peak Wilderness Area; is bordered by the recently-designated California Coastal National Monument; contains San Carpoforo Creek, which was declared an “area of particularly high ecological significance” in the Forest Service’s Southern California Mountains and Foothills Assessment; and is adjacent to Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.

LINKS

Overview Map

Draft Environmental Assessment

Chapter 1
Introduction

Chapter 2
Comparison of Alternatives

Chapter 3-4
Environmental Consequences

Appendices

Maps

Gorda Allotment:
Mill Creek Unit
Prewitt Creek Unit
Plaskett Creek Unit
Pacific Valley Unit

Alder Creek Allotment

Buckeye Allotment

Salmon Creek Allotment

Kozy Kove Allotment

San Carpoforo Allotment

Torre Allotment

Twitchell Allotment

Previous Appeal

Click here to read about our previous appeal of this project.