Evaluation of EIS alternatives by the science integration team, volume I.

Abstract

The Evaluation of EIS Alternatives by the Science Integration Team describes the outcomes, interactions, effects, and consequences likely to result from implementing seven different management strategies on Forest Service (FS) and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) administered lands within the Interior Columbia Basin and portions of the Klamath and Great Basins. Two environmental impact statement teams developed seven alternative approaches to the management of forest, rangeland, aquatic, and watershed systems of FS- and BLM- administered lands. The alternatives varied from continuation of current management, to managing biodiversity within a network of large reserves, to actively managing to restore ecosystem health and integrity. Continuing with current management direction, in the absence of interim protection measures, results in continued declining trends in ecological integrity and increasing risk to species. No single alternative was found to result in improved outcomes for all species, reduced risk to ecological integrity, and improved resiliency for social and economic systems. Alternatives that prioritize activities to restore and/or maintain ecological integrity and simultaneously provide desired goods and services within the capability of the ecosystem appear to have favorable trends in most species outcomes, landscape functions, and resiliency in social and economic systems. The Draft and Final Environmental Impact Statements are expected to differ to some extent from the preliminary Draft Environmental Impact Statement analyzed for this evaluation.