Wilderness Unauthorized Route Restoration Project EA Open for Review

The Inyo National Forest announces that the 30-day public review for the Wilderness Unauthorized Route Restoration ProjectEnvironmental Assessment (EA) is open on June 4, 2013.

Inyo National Forest prepared an EA to implement a restoration project on unauthorized routes in the White Mountains and John Muir Wildernesses. The forest proposes to conduct restoration activities on fifty-eight unauthorized routes in a project area that includes eighty unauthorized routes. The unauthorized routes are either located in wilderness or were designated as unauthorized by the 2009 Travel Management Record of Decision. The project has two primary purposes. The first purpose is to protect wilderness character by preventing illegal vehicle trespass into the two wilderness areas. The second purpose is to promote natural revegetation processes on the routes. The forest has identified three objectives for the project: protect soil quality by stabilizing eroding sections of routes; promote the recovery of native vegetation cover and plant communities on route surfaces; protect the undeveloped quality of wilderness character in the White Mountains and John Muir Wildernesses.

Under the Modified Proposed Action, the Inyo National Forest would conduct six types of restoration activities: de-compact surface soils on routes; reestablish natural contours on route surfaces by removing berms; install native vertical mulch; spread native ground mulch; install water bars or similar water diversion structures; and transplant/seed with native plants on the non-wilderness portion of routes. These project activities would enable the Forest Service to best meet the project’s purpose and objectives.

The EA is available in hard copy format or can be viewed on the Inyo National Forest website at http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/inyo/landmanagement/projects/?cid=stelprdb5407462. To obtain a copy of the EA or of you have questions, please contact Project Leader Jeff Novak at 760-876-6231, jnovak@fs.fed.us, or PO Box 8, Lone Pine, CA, 93545.

Is this about unauthorised foot trails or vehicular roads?

From the linked page: Three separate OHV unauthorized route restoration projects are in the project proposal development process.