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BLM to expand contested area Plan would add 10,000 acres to Cascade Siskiyou Ecological Emphasis Area By PAUL FATTIG ASHLAND -- The Bureau of Land Management wants to increase the Cascade Siskiyou Ecological Emphasis Area (CSEEA) by nearly 10,000 acres -- to 40,975 acres -- while further restricting timber harvest and cattle grazing on the land. That's the agency's preferred alternative in the draft management plan and draft environmental impact statement being released today. In addition, the preferred alternative calls for closing some 17 miles of the 22-mile Schoheim Road, a controversial four-wheel-drive road cutting through part of the area. The area has been the focus of an intense debate recently between environmental activists, the timber industry, ranchers, recreational users and others on how it should be managed in the future. The current ecological emphasis area covers 31,575 acres. The area is about 12 miles wide, stretching from Jenny Creek on the east to the Siskiyou Summit. It is about 10 miles deep, stretching from the state line north to Highway 66. The alternative was one of five considered. Other alternatives included everything from no action to focusing on commodities such as timber and grazing. The two-volume draft document is 550 pages. Release of the documents begins a 90-day public comment period that ends June 14. A final decision is expected Nov. 1. A public meeting on the draft package will begin at 1:30 p.m. April 8 in the Stevenson Union at Southern Oregon University. The draft plan and EIS are not connected to proposals by an environmental group and government officials to make the Soda Mountain area within the CSEEA a national monument, said Rich Drehobl, field manager for the BLM's Ashland Resource Area. Soda Mountain was visited by Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt in October. Babbitt also held a round-table discussion on the monument proposal in Medford last month. The area was designated an ecological emphasis area in President Clinton's Northwest Forest Plan in 1994 as well as the BLM's Medford District resource plan released in 1995, Drehobl said. "It was clearly set aside (by those plans) because it is unique," he said, citing ecological and biological characteristics identified by scientists. "We are going about this independent of any national designation. It could still be a national monument but that's not what we're looking at." Instead, the agency has been focusing on how to best manage the area to protect its unique qualities as required by the Northwest Forest Plan and the district resource plan, he said. "The primary emphasis is on restoration of the ecology and natural process in the area," he said of the preferred alternative. ``Grazing would be used primarily as a management tool." For example, grazing would be used to battle invasive vegetation, he said. The area is now under a grazing allotment with three permittees, he added. "This would switch from commodity production to ecological preservation and maintenance," he said. "There is likely to be a reduction in grazing because of that." Although timber harvesting has been relatively limited in the area, the preferred alternative would further restrict timber harvesting to be used as a tool to restore and maintain forest health, he said. "The emphasis would be changed from one of commercial product to ecological health and sustainability," he said, noting that would include activities such as thinning. The preferred alternative calls for closing most of the Schoheim Road because of erosion problems as well as the fact it runs through critical deer winter range, he said. The road is not needed for forestry management, he added. "There has been some fear by a lot of people that we're trying to lock them out," he said. "We're not doing that." The preferred alternative would only restrict vehicular use where it harms the ecology, he said, noting that much of the access would remain unchanged. The agency already has received nearly 600 comments on what should be done with the area. Many expressed concern about the potential negative impact of cattle grazing in the area, while others felt grazing could be used as a management tool for preventing fires and enhancing wildlife habitat. Other comments focused on roads and off-highway vehicle use, timber harvesting, mining, ecological and biological diversity, wildfires, management of the area, increased regulations, hiking and non-motorized recreation. Environmentalists led by the Soda Mountain Wilderness Council have been pressing for additional protection of up to 70,000 acres of federal land in the area. But off-road motor vehicle users, the timber industry and ranchers are worried that such a move would be unfair to those who have historically relied on the resource. Beginning Monday, the draft document and the preferred alternative will be on the agency's Web site at: www.or.blm.gov/Medford . Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA