White Mountain National Forest United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service Rumney Rocks Project Supplemental Environmental Assessment Eastern Region Town of Rumney, Grafton County, NH 30-day Comment Report Prepared by the Pemigewasset Ranger District June 2013 For Information Contact: Thomas Giles White Mountain National Forest 71 White Mountain Drive Campton, NH 03223 Phone: 603 536-6102 Fax: 603 536-3685 www.fs.usda.gov/whitemountain 1
This document is available in large print. Contact the Pemigewasset Ranger District White Mountain National Forest 603-536-6105 TTY 603-536-3665 The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. Printed on Recycled Paper Cover photo: location of full bench rock removal alongside Buffalo Road, connecting the two parking lots. 2
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Introduction The Pemigewasset Ranger District of the White Mountain National Forest (WMNF) is seeking your input on a modification to the connector trail analyzed in the Rumney Rocks Project which had a Decision Notice and Finding of No Significant Impact signed on October 5, 2009. This project proposes to alter the vertical alignment of a section of the connector trail between the two Rumney Rocks parking lots on Buffalo Road. This shift in alignment will require rock removal, either in the form of mechanical removal or blasting, the effects of which were not analyzed in the original project, and will be analyzed and disclosed as part of this supplemental environmental analysis. Information from the 2009 project and decision is available here: http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/whitemountain/landmanagement/projects/?cid=st elprdb5207087. Another project, which is also being considered under this supplemental analysis, is the addition of a permanent toilet building in the vicinity of the Main Cliff Parking Lot. Background The original Rumney Rocks Project decision included a variety of projects to improve public access, public safety and to protect the resources at Rumney Rocks Climbing Area. Since that decision, one project to redesign and improve safety at the Main Cliff Parking Lot has been completed. There is now a paved parking lot with a capacity for 16 vehicles which provides access to many of the most popular cliffs in the climbing area. This is the second parking lot encountered on the north side of Buffalo Road when traveling west from Rumney Village (see map). The original project also analyzed and approved the construction of a Figure 1. Main Cliff Parking Lot completed in May, 2011 4
connector trail between these two parking lots. This connector trail was designed to provide rock climbers and users of the area a way to avoid having to walk alongside Buffalo Road to access trails and cliffs. Due to the narrow nature of the road, lack of a good shoulder, and blind corners, heavy pedestrian traffic in this area has long been recognized as a safety issue. Following the decision on the Rumney Rocks Project, new concerns were raised by some Forest personnel regarding one segment of the proposed new trail. Concerns were raised that in order to best address safety concerns and trail integrity, a portion of the trail that traverses the rock ledge adjacent to Buffalo Road between the two parking lots should be redesigned. The new design would require rock removal, which was not analyzed in the original assessment and would require additional analysis by the interdisciplinary team (IDT) of resource specialists. On October 13, 2010, a Supplemental Information Report for Changes to Parking Lots and Hiking Trail Rumney Rocks Project was signed. This document provided a description of what had changed from the original proposed action for this connector trail, as well as for the construction and reconstruction of the parking lots. The District Ranger decided that the environmental effects from parking lot modifications were adequately considered in the original decision but the revised alignment of the connector trail was not sufficiently analyzed and that a supplement to the original decision would be necessary for this component of the project. Another project which has emerged since the completion of the new Main Cliff Parking Lot is the installation of a permanent toilet building in the vicinity of the new parking lot (Main Cliff Lot). Currently there is one toilet building servicing the Rumney Rocks area located in the Main Parking Lot. Since the completion of the newer Main Cliff Parking Lot, we recognized the potential need for a toilet facility in its vicinity. Portable toilets (portapotties) have been Figure 2. Main Lot (Parking Lot Wall) Entrance 5
installed seasonally since 2011 to evaluate the potential use and need for a permanent toilet building. Purpose and Need for Action The purpose and need for the revised alignment of the connector trail was captured in the Supplemental Information Report. The Report revealed that following further engineering review, the trail as originally proposed would likely receive significant wear and tear from the weather and falling ice, not hold up well to winter wear, potentially become unsafe, and would not be a sound economic investment due to its expected high maintenance costs. The Report evaluated three options to realign the trail and ruled out a higher option because it would require too much elevation gain and a ground level option would not be safe due to the blind corner where the road would meet the trail. Consequently a mid-slope option became the most viable in order to meet the original purpose and need for the trail as described in the environmental analysis. After the addition of the Main Cliff Parking Lot was completed in 2011, monitoring of the area revealed human waste accumulating in the vicinity of the parking lot. In response to this issue, two portable toilets were contracted and placed in the northeast corner the parking lot. The resulting use of these toilets during the summer season required them to be serviced weekly and occasionally on peak weeks extra service calls were necessary in order to maintain an appropriate level of sanitation. As a result of this demonstrated use and need, the installation of a permanent toilet was deemed necessary by recreation specialists. Proposed Action The proposed action is to change the location of a section of the new trail to be constructed between the two parking lots. This section of trail that is being realigned is approximately 150 feet long and includes two areas where a rocky slope comes down to the edge of Buffalo Road (see figure 3 below). The new alignment will be mid-slope, approximately 4-8 feet above the ground level and traverse the slope using a bench cut in the rock outcroppings and a rock filled walkway between them. Construction in this new location will require rock 6
removal, either mechanically using powered Figure 3. Area requiring rock removal and full bench construction. rock drills and chipping tools, usually mounted on the head of an excavator, or blasting using explosives. Approximately 450 cubic yards of rock will be removed and placed in the gap between the two outcroppings to provide a foundation for the trail. The elevation of the trail will be designed to be out of the way of a snowplow to protect it in winter, approximately 4-8 feet above the road surface. The trail will not be maintained for winter use. The trail will maintain a four foot width and safety railings will be installed on the outside edge where the trail is adjacent to the road. In addition to the trail, a permanent toilet building will be installed in the vicinity of the Main Cliff Parking Lot. Due to the amount of rock and ledge present in the area, an exact location for the toilet has not been determined. Pending the outcome of the decision for this project, subsurface exploration will be necessary to determine a suitable location. This toilet will be a closed vault system with no septic system or leach field. The vault will be serviced by a septic truck company and with the waste pumped out of the vault and removed from the site, typically on an annual or semi-annual basis. The area currently being considered for the toilet location is on the southeast edge of the parking lot adjacent to where the connector trail will enter the parking lot. This location will require a side cut into the bank and the construction of a retaining wall with drains. Since the exact location for the 7
toilet has not yet been determined, for the purposes of this analysis the toilet will be sited within 200 feet of the perimeter of the Main Cliff Parking Lot. The original Rumney Rocks Project analysis described a state-listed plant species, Aureolaria pedicularia var. intercedens or fern-leaved false foxglove, growing at the base of this cliff. This plant is not federally listed or threatened, nor is it on the Regional Forester s Sensitive Species list. The original analysis for this project concluded that this plant might be impacted by project implementation. Mitigation involved collecting seed from this population to allow reintroduction of the plant following completion of trail construction. Seed from this population was collected in 2010, and if the population is affected, the plant will be reintroduced using this seed source once the project is complete. Since the original decision was released the State of New Hampshire rare plant tracking list has been updated. Due to the discovery of several new populations of the species referred to above, it has been delisted and is now considered a Watch species. This designation carries no official status in the State of New Hampshire or on the WMNF. Given that it remains relatively uncommon in the state and that seed has already been collected, the mitigation measure stated above remains valid and will be implemented if necessary. Another species of concern in the Rumney Rocks area is the State-listed and Regional Forester Sensitive Species listed Peregrine falcon, Falco peregrins anatum. Falcons have nested on the Main Cliff in prior years and are currently nesting on the Summit Cliff this season. If the connector trail project does require blasting, specialists from NH Audubon would be consulted and depending on where the falcons are nesting, appropriate mitigations taken to not startle them during breeding and fledgling season (March 1 to August 1). How are you involved in this decision? The Forest Service has revised regulations at 36 CFR 218 related to administrative review of projects documented in a Decision Notice or Record of Decision. This change updates how the agency addresses concerns of the public that remain unresolved after the analysis is completed. The new rule replaces the post-decisional appeal process for all projects analyzed in an Environmental Assessment or Environmental Impact Statement with a pre-decisional objection process. 8
This project is subject to subparts A and B of the new regulations. Therefore anyone who submits timely specific written comments during any designated opportunity for public participation (including the 30-day comment period) will be eligible to file an objection based on the final analysis and a draft decision document. For the purposes of this rule, specific written 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 (36 CFR 218.2). Specific written comments can include transcripts or other notes of oral comments or presentations. This 30-day comment period is a designated opportunity for public participation. Pursuant to 36 CFR 218.25, comments concerning this project must be postmarked or received within 30 calendar days following the publication of this notice in the New Hampshire Union Leader. Only individuals or entities (as defined by 36 CFR 218.2) who submit timely and specific written comments about this proposed project or activity during this or another public comment period established by the responsible official will be eligible to file an objection. Other eligibility requirements are identified at 36 CFR 218.25(a)(3) and include name, postal address, title of the project, identity of the individual or entity who authored the comments, and signature or other verification of identity upon request. Submit comments to Jon Morrissey, District Ranger, c/o Tom Giles at: 71 White Mountain Drive, Campton, New Hampshire, 03223; 603-536-6100 (TTY 603-536- 3665). The office hours for submitting comments in person are 8:00am-4:30pm, M-F, excluding holidays. Comments may be FAXed to 603-536-3685. Electronic comments should include an identifiable name and must be submitted as an email message, plain text (.txt), rich text (.rtf), Word (.doc) or portable document format (.pdf) document to comments-eastern-white-mountainpemigewasset@fs.fed.us. For additional information on this project, contact Tom Giles at 71 White Mountain Drive, Campton, New Hampshire, 03223; 603-536-6102; or tjgiles@fs.fed.us. 9