United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service Supervisor s Office E6248 US2 Ironwood, MI 49938 (906) 932-1330 (906) 932-0122 (FAX) File Code: 1950/2350 Date: April 11, 2012 Dear Friends of the, This letter is being mailed to you because you have an interest in the activities of the Ottawa National Forest or in motorized and recreation access on the Forest. The objective of this letter is to provide you with basic information on the proposed Eastern Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Connector project and to request your comments on this proposal. Why is the Forest Service proposing the Eastern OHV Connector? There is limited connectivity between the State of Michigan s Multi-Use trails (e.g., the Iron River to Marenisco Trail and Sidnaw to Bergland Trail) and the network of designated roads and trails managed by the. Logical connections to other open routes (Forest Service and other jurisdictions) would improve the recreational riding experience and provide connections between communities nestled within the Ottawa. For these reasons, the Ottawa National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan) included emphasis on providing connections to existing designated public roads and trails (Forest Plan pp. 2-4 and 2-14 to 2-15). The Forest Plan also provides direction to utilize existing corridors to the extent possible to minimize the need for new construction (Forest Plan pp. 2-4). The Eastern portion of the (west of Forest Highway 16) provides an opportunity to provide longer contiguous routes and connections between State multi-use trails. In addition, it provides an opportunity to designate routes where we can utilize primarily existing corridors and provide access within the motorized areas of the Forest (Forest Plan pp. 2-14). The purpose and need of this project is to determine which roads and trails could serve to provide a connection between existing State of Michigan multi-use trails and other existing OHV routes on the eastern portion of the. Selected routes would need to be designated as open to OHV travel on the Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM). The MVUM designates the trails and roads that are open to public motor vehicle use (as required by the Travel Management Rule of 2005). What is the Forest Service Proposing to Do? The primary focus of this proposal is connecting the two State of Michigan Multi-Use trails, on the eastern side of the Forest, to provide a usable system for OHV travel. In addition, the Proposed Action is designed to provide a connection to the State of Michigan Bill Nicholls Trail near Mass City. This is proposed to be accomplished via the use of Forest System roads Caring for the Land and Serving People
(Operational Maintenance Level (OML) 2, 3, and 4)) and other travelways on NFS lands, as well as roads of other jurisdictions (i.e. county roads) that are currently open to OHV use. The two routes proposed to achieve this objective include the Iron River-Sidnaw route, which provides a route between Iron River and Kenton, and the Sidnaw-Rousseau route, which provides access from Sidnaw to Rousseau, which connects to the Bill Nicholls Trail. A description of each route is presented below. 1. Iron River-Sidnaw Route (see Map 1 and Table 1): This proposed route would designate portions of roads under federal jurisdiction along the route for travel by all motor vehicles when incorporated on the Forest s MVUM. This proposal would also call for the construction of about 300 feet of new trail. The route would also utilize about 17 miles of Houghton and Iron County jurisdiction roads that are currently open to OHV use. This route will allow motorized travel between the Iron River to Marenisco and Sidnaw to Bergland Multi-Use Trails managed by the State of Michigan, as well as a travel corridor between areas on the Iron River and Kenton Districts and the community of Sidnaw, Michigan. The Iron River-Sidnaw Route would provide a connection between existing trails and help achieve Forest Plan Objectives. 2. Sidnaw-Rousseau Route (see Map 2 and Table 1): This proposed route would designate portions of roads under federal jurisdiction along the route for travel by all motor vehicles when incorporated on the Forest s MVUM. It will also utilize 5.5 miles of road that are already designated for OHV travel (on s 1320, 1440, 1439 and 1462). In addition, the route includes approximately 7 miles of Houghton and Ontonagon county jurisdiction roads that are already open to OHV use. This route will connect State Highway M-28 to the Bill Nicholls trail; a Statedesignated off-road vehicle trail in the area of Mass City, Michigan. State Highway M-28 is subsequently connected to the State of Michigan s Sidnaw to Bergland Multi-Use Trail. This route will allow OHV travel between the communities of Sidnaw and Rousseau, Michigan. An important point of consideration is that these routes are not intended to be a finalization of the Forest s transportation system. Further refinements to the system could occur over time. All OML 3 and 4 roads being considered for OHV use are required to have dual use analysis by a certified engineer (Forest Service Manual 7715.77). This analysis has been completed and will be incorporated into the environmental analysis for this project. At this time, National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance for this project is expected to be completed through preparation of an Environmental Assessment (EA).
Table 1. Description of Proposed Action Road OML 1 Miles Current Motorized Access Allowed Proposed Motorized Access Allowed Other Actions 1. Iron River-Sidnaw Route 3270 2127 3500 2009 3660 4 6.9 3 3.9 4 5.7 3 2.82 3 0.68 Highway-Legal 2 Highway-Legal Highway-Legal Highway-Legal Highway-Legal 3 New Trail Trail 300 None Construction 2. Sidnaw-Rousseau Route 1300 4 4.9 Highway-Legal 1460 3 3.0 Highway-Legal 1100 3 7.4 Highway-Legal 1 OML = Operational Maintenance Level and describes the intended level of maintenance to be received by each road commensurate with the planned function of the road. OML 1s are generally closed to highway vehicle traffic and are generally not maintained whereas OML 3s and 4s are generally open to most highway vehicles. 2 Roads Open to Highway Legal : These roads are open only to motor vehicles licensed under State law for general operation on all public roads within the state. 3 Roads Open to : These roads are open to all motor vehicles, including smaller off-highway vehicles that may not be licensed for highway use (but not to oversize or overweight vehicles under State traffic law).
Why does the Forest Service need to designate the OHV trail system? On November 9, 2005, the Forest Service published the National Travel Management Rule (TMR) which revised regulations regarding travel management on National Forest System (NFS) lands. The rule requires designation by class of vehicle and time of year, if applicable, which roads are available to motor vehicle use. The TMR prohibited motor vehicle use off of designated roads and trails. The TMR also required annual publication of a motor vehicle use map (MVUM) to display those roads and trails designated open to various classes of motor vehicles, including OHVs. In May of 2006, the completed revision of its Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan) and incorporated the TMR travel regulations. As a result of the those regulations, the Forest Plan prohibits cross country use of motor vehicles off of designated roads or trails. The Forest Plan also provided direction relative to priorities for future designation of roads and trails for OHV use namely to provide connections to existing designated public roads and trails, and to utilize existing corridors to the extent possible to minimize new construction. In April 2007, the Ottawa produced its first MVUM. This map reflected the existing condition with most OML 1 and 2 roads open to OHVs, unless resource reasons or other signed NEPA decisions prohibit OHV use. Requests from the public for additional roads to be open for OHV use, in addition to providing connectors between the two State of Michigan multi-use trails, were the primary drivers to develop a system of OHV connector routes. Didn t the Forest Service already propose designation of these Connector Routes? Planning for an OHV Connector Routes project began in 2007 when the Forest Service began developing the project proposal. The initial scoping effort began in April 2008. Public participation occurred during the scoping process, as well as information gathered at public meetings held in November 2007, December 2007, January 2008 and May 2008. This public involvement assisted the project s Interdisciplinary (ID) Team and helped to develop several OHV connector routes throughout the Forest. In April 2009, the OHV Connector Route Environmental Assessment (EA) was released for public review. On September 9, 2009, a Decision Notice and Finding of No Significant Impact (DN/FONSI) was signed. In response to this decision, two appeals were filed with the Regional Forester. Because of unresolved concerns, the Regional Forester reversed the 2009 DN/FONSI on December 18, 2009, which prohibited implementation of any portion of the activities authorized in the 2009 DN/FONSI. This reversal resulted in a revision of the original EA which was published in September of 2010, and its corresponding Decision Notice and Finding of No Significant Impact was issued on December 17, 2010. The second Decision was appealed by two parties and was later reversed on April 11, 2011. At this time, the Ottawa staff reviewed the previous work and re-evaluated the events and documents that led up to the second reversal of this project. This process resulted in identifying the two routes described above as in need of further consideration and evaluation in a new EA. The two routes above are the same as Route B Modified (now being referred to as
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Eastern OHV Connector Proposed Routes Kenton HOU-152 Old M28 Sidnaw 28 Map 1 2009 Proposed Routes (Highligthed Sections indicate National Forest Jurisdiction.) Iron River - Sidnaw Route Sidnaw-Rousseau Route HOU-D161 Lower Dam Rd 3500 State ORV Multi-use Trail District Boundary NFS Land Rivers and Streams Main Road County Road Town BOND FALLS FLOWAGE MITIGWAKI PAINT Kenton District TEPEE on Three Rd 3660 2127 Iron River - Sidnaw Route WINSLOW East Br. Ontonagon River STE KATHRYN IRN-657 PERCH 16 Ontonagon River MALLARD North Branch Paint River 2 MARION Iron River District IRN-657 PONOZZO ROAD TAMARACK 3270 Paint River 3400 JAMES Locator Index South Branch Paint River Superior VIEUX DESERT Map 2 2 2 Gogebic 28 IRON 45 16 Map Area of Interest Locator Index Tile District Boundary Iron River - Sidnaw Route Sidnaw - Rousseau Route Main Road Michigan Wisconsin 9 Miles Map 1 0 1.25 2.5 5 Miles Compiled by the Ottawa NF on 4/6/12 using the most current and complete GIS data available. The GIS data displayed is intended for this project. Using the data other than for what it was created may yield inaccurate or misleading results. OTTAWA REM Map1 Scoping Iron River
Ea Bill Nicholls Trail Eastern OHV Connector Proposed Routes Map 2 Mass City ONT-Dishnaw Road 38 Proposed Routes (Highligthed Sections indicate National Forest Jurisdiction.) Sidnaw-Rousseau Route Iron River - Sidnaw Route ONT-Rousseau Road State ORV Multi-use Trail District Boundary NFS Land Rivers and Streams Main Road County Road Town ONT-Pori Road HOU-139 Ontonagon District 1100 16 Sidnaw - Rousseau Route 1100 1460 East Br. Ontonagon River 1462 1320 Kenton District 1439 1440 1300 Locator Index HOU-152 Superior Map 2 Sidnaw 2 Gogebic 28 45 Kenton Old M28 28 16 Map Area of Interest Locator Index Tile District Boundary Iron River - Sidnaw Route Sidnaw - Rousseau Route Main Road Michigan Wisconsin 10 Miles Map 1 0 1.25 2.5 5 Miles HOU-D161 2009 Compiled by the Ottawa NF on 4/6/12 using the most current and complete GIS data available. The GIS data displayed is intended for this project. Using the data other than for what it was created may yield inaccurate or misleading results. REM Map 2 Scoping 3500