Lassen National Forest Travel Management open house

Forest Service
United States Department of Agriculture
Lassen National Forest
2550 Riverside Drive
Susanville, CA 96130
Contact:
 Chris O’Brien (530) 252-6698
 Heidi Perry-McCourt (530) 252-6604

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, June 2, 2009 LAS 09-22
For TDD assistance, please dial (530) 252-6624

View Lassen National Forest’s Travel Management Alternatives

The Lassen National Forest will be holding an open house on June 25th regarding the Travel Management Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for designating wheeled motorized vehicle travel.

This open house will provide an opportunity to view large maps and to learn about the different alternatives concerning wheeled motorized vehicle travel, also known as Route Designation or Access and Travel Management. The open house format will demonstrate the development of each alternative and how to provide comments on the proposals outlined in the DEIS. Comment cards will also be provided for use during the open house.

Written or email comments on the DEIS are due July 20th with a final decision on a designated system of wheeled motorized vehicle routes due around September 2009.

The open house will be held Thursday, June 25th from 2:30 to 7:00 p.m. at Jensen Hall at the Lassen County Fairgrounds.

If you are unable to attend the open house, your comments may be submitted either electronically via e-mail to: ltmrd@fs.fed.us, or written comments may be mailed to:

Lassen National Forest
Attn: Travel Management
2550 Riverside Drive
Susanville, CA 96130

The Access and Travel Management planning process on the Lassen National Forest is part of a national effort to define transportation systems on each national forest. The goal is to develop a sustainable system of roads, trails, and open areas that provide an array of opportunities for access and recreation on national forests, as well as protection of various resources by limiting wheeled motorized vehicle cross-country travel.

For those who have been following this multi-step process over the past few years, the release of the DEIS begins the next step in the planning process – formal analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

Forest Supervisor Kathleen Morse encourages everyone to stay involved during this planning process. “We know many people have invested a lot of time in this already, but at this stage your comments and feedback on the travel management alternatives is critical to establish our baseline system. This is not a final process, as the Forest will annually review the Lassen NF’s travel management system to determine if changes are needed.”

Maps of the different alternatives will display existing and proposed roads and trails that would make up the Forest Transportation System designated for wheeled motorized vehicle use. Other minor changes are also proposed, such as identifying class of vehicles allowed on each route.

For more information, check the Lassen National Forest website at:
http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/lassen. Those who do not have internet access, maps and documents will be available for viewing at the following offices and locations:
Lassen National Forest Supervisor’s Office
2550 Riverside Drive
Susanville, CA 96130

Eagle Lake Ranger District
477-050 Eagle Lake Road
Susanville, CA 96130

Almanor Ranger District
900 East Highway 36
Chester, CA 96020

Hat Creek Ranger District
43225 East Highway 299
Fall River Mills, CA 96028

Two libraries will also have hard copies of the maps for viewing at these locations:

Lassen County Library
1618 Main Street
Susanville, CA 96130

Burney Library
37038 Siskiyou Street
Burney, CA 96013

For more information about the DEIS or upcoming open houses, check the website or contact Christopher O’Brien at (530) 252-6698 or Dave Pilz at (530) 252-6659.

Organizations

Lassen National Forest

News

05/29/09 - Lassen National Forest to Release Travel Management Draft Environmental Impact Statement

Links

Lassen National Forest Travel Management [details]

View Lassen National Forest’s Travel Management Alternatives - USFS press release 6/2/09 [details]

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