Tongass National Forest

Concern has been expressed that karst standards and guidelines need to be adjusted to better reflect karst systems and not just karst and cave features.

Concern has been expressed that we may need additional clarification of the definition of low, medium and high vulnerability karst.

Concern has been expressed that management of second growth forests on karst landscapes is not adequately addressed by the Forest Plan.

The Forest Plan includes comprehensive standards and guidelines for karst and cave protection and management. Extensive use of the standards and guidelines and monitoring efforts, have identified the need to make adjustments to them to increase their effectiveness and promote more consistent application. Monitoring efforts have included an extensive effectiveness monitoring effort conducted with world-wide karst and cave experts. The Forest has been applying adaptive management practices in making corrections project-by-project and incorporating the improved approaches. Adjustments to the standards and guidelines are currently being reviewed forest-wide internally and are expected to be included in a future site specific project NEPA decision that includes karst and cave resources.

For the past 12 years the Tongass National Forest in Southeastern Alaska has worked to identify, inventory, explore, and manage the extensive karst resources found there. Fueled by the requirements of the Federal Cave Resources Protection Act of 1988 and the Tongass’ interpretation of that Act, internal regulations, and recommendations of the 1993 Karst Panel, a strategy was developed intended to protect the karst resources found there. These standards were published in the Tongass Land Management Forest Plan in 1997, however, one form or another of these guidelines have been implemented from 1991 on. The Forest gathered ideas, borrowed concepts, and sought help from karst management specialists in the U.S., Tasmania, British Columbia, and Switzerland. Effectiveness monitoring of the implementation of these karst management standards have shown their strengths and weaknesses. In 2002, the Forest once again convened a panel of karst experts to independently evaluate the effectiveness of implementation of the current karst management standards and guidelines and to analyze the appropriateness of proposed changes to those guidelines. The proposed changes focus on clarification of the karst vulnerability assessment definitions, on the design and effectiveness of non-harvest buffers adjacent to karst features, sinking streams, etc., addresses wind throw salvage and second growth timber management, catchment area management, qualifications of inventory and resource specialists, and establishment of long term monitoring sites.

Continue effort to make adjustments to the standards and guidelines with a future site-specific project decision. Forest Plan Refresher Training can include appropriate updates to the karst S&Gs.

• Forest Planner
• Forest Geologist

• Forest Plan amendment with updated Standards and Guides.