By Esther Godson
Forest Service
The San Juan National Forest Pagosa Ranger District is seeking public comments on a draft environmental assessment for the Turkey Springs Vegetation Management project in Archuleta County.
The project proposes fuels-reduction activities such as thinning, mowing and mastication, as well as tree cutting and removal activities such as improvement cutting, thinning and salvage harvest. These activities will reduce or rearrange fuels to facilitate safe wildland fire management, to promote a forest structure resilient to disturbances, to promote conditions that provide for wildlife habitat sustainability and to provide wood products.
All proposed activities will take place in the Turkey Springs landscape located west of Pagosa Springs near the Pagosa Lakes, Wildflower and Aspen Springs subdivisions. The environmental assessment describing the proposed action, with maps, is available online at: http://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=59146.
Comments will be accepted from April 16 to May 17. Comments can be submitted on the project Web page at http://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=59146 or can be sent to matthew.tuten@usda.gov. Written comments can be submitted to: Pagosa District Ranger, P.O. Box 310, Pagosa Springs, CO 81147, or faxed to: Attn: Matt Tuten at (833) 926-2067. Written comments can also be hand-delivered to the Pagosa District Office at 180 Pagosa St. in Pagosa Springs, by calling (970) 264-2268 in advance and scheduling a no-contact delivery Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.
Comments received in response to this solicitation, including names and addresses of those who comment, will be considered part of the public record on this proposed action and will be available for public inspection. Only individuals or entities who submit timely and specific written comments during this or any other designated public comment period will be eligible to object.
For more information, contact Tuten at (970) 264-2268 or email matthew.tuten@usda.gov.
All offices on the San Juan National Forest are currently conducting business and providing services virtually. For information on the San Juan National Forest, call (970) 247-4874.
