Proposals

[Forest Service]

View the latest proposals for Arkansas forests here:
http://www.fs.fed.us/oonf/ozark/project ... ST_QTR.pdf

[Butch Crain]

Thanks Forest Service!

I trust my fellow club members will respond with thoughtful questions and constructive criticisms, reflecting the recent change in tone for this discussion board.

My guess is that in each proposal, the FS has numerous "after" examples of stands given similar silvicultural treatments. I encourage the FS to take the time to give a tour to anybody that might have concerns.

[okieboater]

Interesting reading from the Forest Service and I will go back and read it again.

One topic jumped out at me. Kudzu eradication.

I grew up in North Georgia, Kudzu capital of the world.

The local story is that Kudzu was imported to help stop erosion in the red clay of Georgia. Not sure how much it actually helped. But it sure took over.

I have seen telephone poles and trees completely covered in kudzu. Also the stuff will travel over asphalt roads with light traffic. It can get so thick you really have trouble walking thru it.

We had at one time, a vacant lot next to our house. The lot was just covered in kudzu.

One summer my dad told me to get rid of the kudzu.

First thing I attempted was what we called a swing blade. IE a handle with a long knife at the bottom. I would wade in the kudzu and cut off the stuff close to the ground as I could.

A week later and it looked like I had not been there.

Finally I got a tool we called a mattock IE like a pick axe except one side had a hoe like deal forged out of heavy metal you could sharpen.

I dug out the kudzu to the roots and burned the roots. Soon as I saw even a sprig growing, out came the mattock and I dug out the roots until by mid summer I had the whole thing free of kudzu and we planted grass.

I see where the forest service is gonna try a controlled burn to remove the kudzu since the chemicals failed.

My bet is the stuff will grow back unless the burn is so hot it penetrates into the ground far enough to kill the roots.

If they do not kill all the roots, the stuff will be back in a short period of time.

[jjones03]

MB trails on the upper Buff? I'd like to get on those...that sounds sweet

[Eric Esche]

Neither Fire or BrushKiller "A" will eradicate kudzu. Both will merely stunt it for a season or so if that. I actually think that the fire helped kudzu as it grew back before anytiing else did and then there was no competition for it. Forest service tried burning it in a lot of places without sucess. Digging out the all the roots and runners for several years in a row in an area is the only way I know to control it. Kudzu covered my entire back yard in Clayton GA and was growing up over the roof when I stripped it off the hillside prior to our backyard wedding reception. I was still battleing it years later when we moved to Rabun Gap.

[Trismegistus]

The only thing I have found worse than Kudzu is bamboo -- eradication often necessitates bringing in a Bobcat and scouring the surface soil -- and with bamboo you need to handpick every ounce of soil to remove every last rhizome. Both are multi-year projects -- one thing about Kudzu is that it is at least easy to control with frequent mowings and selective herbicides -- neither of which has an effect on bamboo. Privet is my other nemesis -- albeit more responsive to herbicides which I try to avoid it otherwise requires that the entire root structure be taken.

Was backpacking in the Rush valley-Leatherwood district this past weekend and I can hardly believe the amount of underbrush that is now present compared to the open understory of my youth some 40 years ago. Say what you want about fires left to their own demise but it sure makes for a much more pleasant outing when natural fires are left to play themselves out naturally. Moreover, have you ever noticed the lack of invasive flora where burns are prescribed?

My biggest beef with the current USFS proposal is that I can see the start of something big, i.e. increased exploitation for resources, specifically Fayetteville shale gas. Roads, gravel pits, clearings, discharge ponds, compression and pump stations, pipeline right-of-ways, etc. -- once the door is open and folks start lining their pockets there will be no closing it.

[KimL]

When did the FS call for public comments on these leases?. I saw NO public comment period on new leasing, and I see from the project proposals that the authorizing FS employee did the enviro statement. I've requested copies, including the credentials of the scientists, historians, and archeologists who completed the research necessary for Kopack to make the assessment.

Has anyone sued to stop yet?
From my point of view, Nov. 4 cannot come soon enough. We need to follow laws, not executive rules, like the 2007 one that apparently made skipping the enviro assessment possible.

[Butch Crain]

Your post states that the assessment was done. Then you go on to state that laws were broken (?) because no assessment was done. Which is it? And what laws do you refer to?

I'm not sure that leasing in itself requires a comment period. By virtue of posting the link, the thread's author is not only opening the proposals for discussion, but reaching out to ACC in particular. We don't have to agree with the proposals. But we should respond with factual inquries and be gracious in doing so.

[KimL]

Assessment and public comment are not the same thing.

[Butch Crain]

OK. ?

And regarding kudzu. I'm pretty sure penned goats can root it out.

Might be a contracting opportunity for some of you folks.

Not to mention the occasional barbacoa de la cabra. Orale!

[KimL]

Wow--goats are a great idea!