Northwest California Wilderness, Recreation, and Working Forests Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1110 To provide for restoration, economic development, recreation, and conservation on Federal lands in Northern California, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES APRIL 10, 2019 Ms. HARRIS (for herself and Mrs. FEINSTEIN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Nat- ural Resources A BILL To provide for restoration, economic development, recreation, and conservation on Federal lands in Northern Cali- fornia, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘Northwest California Wilderness, Recreation, and Work- 5 ing Forests Act’’. 6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 7 this Act is as follows: 8 Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. Sec. 2. Definitions. VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\S1110.IS S1110 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1110 IS TITLE I—RESTORATION AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Sec. 101. South Fork Trinity-Mad River Restoration Area. Sec. 102. Redwood National and State Parks restoration. Sec. 103. Northwest California Public Lands Remediation Partnership. Sec. 104. Trinity Lake visitor center. Sec. 105. Del Norte County visitor center. Sec. 106. Management plans. Sec. 107. Study; partnerships related to overnight accommodations. TITLE II—RECREATION Sec. 201. Horse Mountain Special Management Area. Sec. 202. Bigfoot National Recreation Trail. Sec. 203. Elk Camp Ridge Recreation Trail. Sec. 204. Trinity Lake trail. Sec. 205. Trails study. Sec. 206. Construction of mountain bicycling routes. Sec. 207. Partnerships. TITLE III—CONSERVATION Sec. 301. Designation of wilderness. Sec. 302. Administration of wilderness. Sec. 303. Designation of potential wilderness. Sec. 304. Designation of wild and scenic rivers. Sec. 305. Sanhedrin Conservation Management Area. TITLE IV—MISCELLANEOUS Sec. 401. Maps and legal description. SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 1 In this Act: 2 (1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 3 means— 4 (A) with respect to land under the jurisdic- 5 tion of the Secretary of Agriculture, the Sec- 6 retary of Agriculture; and 7 (B) with respect to land under the jurisdic- 8 tion of the Secretary of the Interior, the Sec- 9 retary of the Interior. 10 (2) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 11 of California. 12 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1110.IS S1110 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1110 IS TITLE I—RESTORATION AND 1 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 2 SEC. 101. SOUTH FORK TRINITY-MAD RIVER RESTORATION 3 AREA. 4 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 5 (1) COLLABORATIVELY DEVELOPED.—The term 6 ‘‘collaboratively developed’’ means projects that are 7 developed and implemented through a collaborative 8 process that— 9 (A) includes— 10 (i) appropriate Federal, State, and 11 local agencies; and 12 (ii) multiple interested persons rep- 13 resenting diverse interests; and 14 (B) is transparent and nonexclusive. 15 (2) PLANTATION.—The term ‘‘plantation’’ 16 means a forested area that has been artificially es- 17 tablished by planting or seeding. 18 (3) RESTORATION.—The term ‘‘restoration’’ 19 means the process of assisting the recovery of an 20 ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or de- 21 stroyed by establishing the composition, structure, 22 pattern, and ecological processes necessary to facili- 23 tate terrestrial and aquatic ecosystem sustainability, 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1110.IS S1110 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1110 IS resilience, and health under current and future con- 1 ditions. 2 (4) RESTORATION AREA.—The term ‘‘restora- 3 tion area’’ means the South Fork Trinity-Mad River 4 Restoration Area, established by subsection (b). 5 (5) STEWARDSHIP CONTRACT.—The term 6 ‘‘stewardship contract’’ means an agreement or con- 7 tract entered into under section 604 of the Healthy 8 Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591c). 9 (6) SHADED FUEL BREAK.—The term ‘‘shaded 10 fuel break’’ means a vegetation treatment that effec- 11 tively addresses all project-generated slash and that 12 retains: adequate canopy cover to suppress plant re- 13 growth in the forest understory following treatment; 14 the longest-lived trees that provide the most shade 15 over the longest period of time; the healthiest and 16 most vigorous trees with the greatest potential for 17 crown-growth in plantations and in natural stands 18 adjacent to plantations; and all mature hardwoods, 19 when practicable. 20 (7) WILDLAND-URBAN INTERFACE.—The term 21 ‘‘wildland-urban interface’’ has the meaning given 22 the term by section 101 of the Healthy Forests Res- 23 toration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6511). 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1110.IS S1110 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1110 IS (b) ESTABLISHMENT.—Subject to valid existing 1 rights, there is established the South Fork Trinity-Mad 2 River Restoration Area, comprising approximately 3 729,089 acres of Federal land administered by the Forest 4 Service and approximately 1,280 acres of Federal land ad- 5 ministered by the Bureau of Land Management, as gen- 6 erally depicted on the map entitled ‘‘South Fork Trinity- 7 Mad River Restoration Area—Proposed’’ and dated July 8 3, 2018, to be known as the ‘‘South Fork Trinity-Mad 9 River Restoration Area’’. 10 (c) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the restoration area 11 are to— 12 (1) establish, restore, and maintain fire-resilient 13 forest structures containing late successional forest 14 structure characterized by large trees and multisto- 15 ried canopies, as ecologically appropriate; 16 (2) protect late successional reserves; 17 (3) enhance the restoration of Federal lands 18 within the restoration area; 19 (4) reduce the threat posed by wildfires to com- 20 munities within the restoration area; 21 (5) protect and restore aquatic habitat and 22 anadromous fisheries; 23 (6) protect the quality of water within the res- 24 toration area; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1110.IS S1110 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1110 IS (7) allow visitors to enjoy the scenic, natural, 1 cultural, and wildlife values of the restoration area. 2 (d) MANAGEMENT.— 3 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall manage 4 the restoration area— 5 (A) in a manner consistent with the pur- 6 poses described in subsection (c); 7 (B) in a manner that— 8 (i) in the case of the Forest Service, 9 prioritizes restoration of the restoration 10 area over other nonemergency vegetation 11 management projects on the portions of 12 the Six Rivers and Shasta-Trinity national 13 forests in Humboldt and Trinity counties; 14 and 15 (ii) in the case of the United States 16 Fish and Wildlife Service, establishes with 17 the Forest Service an agreement for co- 18 operation to ensure timely completion of 19 consultation required by section 7 of the 20 Endangered Species Act (15 U.S.C. 1536) 21 on restoration projects within the restora- 22 tion area and agreement to maintain and 23 exchange information on planning sched- 24 ules and priorities on a regular basis; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1110.IS S1110 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1110 IS (C) in accordance with— 1 (i) the laws (including regulations) 2 and rules applicable to the National Forest 3 System for land managed by the Forest 4 Service; 5 (ii) the Federal Land Policy and Man- 6 agement Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et 7 seq.) for land managed by the Bureau of 8 Land Management; 9 (iii) this Act; and 10 (iv) any other applicable law (includ- 11 ing regulations); and 12 (D) in a manner consistent with congres- 13 sional intent that consultation for restoration 14 projects within the restoration area are com- 15 pleted in a timely and efficient manner. 16 (2) CONFLICT OF LAWS.— 17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The establishment of 18 the restoration area shall not change the man- 19 agement status of any land or water that is 20 designated wilderness or as a wild and scenic 21 river, including lands and waters designated by 22 this Act. 23 (B) RESOLUTION OF CONFLICT.—If there 24 is a conflict between the laws applicable to the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1110.IS S1110 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1110 IS areas described in subparagraph (A) and this 1 section, the more restrictive provision shall con- 2 trol. 3 (3) USES.— 4 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 5 only allow uses of the restoration area that the 6 Secretary determines would further the pur- 7 poses described in subsection (c). 8 (B) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall 9 prioritize restoration activities within the res- 10 toration area. 11 (4) WILDLAND FIRE.— 12 (A) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this section 13 prohibits the Secretary, in cooperation with 14 other Federal, State, and local agencies, as ap- 15 propriate, from conducting wildland fire oper- 16 ations in the restoration area, consistent with 17 the purposes of this section. 18 (B) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall use 19 prescribed burning and wildland fire to the ex- 20 tent practicable to achieve the purposes of this 21 section. 22 (5) ROAD DECOMMISSIONING.— 23 (A) IN GENERAL.—To the extent prac- 24 ticable, the Secretary shall decommission 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1110.IS S1110 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1110 IS unneeded National Forest System roads identi- 1 fied for decommissioning and unauthorized 2 roads identified for decommissioning within the 3 restoration area— 4 (i) subject to appropriations; 5 (ii) consistent with the analysis re- 6 quired by subparts A and B of part 212 of 7 title 36, Code of Federal Regulations; and 8 (iii) in accordance with existing law. 9 (B) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT.—In mak- 10 ing determinations regarding road decommis- 11 sioning under subparagraph (A), the Secretary 12 shall consult with— 13 (i) appropriate State, Tribal, and local 14 governmental entities; and 15 (ii) members of the public. 16 (C) DEFINITION.—As used in subpara- 17 graph (A), the term ‘‘decommission’’ means— 18 (i) to reestablish vegetation on a road; 19 and 20 (ii) to restore any natural drainage, 21 watershed function, or other ecological 22 processes that are disrupted or adversely 23 impacted by the road by removing or 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1110.IS S1110 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1110 IS hydrologically disconnecting the road 1 prism. 2 (6) VEGETATION MANAGEMENT.— 3 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara- 4 graphs (B), (C), and (D), the Secretary may 5 conduct vegetation management projects in the 6 restoration area only where necessary to— 7 (i) maintain or restore the character- 8 istics of ecosystem composition and struc- 9 ture; 10 (ii) reduce wildfire risk to commu- 11 nities by promoting forests that are fire re- 12 silient; 13 (iii) improve the habitat of threatened, 14 endangered, or sensitive species; 15 (iv) protect or improve water quality; 16 or 17 (v) enhance the restoration of lands 18 within the restoration area. 19 (B) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.— 20 (i) SHADED FUEL BREAKS.—In car- 21 rying out subparagraph (A), the Secretary 22 shall prioritize the establishment of a net- 23 work of shaded fuel breaks within— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1110.IS S1110 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1110 IS (I) the portions of the wildland- 1 urban interface that are within 150 2 feet from private property contiguous 3 to Federal land; 4 (II) one hundred and fifty feet 5 from any road that is open to motor- 6 ized vehicles as of the date of enact- 7 ment of this Act— 8 (aa) except that, where to- 9 pography or other conditions re- 10 quire, the Secretary may estab- 11 lish shaded fuel breaks up to 275 12 feet from a road so long as the 13 combined total width of the 14 shaded fuel breaks for both sides 15 of the road does not exceed 300 16 feet; and 17 (bb) provided that the Sec- 18 retary shall include vegetation 19 treatments within a minimum of 20 25 feet of the road where prac- 21 ticable, feasible, and appropriate 22 as part of any shaded fuel break; 23 or 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1110.IS S1110 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 1110 IS (III) one hundred and fifty feet 1 of any plantation. 2 (ii) PLANTATIONS; RIPARIAN RE- 3 SERVES.—The Secretary may undertake 4 vegetation management projects— 5 (I) in areas within the restora- 6 tion area in which fish and wildlife 7 habitat is significantly compromised 8 as a result of past management prac- 9 tices (including plantations); and 10 (II) within designated riparian 11 reserves only where necessary to 12 maintain the integrity of fuel breaks 13 and to enhance fire resilience. 14 (C) COMPLIANCE.—The Secretary shall 15 carry out vegetation management projects with- 16 in the restoration area— 17 (i) in accordance with— 18 (I) this section; and 19 (II) existing law (including regu- 20 lations); 21 (ii) after providing an opportunity for 22 public comment; and 23 (iii) subject to appropriations. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:40 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1110.IS S1110 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 13 •S 1110 IS (D) BEST AVAILABLE SCIENCE.—The Sec- 1 retary shall use the best available science in 2 planning and implementing vegetation manage- 3 ment projects within the restoration area. 4 (7) GRAZING.—The grazing of livestock in the 5 restoration area, where established before the date of 6 enactment of this Act, shall be permitted to con- 7 tinue— 8 (A) subject to— 9 (i) such reasonable regulations, poli- 10 cies, and practices as the Secretary con- 11 siders necessary; and 12 (ii) applicable law (including regula- 13 tions); and 14 (B) in a manner consistent with the pur- 15 poses described in subsection (c). 16 (e) WITHDRAWAL.—Subject to valid existing rights, 17 the restoration area is withdrawn from— 18 (1) all forms of entry, appropriation, and [Text truncated for display. 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