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<br />Page 2 <br /> <br />~ <br />. <br />2002 <br /> <br />Al.te.-O'U<t'''''lW <br />~ <br />A>'1.aiy>4-~ <br /> <br />._~mer <br /> <br />2002 <br /> <br />A>'1.aiy>4-~ <br /> <br />.%9 <br /> <br />2002 <br /> <br />Vm(C """u-on,. <br />)~impa.cL <br />,tna.nem- MUJ, <br />Dt"cxft"'ReAli-wd-FOY- <br />...PUU"'~ <br />PLt.bUocommen.t' <br />~, <br /> <br />- - - <br />I !l.la.y 2002 <br />. <br /> <br />--- <br /> <br />, Analysis begins I <br /> <br />· The what, how, why, where, who, and when of analysis of <br />Alternatives <br /> <br />What? <br /> <br />Different actions and <br />uses associated with the <br />six Alternatives will have <br />various effects on bio- <br />logical and sociall <br />economic resources. For <br />inSlance, Alternatives <br />treat recreation differ- <br />ently. The distribution <br />and types of recreation <br />will have predictable ef- <br />fects on resources such <br />as wildlife habitat or <br />other types of recreation. <br />Our analysis will esti- <br />mate the biological. so- <br />cial. and economic ef- <br />fects of implementing <br />each Alternative. <br /> <br />Where? <br />The Medicine Bow Na- <br />tional Forest is the pri- <br />mary analysis area for the <br />Forest Plan Revision. <br />However, analyses are <br />conducted at a variety of <br />scales to assess potential <br />effects. For example. our <br />economic analysis will <br />include a county-wide re- <br />view of effects. Our eco- <br />logical review will in- <br />clude a Regional review <br />of conditions. <br /> <br />/low? <br /> <br />To understand the relative <br />changes that would result <br />from implementing each <br />Alternative, specialists <br />compare the predicted <br />changes within each Alter- <br />native to existing condi- <br />tions. The Planning Team <br />relies on data from a wide <br />range of sources, includ- <br />ing scientific literature, <br />inventories, modeling, and <br />many years of profes- <br />sional experience to evalu- <br />ate potential effects. All <br />team members use the best <br />science available in an in- <br />terdisciplinary approach to <br />analysis. <br /> <br />Who? <br />The bulk of the analysis of <br />effects is conducted by the <br />Forest Plan Interdiscipli- <br />nary (ID) Team. This group <br />of resource specialists fol- <br />lows the Plan through <br />every phase of Revision. <br />The ID Team is assisted by <br />other Forest Service scien- <br />tists, as well as specialists <br />from outside the agency. <br />For instance, as part of the <br />State of Wyoming's coop- <br />erating agency status, some <br />social and economic analy- <br />sis will be provided by the <br />University of Wyoming, <br />and Wyoming Game and <br />Fish will assist with some <br />of the wildlife analysis. <br /> <br />Why? <br />The National Environ- <br />mental Policy Act <br />(NEPA) requires the <br />disclosure of environ- <br />mental effects of all <br />proposed federal ac- <br />tions. NEPA requires <br />the analysis of the ef- <br />fects of Alternatives so <br />the federal agency (in <br />this case, the USDA <br />Forest Service) can dis- <br />close the environ- <br />mental, social, and eco- <br />nomic effects unique to <br />implementation of each <br />Alternative. <br /> <br />When? <br />In Forest Planning, the <br />analysis of effects oc- <br />curs after development <br />of Alternatives. The <br />~'Iedicine Bow entered <br />the analysis period <br />when the Regional For- <br />ester selected the final <br />range of Alternatives <br />on April II, 2002. The <br />projected date for com- <br />pletion of the analysis <br />of Alternatives and <br />preparation of draft <br />documents is fall of <br />2002, <br />