Draft environmental assessment Levengood Elk Game Farm, Kalispell, Montana

52 Pages·1998·2.7 MB·English

by  Montana. Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks. Region 1

W36.294 MONTANASTATELIBRARY
OF'2deaLe
.49 C19983 308640014 04949
C DRAFT
ENVIRONMENTAL
ASSESSMENT
LEVENGOODELKGAMEFARM
KALISPELL,MONTANA
Documentscollection
- 30 1998
Montanastatelibrary
HLiErLiENA,MEO‘N6TtAhNAAVE5.9S20
C
MontanaFish,Wildlife&Parks
Region1
490NorthMeridianRoad
Kalispell,Montana 59901
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'*£! I* y
9
TABLEOFCONTENTS
Page
SUMMARY 1
INTRODUCTION 1
OBJECTIVES 1
PUBLICPARTICIPATION 2
PROPOSEDACTIONANDALTERNATIVES 2
PURPOSEANDNEEDOFTHEPROPOSEDACTION 5
ROLEOFFWPANDDOL 5
AFFECTEDENVIRONMENT 5
ENVIRONMENTALCONSEQUENCES 6
EACONCLUSION 7
MITIGATIONMEASURES 7
PARTI. GAMEFARMLICENSEAPPLICATIONINFORMATION 10
PARTII.EEANDVEIFRINOINTMIEONNTSALREVIEW 1122
PHYSICALENVIRONMENT 13
LandResources 13
Air I4
Water 15
Vegetation 17
Fish/Wildlife 18
HUMANENVIRONMENT 20
NoiseEffects 20
LandUse 21
Risk/HealthHazards 22
CommunityImpact 24
PublicServices/Taxes/Utilities
Aesthetics/Recreation
Cultural/HistoricalResources
SummaryEvaluationofSignificance
SUMMARYEVALUATIONOFSIGNIFICANCECRITERIA
PARTIII.NARRATIVEEVALUATIONANDCOMMENT
PARTIV. EACONCLUSION
FIGURES
FFIIGGUURREE21.. GLoecnaetriaolnLoofcPartioopnosfoerdtLheevPernogpooosdedGLaemveenFgaoromdGameFarm
APPENDICES
AAPPPPEENNDDIIXXAB PFFriiiggvuuarrteee21P..roGLpoeecnraettryiaoAlnsLsooefcsPasrtmiooepnnotsfoeCrdhteLhceekvlPiersnotgpooosdedGaLemveenFgaoromdGameFarm
FFiigguurree34.. GFleonoedrpallaiLnayMoauptffoorrtLheevePnrgopooosdeGdaLmeeveFnagromodGameFarm
a
c SUMMARY
ENVIRONMENTALASSESSMENT
PROPOSEDLEVENGOODELKGAMEFARM
INTRODUCTION
MontanaFish,WildlifeandParks(FWP)isrequiredtoperformanenvironmentalanalysisinaccordancewith
theMontanaEnvironmentalPolicyAct(MEPA)foreachproposalforprojects,programs,legislation,andother
dmRpeuartljoeeocsrremsoaisfcntMteiooownnishtdeaeontfnthasietf[ayrtAeatRhnMged]ovi1eme2vpra2anl.cmu4tae3st0ne)wt.oesuinFlgvndiWirfPboiecnaumnssetienlgytsniaaeflfinfcvieaicmntrtpioaanncgnmtdetshnwetohafeqlutaahalepsirrts,yoepsoaofsssmtaehedenctohgsnuasm(meEaqeAnusef)eannricnvme.it,rheoFEngWAmasePnmatwero(eufAladadrmlimsnpoielsirutcfsreoeanrdtsmiinvtageo
moredetailedenvironmentalimpactstatement(EIS).
WhenpreparinganEA,FWPreviewsenvironmentalimpactsoftheProposedAction,impactsoftheNoAction
Alternative,andimpactsofotheralternativeactionswhichincluderecommendedand/ormandatorymeasures
t(ostimpiutliagtaitoens)thwehipcrohjercetd’suciempiamcptasc.tsAofmtihteigPatreodpoEsAedinAcctliuodne.saTlhteernEatAivmesaywiatlhsoenrfeorccoemambleendreaqupirreefmeernrteds
alternativefortheFWPdecisionmaker.
€ BaseduponitsreviewoftheLevengoodElkGameFarmapplication,FWPhaspreparedamitigatedEA.
OBJECTIVES
ThisEAhasbeenpreparedtoservethefollowingpurposesinaccordancewithFWPMEPArules(ARM
12.2.430):
• toensurethatFWPusesnaturalandsocialsciencesinplanninganddecisionmaking;
• tobeusedinconjunctionwithotheragencyplanninganddecision-makingprocedurestomakea
determinationregardingtheProposedAction;
• toassistintheevaluationofreasonablealternativesandthedevelopmentofconditions,stipulations,
andmodificationstotheProposedAction;
• todeterminetheneedtoprepareanEISthroughaninitialevaluationanddeterminationofthe
significanceofimpactsassociatedwiththeProposedAction;
• toensurethefullestappropriateopportunityforpublicreviewandcommentontheProposedAction;
and
• toexamineanddocumenttheeffectsoftheProposedActiononthequalityofthehumanenvironment.
€
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PUBLICPARTICIPATION
PublicinvolvementintheEAprocessincludesstepstoidentifyandaddresspublicconcerns. TheDraftEA
willbeavailableforpublicreviewandcommentfromAugust3,1998until5pmonAugust24,1998atthe
Region1FWPofficelistedbelow.SubmitallcommentsregardingthisEAtothesameaddress.
BrianSommers
Fish,Wildlife&Parks
490NorthMeridianRoad
Kalispell,Montana 59901
[phone]
PROPOSEDACTIONANDALTERNATIVES
PROPOSEDACTION
TheFWPreceivedacompletedapplicationonApril5,1998tobuildanew45acreElkGameFarm
approximately4milessouthandeastofKalispell,Montana.ThesiteislocatedinFlatheadCountyalongAshley
Creek(Figures1and2).Thegamefarmwouldincludenewquarantineandhandlingfacilitiesaspartofthe
proposedproject.
Theproposedgamefarmwouldbelicensedforamaximumof60elkanimals.Thelandwithintheproposed
projectareaiscurrentlyagriculturallandusedforhayproduction. Thepurposeoftheproposedprojectisto
diversifyagriculturalproductionandcomplementotherprivaterecreationalactivitieslocatedontheproperty
(privategamebirdfarm,troutpond,andtrapshootingclub).
FenceconstructionwouldcomplywithproposedchangestotheFWPgamefarmrules,andwouldinclude8-
foothigh,tightlockmeshgamefencesupportedbywoodenpostsor2%-inchsteelpipesset3feetintothe
groundandspacednotmorethan24feetapart.Theapplicantsplantobreed,sell,anddisposeofdomestic
elkinaccordancewithMontanagamefarmanddiseasecontrolrequirementsstipulatedinMontanastatuteand
administrativerules. Thegamefarmwouldprovidemeat,antlers,andtrophysales,aswellaselkbreeding
stock. Feeshootingofelkwouldnotbeconductedatthesite.
ALTERNATIVES
Onealternative(NoActionAlternative)isevaluatedinthisEA. UndertheNoActionAlternative,FWPwould
notissuealicensefortheLevengoodElkGameFarmasproposed.Therefore,nogamefarmanimalswould
beplacedontheproposedgamefarmarea. ImplementationoftheNoActionAlternativewouldnotpreclude
otheractivitiesallowedunderlocal,stateandfederallawstotakeplaceattheproposedsite.
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\jIOWOIJNi
Fie. 1. GLeenveernagloodloGcaamteionFarfnoijr Ktahleisppreolplojsed
MT.
3
Fig. 2. Location of proposed Levengood
Game Farm, Kalispell, MT.
1= phase 1 construction
2= phase 2 construction
073101*4*15' fSlO-MMClBSTOJU6SMl03
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PURPOSEANDNEEDOFTHEPROPOSEDACTION
TheproposedLevengoodElkGameFarmisacommercialenterprisetoprovidemeat,antlers,andtrophy
sales,aswellaselkbreedingstockforthegamefarmmarket.
ROLEOFFWPANDDEPARTMENTOFLIVESTOCK(DoL)
wFpirWtehpPatrhiiesntMghoeannlteaEandAaauEgnnedvneicrryoTinitnmleepnr7te5ap,larCQihunaagpltitehtiyrsC1Eo,AuPnafcroitrl2t(hMeEoQnpCtr)aonpMoaEsCePodAdpeHroaAjnencdntob.toaTothkeidsand(doMcCFuAWm)PeannsttdaitsFuwtWroiPrtytrerunelqienusiaurcnecdmoeerrndtAasnRfcoMer
12.2.428etseq.
FWPsharesregulatoryresponsibilitiesfornewandexpandinggamefarmswiththeDoL. TheDoLis
responsibleforregulatingthehealth,transportationandidentificationofgamefarmanimals. Duringthe
ianpsppleicctaitoinonofprtohceespsr,opaollsequdaqruaanrtainnteianreefaacipllitayn.sNaondliscpeencsiefiscaartieoinsssaureedswuibtmhioutttesductohtahpeprDoovLalfoarnadpipnrsopveacltiaonn.d
AFFECTEDENVIRONMENT
TheproposedLevengoodElkGameFarmareawouldultimatelycomprise45acresofexistingagriculturalland
locatedinFlatheadCountyapproximately4milessouthandalittleeastofKalispell,Montana(Figure1).The
srriaetnmegaieis.nlioBncoagtthe1d5aaacpcaprrreeotsxaiomkfaetrtehalisnydp1r0lo0apneyrdatroydwsniennrcolrhutadhevosefarAespshrilidveeaytnecCertsereobukot,rpdaoentrrdii,nbgugttaahrmeyetporbotihpredosFfeladartmghaeaamnddeRpfiravirevrma..teAttrparpessehnoto,titnhge
Theproposedgamefarmwouldbeconstructedin2phases.Thefirstphasewouldencloseapproximately10
acresandincludequarantineandhandlingfacilities.Phase2wouldencloseanotheradjoining35acres.
ASlolmsuerroofutnhdeinagrelaanhdassabreeepnrisvuabtdeliyviodwedneindtoasnmdaluls2e0dapcrriemarruirlaylfroersiadgernitciaulltluortse.iTnhcleudpirnogpcorsoepds,elpkasftaurrme,liaensdwihtahyi.n
anareazonedasAgricultural-20.
Approximately12neighboringresidencesarelocatedwithina1-mileradiusofthesite.Thissectionsummarizes
theprimaryenvironmentalresourcesintheprojectarea.
LANDRESOURCES
Thesiteissituatedapproximately2,900feetabovemeansealevel.Thegeneraltopographyoftheproposed
gamefarmexpansionisnearlylevelvalleyfloor.
WATERRESOURCES
T6fprhromoeimplso2iestseeexidnisosagtriptanphgmrwooeefxlifFlmalsaratomtenhlleytiahe3sed0bp0Leraot-kp1wee,er0et(0ynF0iwtgfoheuueerlte1dn01os0)re-.tryhAveseahortlfhaetenyhdeprCA5ors0peh0ole-seykeyedfaClrgroewfaes1mkoen,oodrf1pt/alh2ramtmi.oinlW(jeeoFilEsnlMoAutdhtemehpatFophflssa,tthaherreeeFavlid2sa9etR6dihvea1ea9rnd.9d6RA)3il.l5ve8Woraffatetenehtdre.
VEGETATIONRESOURCES
vTMyeopgsietctaoalftstiphoeenclieaexnisdsatslsuoanrlgrootnuhgnedsAiesnhwglatethyeerCwprareyoespkoisnaecnlddudgWeaembalevaecfrkarcSmoltostuiotgenhwiostooidnt,hagecrhisocokuulettchuhreaarlnrdpyr,tohdheuacwFttlihaootnrh.ne,RaidrpeaRdri-ivoaesnrieatronddthowegewntoolroatdnh,d.
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willows,cattails,andsedges.Pastureandhaylandstypciallycontainalfalfa,quackgrass,smoothbrome,
orchardgrass,andtimothy.Dandelionsandcloverarealsocommon.
WILDLIFERESOURCES
ThisareasupportswildlifetypicalofagriculturalandriparianareasintheFlatheadValley.Commonspecies
includewhite-taileddeer,waterfowlsuchasmallardsandCanadageese,uplandgamebirdssuchasring-
neckedpheasantandHungarianpartridge.Commonnongamewildlifespeciesincludewesternmeadowlarks,
commonflickers,black-billedmagpies,meadowvoles,terrestrialgartersnakes,andsavannahsparrows.The
areaisnotcriticaldeerwinterrangenoranimportantbiggamemigrationcorridor.
Theareaisnotconsideredhabitatforgraywolves,grizzlybears,peregrinefalcons,whoopingcrane,orbull
trout,specieslistedasthreatenedorendangeredbythefederalgovernment.Thebaldeagleisayear-long
residentandalsomigratorythroughthisarea.Theclosestactivebaldeaglenestislocatedapproximatelyamile
northandalittlewestoftheproposedprojectareaalongtheFlatheadRiver. Thebaldeagleisnowscheduled
fordelisting.Theperegrinefalconmightpassthroughthisareaonamigratorybasis. Thebulltroutisa
pFlraotphoesadedRisvepre.ciAesshlfeoyrCFreedeerkadlolyeslinsottinsguapspotrhtrheaabtietnaetdfoarnbdulloctcrouurts(iTn.lWiemaivteedr,nuFmWbPerpserisn.Fcloatmhme)a.dTLhaekreeaanrde
nootherFederallylistedthreatenedorendangeredspecieslikelytooccurinthisarea.Otherlargecarnivores
suchasmountainlionsandblackbearsareinfrequentvisitorstotheLowerValleyarea.
ENVIRONMENTALCONSEQUENCES
OnlyresourcesthathavepotentialadverseeffectsfromtheProposedActionaresummarizedinthissection.
AdetaileddiscussionofenvironmentalconsequencesiscontainedinPartIIofthisEA.
LANDRESOURCES
Theconstructionandoperationofa60-elkcapacitygamefarmcouldreducelandandsoilresourcevaluesdue
tocompactionorheavygrazing.Theseimpacts,however,canbereducedoreliminatedbyadjustingstocking
rates;rotating,resting,andirrigatingpastures;supplementalfeedingofelk.
WATERRESOURCES
TheProposedActionofgrazingupto60elkon45acresofpastureislikelytohavenoadverseaffectonwater
resources.AlloftheproposedgamefarmliesinZoneB,abovethe100-yearfloodplain.Thegamefarmlies
between300and1,000feetfromAshleyCreek.
VEGETATIONRESOURCES
TheProposedActionplanstoplaceupto60adultelkwithinthe45acreenclosureforamaximumstocking
densityof0.75acresperadultelk.Itisestimatedthattheaverageadultelkconsumesabout11poundsof
forageeachdayandthatannualforageconsumptionwouldbeabout4,015poundsofforageperadultanimal
or240,900pounds/elkfarm/year.Assuminganaverageof5,000pounds/acre(2.5ton/acre)offorage
productionwithintheenclosure,the225,000poundsofforagewouldalmostmeettheyear-longforageneeds
of60adultelk.Supplementalfeedwouldprobablyberequiredduringthewinter.Productiononsiteis
dependentonmanagementandcould improvewithirrigationandfertilization.Therewouldbenodirect
impactstonativevegetationbecauseithasalreadybeenlostfromthissite.
WILDLIFERESOURCES
TheProposedActionisnotexpectedtosignificantlychangethediversityorabundanceofnongamespecies
livinginthisarea.Theelkenclosurewilleliminateuseofthe45acresbywhite-taileddeer.Theproposedgame
farmisnotlargeenoughtosignificantlyinfluenceanyseasonalmovementofwhite-taileddeerthroughthis
area.Thedailymovementsofafewdeermaybechangedtoaminordegree,butthiswouldnotbesignificant.
UseoftheexistinglandbyothercommonspeciesintheareasuchasCanadaGeese,mallards,andring-
necked pheasantswouldprobablydecreaseorbeeliminatedwhenthegamefarmisatfullcapacity.
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