DNR pulls application for Summit Lake timber cut
The Department of Natural Resources has withdrawn its the Forest Practices Application to harvest trees near Summit Lake to ensure it can consider issues raised in a letter from the Thurson County Board of Commissioners.
On the final day of the public comment window for the proposed DNR timber harvest, the county board sent a letter to the DNR opposing the action.
The board said it is worried cutting the 16 acres of timber in the Delica Hardwood timber sale could have major consequences for the land and water hundreds of people depend on. In the letter sent to the department’s Board of Natural Resources, the commissioners said the cut would create flooding, property damage, increased sedimentation, water quality problems and more.
“The collateral effects of these particular cuts are unacceptable given the particular context of their proximity to Summit Lake,” the commissioners wrote.
In response to the letter, DNR communications manager Kenny Ocker said Thursday that many of the issues the commissioners addressed were found to not be of concern. But on Friday, Ocker said the DNR was withdrawing the Forest Practices Application to ensure they can “thoroughly consider that information before moving forward.”
Ocker said the department is confident the proposed sale complies with the State Environmental Policy Act, the State Lands Habitat Conservation Plan, the Forest Practices Rules and any other regulations that govern DNR forestland management.
“With the additional information that DNR received from Thurston County so close to the Forest Practices Application approval deadline, we want to ensure that we take the appropriate amount of time to review and consider that information before taking action,” Ocker said.
“We remain confident that the proposed Delica Hardwood Timber Sale would not threaten public safety or water quality for the Summit Lake watershed.”
This means the application for the timber cut just above Summit Lake will have to go back through the review process. The sale was set to go up for auction this summer, but now the timeline — and the end result — is unclear.
Summit Lake resident JC Davis said Friday he was overwhelmed by the news.
“This is a big move,” he said. “I’ve got to take a second to let it sink in. What else could you hope for?”
On Thursday, Ocker provided information from hydrology and geologic reports to address the commissioners’ concerns. The reports were filed by state lands geologist Jennifer Parker, South Puget Sound Region geologist Susie Wisehart and forest hydrologist Jeff Keck.
The commissioners wrote that Summit Lake is the only surface water body in the county that its surrounding residents drink from. And there has been an uptick in toxic algae blooms in recent years, with phosphorus-rich sediment to blame.
Ocker said timber harvests don’t contribute phosphorus to the ecosystem. Instead, it comes from runoff from lawns, fertilizers and leaking septic systems.
There were concerns about heavier streamflow harming salmon populations and private property once there are fewer trees to take in moisture. But Ocker said the hydrology of the area should go unchanged in a rain-on-snow event because the trees being harvested didn’t catch much of that added moisture in the first place; it already fell to the ground.
Ocker said the DNR bases its hydrological studies on a 2008 U.S. Department of Agriculture paper that states effects on a watershed’s hydrology aren’t detectable until 30-40 percent of the watershed is harvested. With the Delica Hardwood sale at Summit Lake, only 14% of the 114-acre watershed would be harvested.
Unit 1 of the timber sale, which is the portion closest to Summit Lake and private residences, has changed over the past year to reflect residents’ concerns. The unit size has shrunk significantly, and more trees are being left behind to protect seasonal streams and eliminate environmental and aesthetic concerns. Ocker said both units in the sale exceed the number of trees left per acre required by the Habitat Conservation Plan.
The DNR has told residents of Summit Lake that they have no plans to use widespread herbicides to avoid any runoff into streams or waterways, Ocker said.
“DNR does not intend to use any herbicides in the harvest units of the Delica Hardwood timber sale unless spot treatments are required to ensure the regeneration of the stand for future generations,” Ocker said. “Those spot treatments would be applied directly to plants under tightly regulated conditions and with large buffers for waterways and adjacent properties, following the requirements of the EPA, state Department of Agriculture, and state Forest Practices Rules.”
Ocker said there’s a very low risk of any harvest activity in the area activating a landslide, which is the lowest they ascribe to land management activities such as timber harvests.
In their letter, the Thurston County Commissioners suggested the DNR use different harvesting methods that had less of an impact on the land. And if they couldn’t agree to those recommendations, the commissioners said the state should take financial responsibility for any effects the cut has on property or the lake.
Ocker said Thursday that any alternative harvesting methods simply won’t cut it. Thinning a stand rather than clear cutting wouldn’t allow for newly planted hardwoods to grow as well, with older hardwoods taking up all the sun.
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