Comments sought on the Lacy Lemoosh Project proposal

Release Date: May 1, 2023

Contact(s): Project Lead Amy Thompson (208) 245-6034

The USDA Forest Service seeks public feedback on the Lacy Lemoosh Project, located on the St. Joe Ranger District of the Idaho Panhandle National Forests. Public input provides suggestions and identifies concerns that help Forest Service staff as they develop the project proposal.

The Lacy Lemoosh project area is approximately 16,100 acres within the Charlie Creek and the Upper Santa Creek watersheds, tributaries to the St. Maries River which flows into the St. Joe River. The project area is south of Emida, Idaho, in both Benewah and Latah counties.

Proposed activities would treat approximately 5,400 acres of vegetation, including about 600 acres for prescribed burning only. These activities would decrease hazardous fuels and improve overall landscape resiliency to disturbances such as wildfires, insects, and disease outbreaks.

Additional activities include a redesign of both motorized and nonmotorized routes within the project area to reduce sediment delivery to streams and for recovery of degraded aquatic habitat for native species. Trail users are urged to participate in the development of route redesign.

The project is important to a diverse number of stakeholders that the Forest Service is excited to work with. Discussions have occurred regularly with the Shoshone Benewah Forest Health Collaborative to identify preliminary issues and increase project awareness. The collaborative is a group that includes Benewah and Shoshone County commissioners, private citizens, federal and state agencies.

Although there are private lands within the project area, only federal lands are being considered for treatment.

Project information and instructions on how to comment are available at https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=60853 Comments will be most helpful when submitted by May 26, 2023.

Forest Service staff will host a project open house at the St. Joe Ranger District office, 222 S. 7th St. Suite 1 in St. Maries, from 4 to 7 p.m. on Monday May 22.

For more information or project questions, please contact Project Lead Amy Thompson at amy.thompson@usda.gov or by phone at (208) 245-6034.

The St. Joe Ranger District thanks all stakeholders involved in the project planning effort.