Attach 4_Prescription 2 out of 3.pdf

This document is a collection of timber sale prescriptions and harvest plans for multiple forest stands in the Penn North Ecological Assessment (EA) within the Chippewa National Forest in Minnesota. The prescriptions detail forestry treatments across several planning units (PU 11, PU 14, and PU 15) encompassing multiple stands with varying acreage and treatment objectives.

The primary harvest method is group selection cutting (FACTS code 4152) for PU 11 and coppice cuts (FACTS code 4102) for PUs 14 and 15, with the goal of establishing vigorous, even-aged aspen stands while maintaining structural diversity and wildlife habitat. Harvest operations are restricted to frozen ground conditions (4 inches or deeper) or normal dry periods (typically July 1 to September 15). Key mitigation measures include retention of snags and coarse woody debris for northern long-eared bat and snowshoe hare habitat; protection of riparian management zones with specific filter strip widths based on slope; avoidance of temporary roads and skid trails in wetlands; and retention of legacy patches and reserve areas in stands exceeding 20 acres. Post-harvest treatments include natural regeneration of aspen via suckering and potential planting of balsam fir or white spruce in select areas. Monitoring activities consist of 1-, 3-, and 5-year stocking surveys with certification requirements of at least 4,000 seedlings per acre of acceptable growing stock. The prescriptions emphasize adaptive management, requiring consultation with the approving Silviculturist if on-the-ground conditions differ from documented stand descriptions.