16 U.S.C. § 6543 — Watershed Condition Framework

Page 2609 TITLE 16—CONSERVATION § 6543 (A) this chapter; (B) the applicable water source manage- ment plan; (C) the applicable forest plan; and (D) other applicable laws. (f) Endangered Species Act of 1973 In carrying out the Program, the Secretary may use the Manual on Adaptive Management of the Department of the Interior, including any associated guidance, to comply with the Endan- gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). (g) Funds and services (1) In general In carrying out the Program, the Secretary may accept and use funding, services, and other forms of investment and assistance from non-Federal partners to implement the water source management plan. (2) Matching funds required The Secretary shall require the contribution of funds or in-kind support from non-Federal partners to be in an amount that is at least equal to the amount of Federal funds. (3) Manner of use The Secretary may accept and use invest- ments described in paragraph (1) directly or indirectly through the National Forest Foun- dation. (4) Water source protection fund (A) In general Subject to the availability of appropria- tions, the Secretary may establish a Water Source Protection Fund to match funds or in-kind support contributed by non-Federal partners under paragraph (1). (B) Use of appropriated funds There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2019 through 2023. (C) Partnership agreements The Secretary may make multiyear com- mitments, if necessary, to implement 1 or more partnership agreements under sub- section (c). (Pub. L. 108–148, title III, § 303, as added Pub. L. 115–334, title VIII, § 8404(a), Dec. 20, 2018, 132 Stat. 4841.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, re- ferred to in subsec. (d)(3), is Pub. L. 91–190, Jan. 1, 1970, 83 Stat. 852, which is classified generally to chapter 55 (§ 4321 et seq.) of Title 42, The Public Health and Wel- fare. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 4321 of Title 42 and Tables. This chapter, referred to in subsec. (e)(2)(A), was in the original ‘‘this Act’’, meaning Pub. L. 108–148, Dec. 3, 2003, 117 Stat. 1887, which is classified principally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note below and Tables. The Endangered Species Act of 1973, referred to in subsec. (f), is Pub. L. 93–205, Dec. 28, 1973, 87 Stat. 884, which is classified principally to chapter 35 (§ 1531 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under sec- tion 1531 of this title and Tables. PRIOR PROVISIONS A prior section 6542, Pub. L. 108–148, title III, § 303, Dec. 3, 2003, 117 Stat. 1905, provided for tribal watershed forestry assistance and the development of water qual- ity and watershed forestry programs, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 113–79, title VIII, § 8005, Feb. 7, 2014, 128 Stat. 913. § 6543. Watershed Condition Framework (a) In general The Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Secretary’’), may establish and maintain a Watershed Condition Frame- work for National Forest System land— (1) to evaluate and classify the condition of watersheds, taking into consideration— (A) water quality and quantity; (B) aquatic habitat and biota; (C) riparian and wetland vegetation; (D) the presence of roads and trails; (E) soil type and condition; (F) groundwater-dependent ecosystems; (G) relevant terrestrial indicators, such as fire regime, risk of catastrophic fire, forest and rangeland vegetation, invasive species, and insects and disease; and (H) other significant factors, as deter- mined by the Secretary; (2) to identify for protection and restoration up to 5 priority watersheds in each National Forest, and up to 2 priority watersheds in each national grassland, taking into consideration the impact of the condition of the watershed condition on— (A) wildfire behavior; (B) flood risk; (C) fish and wildlife; (D) drinking water supplies; (E) irrigation water supplies; (F) forest-dependent communities; and (G) other significant impacts, as deter- mined by the Secretary; (3) to develop a watershed protection and restoration action plan for each priority wa- tershed that— (A) takes into account existing restoration activities being implemented in the water- shed; and (B) includes, at a minimum— (i) the major stressors responsible for the impaired condition of the watershed; (ii) a set of essential projects that, once completed, will address the identified stressors and improve watershed condi- tions; (iii) a proposed implementation sched- ule; (iv) potential partners and funding sources; and (v) a monitoring and evaluation pro- gram; (4) to prioritize protection and restoration activities for each watershed restoration ac- tion plan; (5) to implement each watershed protection and restoration action plan; and Page 2610 TITLE 16—CONSERVATION § 6551 (6) to monitor the effectiveness of protection and restoration actions and indicators of wa- tershed health. (b) Coordination In carrying out subsection (a), the Secretary shall— (1) coordinate with interested non-Federal landowners and State, Tribal, and local gov- ernments within the relevant watershed; and (2) provide for an active and ongoing public engagement process. (c) Emergency designation Notwithstanding paragraph (2) of subsection (a), the Secretary may identify a watershed as a priority for rehabilitation in the Watershed Con- dition Framework without using the process de- scribed in that subsection if a Forest Supervisor determines that— (1) a wildfire has significantly diminished the condition of the watershed; and (2) the emergency stabilization activities of the Burned Area Emergency Response Team are insufficient to return the watershed to proper function. (Pub. L. 108–148, title III, § 304, as added Pub. L. 115–334, title VIII, § 8405(a), Dec. 20, 2018, 132 Stat. 4843.) SUBCHAPTER IV—INSECT INFESTATIONS AND RELATED DISEASES § 6551. Findings and purpose (a) Findings Congress finds that— (1) high levels of tree mortality resulting from insect infestation (including the inter- action between insects and diseases) may re- sult in— (A) increased fire risk; (B) loss of old trees and old growth; (C) loss of threatened and endangered spe- cies; (D) loss of species diversity; (E) degraded watershed conditions; (F) increased potential for damage from other agents of disturbance, including ex- otic, invasive species; and (G) decreased timber values; (2)(A) forest-damaging insects destroy hun- dreds of thousands of acres of trees each year; (B) in the West, more than 21,000,000 acres are at high risk of forest-damaging insect in- festation, and in the South, more than 57,000,000 acres are at risk across all land own- erships; and (C) severe drought conditions in many areas of the South and West will increase the risk of forest-damaging insect infestations; (3) the hemlock woolly adelgid is— (A) destroying streamside forests through- out the mid-Atlantic and Appalachian re- gions; (B) threatening water quality and sen- sitive aquatic species; and (C) posing a potential threat to valuable commercial timber land in northern New England; (4)(A) the emerald ash borer is a nonnative, invasive pest that has quickly become a major threat to hardwood forests because an emerald ash borer infestation is almost always fatal to affected trees; and (B) the emerald ash borer pest threatens to destroy more than 692,000,000 ash trees in for- ests in Michigan and Ohio alone, and between 5 and 10 percent of urban street trees in the Upper Midwest; (5)(A) epidemic populations of Southern pine beetles are ravaging forests in Alabama, Ar- kansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mis- sissippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Ten- nessee, and Virginia; and (B) in 2001, Florida and Kentucky experi- enced 146 percent and 111 percent increases, re- spectively, in Southern pine beetle popu- lations; (6) those epidemic outbreaks of Southern pine beetles have forced private landowners to harvest dead and dying trees, in rural areas and increasingly urbanized settings; (7) according to the Forest Service, recent outbreaks of the red oak borer in Arkansas and Missouri have been unprecedented, with more than 1,000,000 acres infested at popu- lation levels never seen before; (8) much of the damage from the red oak borer has taken place in national forests, and the Federal response has been inadequate to protect forest ecosystems and other ecological and economic resources; (9)(A) previous silvicultural assessments, while useful and informative, have been lim- ited in scale and scope of application; and (B) there have not been sufficient resources available to adequately test a full array of in- dividual and combined applied silvicultural as- sessments; (10) only through the full funding, develop- ment, and assessment of potential applied sil- vicultural assessments over specific time frames across an array of environmental and climatic conditions can the most innovative and cost effective management applications be determined that will help reduce the suscepti- bility of forest ecosystems to attack by forest pests; (11)(A) often, there are significant inter- actions between insects and diseases; (B) many diseases (such as white pine blister rust, beech bark disease, and many other dis- eases) can weaken trees and forest stands and predispose trees and forest stands to insect at- tack; and (C) certain diseases are spread using insects as vectors (including Dutch elm disease and pine pitch canker); and (12) funding and implementation of an initia- tive to combat forest pest infestations and as- sociated diseases should not come at the ex- pense of supporting other programs and initia- tives of the Secretary. (b) Purposes The purposes of this subchapter are— (1) to require the Secretary to develop an ac- celerated basic and applied assessment pro- gram to combat infestations by forest-dam- aging insects and associated diseases; (2) to enlist the assistance of colleges and universities (including forestry schools, land