Plum Creek, Forest Service talk easements

The U.S. Forest Service and Plum Creek Timber Co., want to amend agreements governing cost-share easements.

Last week in front of Lincoln County commissioners, the two agencies went through proposed changes while fielding questions and reacting to a variety of concerns. Over the years, Plum Creek's emphasis has evolved from strictly timber to real estate.

As a result, Tom Suk, Forest Service land specialist who works out of Missoula, said the proposal's primary goal is reduce the chance for problems with homeowners of the future.

“I'm trying to get across the point that this isn't strictly to address the issue of subdivisions,” Suk said. “It's addressing the issue of dealing with subsequent land owners who have no experience working with the cooperative road system and who interpret their roles, their responsibilities, their rights differently than the United States and the current cooperators do because we have a history of working with this.”

The Forest Service and Plum Creek share road costs, such as construction and maintenance. Three primary agreements are in place with one of those easements. In a nutshell, easements allow one party to use a road owned by another party.

Problems crept up when various Forest Service officials had different interpretations of the easement agreement.

“I think one of the underlying concerns is change of land use from historical timber management to other uses,” said Jerry Sorenson, director of land management for Plum Creek's Northern Division. “The work we've been doing with the Forest Service is to try to improve the easement to cover the issues that come up with other parties using the road.”

The road-sharing agreements between the Forest Service and Plum Creek have been in use for more than a half-century. Of the 2,000 miles of these roads in Montana, more than 25 percent are in Lincoln County.

Various questions came up during the meeting, including the increased burden that could be put on the county under these changes. Another issue involves the gating of roads and how that could impact the general public.

“The amendment that we've spent time working through with the Forest Service is actually a benefit to the public because it clarifies how the road's going to be used and the fact that the public will be able to use the road,” Sorenson said.

Sorenson said the amendment states that subdivisions must form a homeowners' association to manage responsibilities involving roads. Through that approach, the Forest Service can deal with a single entity instead of multiple owners.

Subdivisions would be required to go to Lincoln County for review and approval.

“Land-use changes can put a strain on some of their resources,” Suk said. “You take places that now you have the possibility of having to provide certain other types of services, like school bus service and things like that.”

Suk stressed that the Forest Service made the proposal to Plum Creek.

“We've been running into problems for a number of years throughout the West and this is what we felt was the most effective way to address that with those existing easements,” Suk said.

If ultimately authorized by agricultural undersecretary Mark Rey, the document would serve as a template nationally.

Sorenson said Plum Creek would not go forward with the easement amendment without the approval of the counties. Libby commissioner Rita Windom said the county might have comments after reading over the amendment.