On April 16, 2024, the Sierra Club met with the U.S. Forest Service (FS) in Sam Houston National Forest (SHNF), in Little Lake Creek Wilderness Area (LLCWA), to view problems that are related to non-native invasive plant species (NNIPS) and the Lone Star Hiking Trail (LSHT).  The Sierra Club and FS walked from Forest Road (FR) 231 west on the LSHT into LLCWA.  We stopped at the Little Lake Creek crossing which consists of a wooden board bridge.

The Sierra Club showed the FS where there were many Chinese Tallow trees both north and south of the board bridge.  These tallow trees ranged from seedlings to saplings 1-2 inches diameter to a tallow tree that was about 10 inches in diameter.  We also saw non-native privet (probably Chinese Privet, Ligustrum sinense), Japanese Honeysuckle, and Japanese Climbing Fern.

The FS stated that it could use the 2008 NNIPS Plan to girdle large trees or pull smaller trees out by their roots with weed wrenches.  The use of herbicides in wilderness areas isn’t allowed in the 2008 NNIPS Plan.  If chemical use were considered by the FS it would have to determine how this could be legally done.  The FS will talk to the new Forest Planner that will begin work in the next several weeks about this issue.

The use of herbicides could be restricted to certain NNIPS like Chinese Tallow, non-native privet species, Chinaberry, Mimosa, Japanese Honeysuckle, Japanese Climbing Fern, and Trifoliate Orange.  The FS wouldn’t use foliar spray in LLCWA and would use handtools, which could mean a cross-cut saw or a chainsaw to girdle or cut down larger trees.  The FS may have to amend its NNIPS Plan and use a minimum tool analysis which will have to go to the Regional Forester in Atlanta for approval.

The Sierra Club also showed the FS where past reroutes of the LSHT in LLCWA had resulted in eroded trails that hadn’t been restored.  This creates a problem in wilderness which isn’t supposed to have signs of trammeling (human manipulation).  This impact in LLCWA will have to be resolved in the future.