[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 44 (Tuesday, March 5, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8565-8566]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-5023]
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Notices
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules
or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings
and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings,
delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency
statements of organization and functions are examples of documents
appearing in this section.
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Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 44 / Tuesday, March 5, 1996 /
Notices
[[Page 8565]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the Revised Land
and Resource Management Plan, George Washington National Forest--Oil
and Gas Leasing in Laurel Fork Special Management Area
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice; intent to prepare a supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement.
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SUMMARY: The Forest Service will prepare a draft and final supplement
to the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the George
Washington National Forest's Revised Land and Resource Management Plan
(Forest Plan) filed in January 1993. The supplement is for a proposed
action to reconsider the consent and availability decisions on oil and
gas leasing in the Laurel Fork Special Management Area. This proposed
action is likely to result in a nonsignificant amendment to the Forest
Plan.
The agency invites written comments and suggestions that are within
the scope of the proposed action and analysis for the supplement. In
addition, the agency gives notice of the full environmental analysis
and decision-making process that will occur on the proposal, so those
interested and affected may participate in the process and contribute
to the final decision.
DATE: A draft supplement to the FEIS is expected to be available for
public comment by June 1996. Public comments on the proposal are
welcome prior to the draft supplement as well.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments and suggestions to William E. Damon,
Jr., Forest Supervisor, 5162 Valleypointe Parkway, Roanoke, VA 24019-
3050.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ken Landgraf, Planning Staff Officer
at (540) 265-6054 or Dave Plunkett, Interdisciplinary (ID) Team Leader
at (540) 564-8300.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Revised George Washington National
Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan) was approved on
January 21, 1993. In the Forest Plan, the agency determined that the
biological and recreational values of the Laurel Fork Special
Management Area (SMA) can be protected while allowing oil and gas
leasing. However, the agency has now determined that these values in
Laurel Fork might be better maintained and enhanced under a different
management scenario. Therefore, to avoid future conflicts over
management of surface and subsurface resources, the agency believes
there is a need to change the Plan to more tightly focus management on
these values.
Currently, the Regional Forester has given consent to the Bureau of
Land Management (BLM) to lease the Laurel Fork area in the future for
surface occupancy by using controlled surface use stipulations. This
area was made available for leasing with such stipulations in the
Revised Forest Plan.
Laurel Fork is located in the very northwest corner of Highland
County, about 10 miles from Monterey, Virginia.
The agency and the public have long recognized that Laurel Fork is
unique for its biological features not commonly found elsewhere in
Virginia. It contains one of Virginia's finest examples of a northern
boreal natural community of northern hardwoods and red spruce. At least
25 species of plants and animals have their only known occurrence
within the state there. The area contains three endangered species (the
federally endangered Virginia northern flying squirrel, the state
endangered snowshoe hare and water shrew). These biological features
make visiting the area a unique recreational experience.
The scope of this analysis is limited to the 10,000-acre Laurel
Fork SMA (Management Area 21 and its associated riparian MA 18). The
analysis would not cover the road corridor area (MA 7) along Forest
Development Road 106; nor would it be for any other portion of the
Alleghany Front Lease Area as described in the FEIS prepared for the
Forest Plan (page 3-72).
Within the SMA, three leases are currently known to be issued. One
BLM lease (BLM-A-0022918) is held under a Communitization Agreement
(CA) for as long as a well is considered capable of producing. Existing
lease stipulations cannot be changed. Thus, the oil and gas leasing
standard (Standard 21-4, Forest Plan page 3-115) in the Forest Plan
does not apply to either the BLM lease or the remaining existing
leases. Since these leases are already issued, their administration
will be governed by post-lease procedures, specifically the Application
for Permit to Drill (APD). Any new decisions about oil and gas leasing
in Laurel Fork would not affect existing leases, only future leases. If
the BLM lease were ever relinquished by the lessee, the subsurface area
would be managed under whatever decision is reached from this analysis.
Individuals who, in the past, have indicated an interest in the
Laurel Fork area and the Forest's planning process will be notified
about the scope of the proposed action and about the process to
identify issues. General notice to the public concerning the scope of
the proposed action will also be published in a news release.
In preparing the draft supplement to the FEIS, the Forest Service
will develop information pertaining to the following tentative
alternatives:
1. The agency proposes to both withdraw consent to the BLM for
future oil and gas leasing in the SMA and amend the Forest Plan to make
Laurel Fork SMA unavailable for oil and gas leasing.
2. The agency is considering an alternative that would give consent
to the BLM to lease the entire SMA with a ``No Surface Occupancy''
stipulation. The Forest Plan would be amended to allow this
stipulation.
3. The agency is considering an alternative that would withdraw
consent to the BLM to lease that portion of the SMA recognized as the
Special Biological Area; but there would be no change in the consent
decision for the remaining portion (east of Laurel Fork stream). This
eastern area would continue to be available for surface occupancy by
using controlled surface use stipulations. The Forest Plan would be
amended to make the Special Biological portion of Laurel Fork
unavailable for oil and gas leasing.
Alternative 8A (Revised Forest Plan), as currently discussed in the
FEIS, would represent taking no action. The consent decision would
remain as currently discussed in the FEIS. The
[[Page 8566]]
current direction in the Forest Plan would not be amended. The SMA area
would continue to be available for surface occupancy by using
controlled surface use stipulations.
The draft supplement to the FEIS is expected to be filed with the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and to be available for public
review by June 1996. At that time, EPA will publish a notice of
availability of the draft supplement in the Federal Register.
The comment period for the draft supplement to the FEIS will be 45
days from the date the EPA's notice of availability appears in the
Federal Register. It is very important that those interested in this
proposed action participate at that time. To be the most helpful,
comments on the draft supplement to the environmental impact statement
should be as specific as possible and may address the adequacy of the
statement or the merits of the alternatives discussed (see The Council
on Environmental Quality Regulations for implementing the procedural
provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act at 40 CFR 1503.3).
In addition, Federal court decisions have established that
reviewers of draft environmental impact statements must structure their
participation in the environmental review of the proposal so that it is
meaningful and alerts an agency to the reviewers' position and
contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519,
553 (1978). Environmental objections that could have been raised at the
draft stage may be waived if not raised until after completion of the
final environmental impact statement. City of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F.2d
1016, 1022 (9th Cir. 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490
F. Supp. 1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980). The reason for this is to ensure
that substantive comments and objections are made available to the
Forest Service at a time when it can meaningfully consider them and
respond to them in the final.
After the comment period ends on the draft supplement, the comments
will be analyzed, considered, and responded to by the Forest Service in
preparing the final supplement to the environmental impact statement.
The final is scheduled to be completed by September 1996. The
responsible official will consider the comments, responses,
environmental consequences discussed in the final supplement, and
applicable laws, regulations, and policies in making a decision
regarding this proposal. The responsible official will document the
decision and reasons for the decision in a Record of Decision (ROD).
This ROD will be consistent with the scope of the environmental
analysis in the supplement and address only the two oil and gas leasing
decisions (consent and availability) within the Laurel Fork SMA. That
decision will be subject to appeal under 36 CFR 217.
The Forest Service is the lead agency. The BLM will be a
cooperating agency in this supplement.
The responsible official is Robert C. Joslin, Regional Forester,
Southern Region, 1720 Peachtree Road, NW, Atlanta, Georgia 30367.
Dated: February 23, 1996.
Robert D. Bowers,
Acting Regional Forester.
[FR Doc. 96-5023 Filed 3-4-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M