[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 213 (Thursday, November 4, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60158-60160]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-28846]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
West Mountain North Project, Boise National Forest, Idaho
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare Environmental Impact Statement.
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SUMMARY: The Cascade Range District of the Boise National Forest will
prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for an integrated
resource management project in the North Fork of the Payette River. The
entire project area is within watersheds that drain directly into
Cascade Reservoir or into the North Fork Payette River above Cascade
Reservoir. The project area is located 12 miles northwest of Cascade,
Idaho, and about 100 miles north of Boise, Idaho.
The agency invites written comments and suggestions on the scope of
the analysis. The agency also hereby gives notice of environmental
analysis decisionmaking process that will occur on the proposal so
interested and affected people are aware of how they may participate
and contribute to the final decision. At this time, no public meetings
to discuss the project are planned.
Proposed Action: Four primary objectives have been identified to
the project: (1) reduce current and future stand susceptibility to
western spruce budworm; (2) improve long-term stand growth to or near
levels indicative of healthy, sustainable forests; (3) implement the
Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Plan by reducing by 30 percent the
total phosphorus delivery from existing sources within the project
area, and resulting in an no net increase of total phosphorus from
proposed activities; and; (4) contribute to the local economy through
the supply of forest
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products and associated employment opportunities.
The proposed action would treat a total of 1,659 acres in the
10,048-acre project area. The project area itself encompasses all of
the 2,800-acre Poison Creek Management Area 52A, and a portion of the
19,069-acre West Mountain North Management Area 52. An estimated 12.0
MMBF of timber would be harvested using ground-based (827 acres),
skyline (319 acres), and helicopter (513 acres) yarding systems. The
proposed action would employ variety of silvicutural prescriptions
including commercial thin (148 acres), improvement cut (512 acres),
sanitation/salvage (340 acres), individual tree selection (18 acres),
seed cut shelterwood (224 acres), and final removal shelterwood (417
acres). The existing transportation system would be improved to
facilitate long haul and reduce sedimentation with individual sections
of 17.9 miles of road being reconstructed. An estimated 0.8 mile of
specified road and 0.4 mile of temporary road would be constructed to
facilitate harvest. In addition, 4.9 miles of road not needed for the
long-term management of the area would be decommissioned, and, 1.8
miles closed year-round and 1.1 miles closed seasonally (September 15
to June 1) to motorized use with the exception of snowmobiles and
administrative use.
Management direction in the Boise National Forest Land and Resource
Management Plan (LRMP) of the 2,800-acre Poison Creek Management Area
(MA) 52A was developed in anticipation of the proposed ValBois Resort.
The VlBois project, which was still in its conceptual stage when the
LRMP was published in 1990, included numerous developments associated
with skiing on Forest Service administered lands with in MA 52A. Due to
a number of circumstances, the ValBois project is no longer being
considered. Although a similar proposal, WestRock, is currently under
consideration on adjacent private and State-owned lands, WestRock
officials have stated they have no intention of requesting a permit to
operate on Forest Service administered lands. Nonetheless, the LRMP
direction for MA 52A still reflects ValBois as a potential activity and
would require amending prior to implementation of the proposed action.
Given the ongoing LRMP revision and the anticipated timeframes of the
effort, proposed amendments would be specific to the West Mountain
North Project. Future management of the area would be deferred to that
prescribed in the revised LRMP. The following LRMP amendments are
included as a part of the proposed action:
Amend the Visual Quality Objectives on page IV-438 of the LRMP to
foreground retention and middleground partial retention for the West
Mountain Cascade Reservoir Road No. 422, and, middleground partial
retention for the Cascade Reservoir Area. Visual Quality Objectives
specific to Proposed Developments associated with the ValBois Resort
would not apply to this project.
Amend the standard on page IV-439 of the LRMP that limits timber
harvesting to allow management activities, including timber harvest,
proposed with the West Mountain North Project.
Preliminary Issues: Preliminary concerns with the proposed action
include: (1) impacts on phosphorus delivery to Cascade Reservoir; (2)
economic returns of the project given projected implementation costs
and revenues; (3) impacts on the visual quality of the area as seen
from sensitive viewpoints, and (4) potential impacts on boreal owl.
Possible Alternative to the Proposed Action: Two alternatives to
the proposed action have been discussed thus far: (1) a no action
alternative, and, (2) an alternative that would increase the number of
acres treated. Other alternatives may be developed as issues are
identified and information received.
Decision to be Made: The Boise National Forest Supervisor will
decide the following: Should roads be built and timber harvested within
the West Mountain North Project Area at this time, and if so, where
within the project area, and how many miles of road should be built;
and which stands should be treated and what silvicultural systems
should be use? What mitigation/watershed enhancement measures should be
applied to the project? Should the decommissioning of portions of roads
Nos. 186H1, 186C, 186A3, and other existing roads be implemented at
this time? Should the LRMP be amended to allow proposed activities in
MA 52A?
DATES: Written comments concerning the proposed project and analysis
are encouraged and should be postmarked on or before December 6, 1999.
ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to Keith Dimmett, Cascade
Ranger District, P.O. Box 696, Cascade, ID 83611. Comments received in
response to this request will be available for public inspection and
will be released in their entirety if requested pursuant to the Freedom
of Information Act.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Further information can be obtained
from Keith Dimmett at the address mentioned above or by calling 208-
382-7433.
SCHEDULE: Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), February 2000.
Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), May 2000.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The NFMA planning for this project was
initiated in the fall of 1997 with the Cascade Reservoir Ecosystem
Analysis at the Watershed Scale. In addition to public announcements in
The Idaho Statesman (May 14, 1998) and The Long Valley Advocate (May
13, 1998), a scoping package describing a similar proposed action was
mailed to 50 individuals and/or groups. A predecisional environmental
assessment (EA) was distributed for a 30-day comment period in November
1998. Five letters were received commenting on the EA. A Decision
Notice and Finding of No Significant Impacts was distributed in
February 1999. The Forest Supervisor withdrew that decision in April
1999 citing recent judicial interpretations of NEPA at the rationale
for preparation of a DEIS.
A large portion of an unroaded area, roughly 5,300 acres in size,
occurs within the southern portion of the West Mountain North Project
Area. Although this area was not identified in the roadless inventory
completed in preparation of the LRMP in 1990, it was identified in
September 1999 during the ongoing LRMP revision effort. While the
proposed action does not include any management activities within this
unroaded area, other alternatives developed over the course of this
analysis may include timber harvest activities within this area.
The comment period on the DEIS will be 45 days from the date the
Environmental Protection Agency publishes the notice of availability in
the Federal Register.
The Forest Service believes, at this early stage, it is important
to give reviewers notice of several court rulings relates to public
participation in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of
the DEIS must structure their participation in the environmental review
of the proposal so that it is meaningful and alerts an agency to the
reviewer's position and contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear power Corp.
v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519, 553 (1978). Also, environmental objections that
could be raised at the DEIS stage but are not raised until after
completion of the FEIS may be waived or dismissed by the courts. City
of Angoon v. Hodel, 803
[[Page 60160]]
F.2d 1016, 1002 (9th Cir., 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v.
Harris, 490 F. Supp. 1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980). Because of these
court rulings, it is very important that those interested in this
proposed action participate by the close of DEIS 45-day comment period
so 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 FEIS.
To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues
and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the DEIS should be as
specific as possible. It is also helpful if comments refer to specific
pages or chapters of the draft statement. Reviewers may wish to refer
to the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for implementing
the procedural provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act at
40 CFR 1503.3 in addressing these points.
Responsible Official: David D. Rittenhouse, Forest Supervisor,
Boise National Forest, 1249 South Vinnell Way, Suite 200, Boise, ID
83709.
Dated: October 28, 1999.
W. Wayne Patton,
Range, Watershed, Air, Minerals, Wildlife, and Fisheries Officer.
[FR Doc. 99-28846 Filed 11-3-99; 8:45 am]
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