[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 77 (Thursday, April 21, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-9639]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: April 21, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service

 

Proposed Crystal Creek Timber Sale Within the Council Mountain 
Roadless Area, Payette National Forest, Adams County, ID

AGENCY:  Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Revised notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact 
statement.

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SUMMARY: A notice of intent to prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement for the proposed Crystal Creek timber sale was published in 
the Federal Register January 24, 1994 (Vol. 59, Issue No. 15, Page 
3554).
    That notice is hereby revised to include the entire subwatershed 
north of the Middle Fork Weiser River in the analysis. The proposed 
timber sale area has been expanded west to the Payette National Forest 
boundary. This boundary adjustment will enable the interdisciplinary 
team assigned to this project to address cumulative effects better in 
the watershed.
    The Forest Service will prepare an environmental impact statement 
for the proposed Crystal Creek Timber Sale, Council Ranger District, 
Payette National Forest, Idaho. The proposed sale would construct roads 
and harvest timber within a portion of the council Mountain Roadless 
area that the Payette National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan 
(1988) allocated to multiple use management.
    The agency gives notice of the environmental analysis and decision-
making process that is beginning on the proposal so that interested and 
affected people know how they may participate and contribute to the 
final decision. The agency has already completed a 30-day public 
comment period. The agency invited comments and suggestions on the 
scope of the analysis, including issues to be addressed during the 
analysis. An additional 30-day public comment period is being offered 
because of the expanded size of the project area.
    A scoping meeting was held to gather comments from the public on 
the proposed action. The meeting was on Thursday, February 3, at 7 p.m. 
at the Council Ranger District office conference room in Council, 
Idaho. Forest Service officials explained the proposed action and 
planning process, and accepted public input. The members of the public 
that attended this meeting felt that expanding the project area to 
include the entire subwatershed, was a good idea.
    A scoping document explaining the revised proposed action and 
analysis process is also available from the contacts identified below.

DATES: Comments on the scope of the analysis should be received by May 
13, 1994 to assure timely consideration.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Pete L. Johnston, District Ranger, 
Council Ranger District, Payette National Forest, P.O. Box 567, 
Council, ID 83629.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Pete Johnston, District Ranger, or 
Tracy Beck, EIS Team Leader, phone 208-253-4215.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The USDA Forest Service is proposing to 
construct 15.9 miles of road and harvest about 20.1 million board feet 
of timber from 1,835 acres of suitable timber lands within the Crystal 
Creek timber sale area. A mix of silvicultural treatments is proposed, 
including 231 acres of commercial thinning, 227 acres of shelterwood 
(about 35 percent crown canopy closure), 643 acres of reserve tree 
(about 5-10 trees per acre), and 734 acres of sanitation/salvage. This 
mix of silvicultural prescriptions seeks to retain suitable habitat for 
sensitive species within all treatment units where it currently exists, 
improve forest health (resilience and resistance to insects and 
disease), and increase dominance of seral ponderosa pine and Douglas-
fir.
    Helicopter logging is proposed for 488 acres (27 percent of the 
treatment acreage), skyline logging is proposed for 812 acres (44 
percent of the treatment acreage), and tractor logging is proposed for 
535 acres (29 percent of the treatment acreage). The proposed mix of 
logging systems seeks to protect leave stands and regenerate stands in 
a cost efficient and cost effective manner.
    This sale lies within the Council Mountain roadless Area, Adams 
County, Idaho. Crystal Creek, Lake Creek, Cabin Creek, Boulder Creek, 
Bar Creek, Warm Spring Creek, and Sheep Creek are drainages within the 
proposed timber sale area and are all tributaries of the Middle Fork 
Weiser River.
    The proposal follows direction in the Payette National Forest Land 
and Resource Management Plan, 1988 (Forest Plan). The decision to be 
made is whether the sale area should be entered at this time for timber 
harvest and associated activities, and if so, the specific conditions 
of entry.
    Preliminary issues include the proposal's effect on roadless 
characteristics, vegetation, water quality, biological diversity, 
fisheries, soils, wildlife habitat, and economics.
    Preliminary alternatives being considered include no action, an 
alternative that seeks to achieve Forest Plan objectives to maximize 
timber growth and yield, and the proposed action alternative that 
modifies timber management intensity in response to the preliminary 
issues.
    A draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) considering the 
proposed action and a reasonable range of alternatives will be 
prepared. The DEIS is expected to be filed with the Environmental 
Protection Agency and to be available for public review by March 1995. 
The comment period on the DEIS will be 45 days from the date the 
Environmental Protection Agency's notice of availability appears in the 
Federal Register.
    At this early stage, the Forest Service believes it is important to 
give reviewers early notice of several court rulings related to public 
participation in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of 
draft environmental impact statements must structure their 
participation in the environmental review of that 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 have been raised 
at the draft environmental impact statement stage but that are not 
raised until after completion of the final environmental impact 
statement may be waived or dismissed by the courts. City of Angoon v. 
Hodel, 803 F.2d 1016, 1022 (9th Circut, 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 the 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 final environmental impact statement.
    To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues 
and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the draft 
environmental impact statement should be as specific as possible. It is 
also helpful if comments refer to specific pages or chapters of the 
draft statement. Comments may also address the adequacy of the draft 
environmental impact statement or the merits of the alternatives 
formulated and discussed in the 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.
    The final environmental impact statement is scheduled to be 
completed by July, 1995.
    The Responsible Official is David F. Alexander, Forest Supervisor, 
Payette National Forest, McCall, ID 83638.

    Dated: April 13, 1994.
David F. Alexander,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 94-9639 Filed 4-20-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-31-M