[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 168 (Wednesday, August 31, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-21436]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: August 31, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
 

Northwest Baranof Timber Sale(s), Tongass National Forest, 
Chatham Area, Sitka Ranger District, Sitka, AK

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Revise the July 12, 1993 notice of intent to prepare an 
environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Agriculture, Forest Service will prepare an 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to disclose the environmental 
impacts of proposed actions within the Northwest Baranof project area. 
This notice is an amendment to the original notice of intent for this 
project, published July 12, 1993. The proposed action provides for: (1) 
Construction of approximately 28 miles of new road, and reconstruction 
of approximately 7 miles of existing road in conjunction with up to 
seven timber sales; (2) harvest of approximately 1,800 acres of timber, 
and regeneration of new stands of trees. This level of development 
would result in the harvest of approximately 58 million board feet of 
sawlog and utility timber volume; (3) 1,000 foot uncut timber buffers 
along Nakwasina Passage, St. John Baptist Bay, and the north side of 
Fish Bay for the protection of wildlife and subsistence uses; (4) log 
transfer facilities in Nakwasina Passage and Nakwasina Sound, St. John 
Baptist Bay (barge facility), Schulze Cove, and Rodman Bay; (5) no 
clearcut harvest in areas which are visible from the Alaska Marine 
Highway route (6) no harvest in VCU 289 or 290; and (7) no harvest in 
the Rodman Creek drainages and limited harvest in Fish Bay drainage.
    The Forest Service is seeking information and comments from 
Federal, State and local agencies as well as individuals and 
organizations who may be interested in, or affected by, the proposed 
action.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis should be received 
in writing by October 21, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Northwest Baranof Planning Team, 
USDA Forest Service, 204 Siginaka Way, Sitka, Alaska 99835.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Gordon Anderson, Team Leader, USDA Forest Service, 204 Siginaka Way, 
Sitka, AK 99835, (907) 747-6671.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This EIS will tier to the 1979 Tongass Land 
Management Plan (TLMP) EIS, including the 1985-86 and 1990 amendments. 
The TLMP provides the overall guidance (Goals, Objectives, Standards, 
and Management Area direction) to achieve the desired future condition 
for the area in which the project is proposed.
    The Northwest Baranof Project Area is located about 10 air miles 
north of Sitka, Alaska, and 30 miles east of Angoon, Alaska, on the 
northwestern part of Baranof Island. It encompasses ten Value 
Comparison Units (VCUs) including 287 through 292, 299, 301, and 
portions of 300 and 302 as designated in the TLMP. These VCUs are 
located within Management Areas C40 and C41 as described in the TLMP. 
VCUs 310, 312, and 313 were dropped from the project area following 
initial field review. The project area is administered by the Sitka 
Ranger District of the Chatham Area, Tongass National Forest in Sitka, 
Alaska.
    The purpose and need for the Northwest Baranof project is to make 
30-100 million board feet of timber available through up to seven 
independent timber sales or offerings to the Ketchikan Pulp Company 
under the conditions of its long-term timber sale contract. This timber 
is needed to provide a sustained level of wood products to meet local, 
national, and international demand; and to provide local employment in 
the wood products industry. A comparison of the desired future 
condition for the project area (as identified in the TLMP) with the 
existing condition shows the need to convert suitable stands of old-
growth timber to managed productive stands capable of long-term timber 
production.
    Gary A. Morrison, Forest Supervisor, Chatham Area, is the 
Responsible Official and will decide whether or not to authorize timber 
harvest within the Northwest Baranof Project Area. He will decide (1) 
If the design of the timber sale offerings are consistent with meeting 
resource protection standards and guidelines in the TLMP; (2) how much 
timber volume to make available; (3) the location and design of the 
arterial and collector road system needed to develop the project area; 
(4) the location and design of timber harvest units and log transfer 
facilities; (5) mitigation and monitoring measures for sound resource 
management; and (6) whether there may be a significant restriction on 
subsistence uses, and if so, other determinations required by section 
810 of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act.
    Issues are expected to revolve around: (1) Management of wildlife 
and fish habitat; (2) subsistence needs; (3) location, design and 
impacts of log transfer facilities; (4) recreation and visual impacts; 
and (5) the economic health of Southeast Alaska.
    To proceed with the timber harvest as proposed, various permits 
must be obtained from other agencies. The agencies and their 
responsibilities are as follows: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has the 
responsibility for approval of discharge of dredged or fill materials 
into the waters of the United States (Section 404 of the Clean Water 
Act), and approval of construction of structures or work in navigable 
waters of the United States (Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act 
of 1899); EPA has responsibility for the National Pollutant Discharge 
Elimination System review (Section 402 of the Clean Water Act). Other 
agencies which will participate are as follows: State of Alaska, 
Department of Natural Resources has responsibility for authorization 
for occupancy and use of tidelands and submerged lands; State of 
Alaska, Department of Environmental Conservation has responsibility for 
the Solid Waste Disposal Permit (Section 402 of Clean Water Act) and 
the Certificate of Reasonable Assurance (Section 404 of Clean Water 
Act); U.S. Coast Guard has responsibility for Coast Guard Bridge 
Permits (in accordance with the General Bridge Act of 1946) required 
for all structures constructed within the tidal influence zone. Both 
the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will participate as 
cooperating agencies in preparation of the EIS.
    Preparation of the EIS began with public notification and scoping 
in June, 1993. EIS preparation will continue with the following 
additional steps: (1) Public notification and scoping (approximately 45 
days beginning on the date of publication of this Notice in the Federal 
Register); (2) identification of issues related to the proposed action 
(significant issues) and a discussion of reasons for not considering 
other issues (non-significant issues) in this analysis; (3) 
identification of issues to be analyzed in depth; (4) development of 
reasonable alternatives to the proposed action which meet the stated 
purpose and need for the proposed action and address significant 
issues; and (5) identification of the potential environmental effects 
of the alternatives.
    For step 1, scoping announcements will be published in the Sitka 
Daily Sentinel newspaper on or about August 26 and September 14, 1994, 
and copies of the announcement will be mailed to interested persons. 
This announcement will describe the timing and location of the proposed 
project and will request comments. It will also contain specific 
information about the location and timing of public involvement 
meetings. Scoping meetings will be held in Sitka, Alaska on September 
21 and October 6, 1994, in the Maksoutoff Room of the Centennial 
Building from 6:30 p.m. until 9:00 p.m., and Angoon, Alaska September 
28 through 30, 1994. Exact locations and times of the Angoon scoping 
meetings will be announced in local newspapers and on radio station 
public service announcements.
    For steps 2 and 3, the Interdisciplinary Team will review comments 
received during both scoping periods to determine issues which are 
significant and within the scope of this project.
    Step 4 will consider a range of alternatives developed to address 
significant issues. One of these will be the ``No Action'' alternative, 
in which there is no harvest or road building activity. Other 
alternatives may consider various levels and locations of harvest and 
regeneration in response to issues and non-timber objectives.
    Step 5 will analyze the environmental effects of each alternative. 
The direct, indirect, and cumulative effects of each alternative will 
be analyzed and documented. In addition, site specific mitigation 
measures for each alternative will be identified and their 
effectiveness evaluated.
    In addition to commenting on the proposed action and the Draft EIS 
when it is released, agencies and other interested persons or groups 
are invited to contact Forest Service officials at any time during the 
planning process.
    The Draft EIS is expected to be filed with the EPA during the 
summer of 1995. The comment period on the Draft EIS will be 45 days 
from the date the EPA 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 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 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 
draft EIS stage but that are not raised until after completion of the 
final EIS may be waived or dismissed by the courts; 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). Because of 
these court rulings, it is 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 EIS.
    To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues 
and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the Draft EIS 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 EIS 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, 40 
CFR 1503.3, in addressing these points.
    The Final EIS and Record of Decision is expected to be released in 
the winter of 1995-96. The Forest Supervisor for the Chatham Area of 
the Tongass National Forest will, as the responsible official for the 
EIS, make a decision regarding this proposal considering the comments, 
responses, and environmental consequences discussed in the Final EIS, 
and applicable laws, regulations, and policies. The decision and 
supporting reasons will be documented in the Record of Decision.

    Dated: August 22, 1994.
Carl M. Burgeson,
Acting Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 94-21436 Filed 8-30-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M