[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 25 (Tuesday, February 7, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7157-7158]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-2953]



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 Notices
                                                 Federal Register
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 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 
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  Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 25 / Tuesday, February 7, 1995 / 
Notices  
[[Page 7157]]

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


South Fork Yaak EIS; Kootenai National Forest; Lincoln County, 
Montana

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice; intent to prepare environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: The Forest Service will prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) to analyze and disclose the environmental impacts of a 
Proposed Action in the South Fork Yaak Physiographic Area located about 
24 air miles northeast of Troy, Montana. This EIS will tier to the 
Kootenai National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan and EIS, 
which provide overall guidance for achieving the desired forest 
condition of the area.
    The Proposed Action was developed in response to the major fire 
events that burned over 3,000 acres in the Pink Mt. and Fowler Creek 
areas in August 1994. The proposal is to salvage timber, construct and 
reconstruct roads, reduce fuel concentrations, improve riparian and 
wildlife habitat, reforest timber stands, and improve wildlife 
security. These are being considered together because they represent 
either connected or cumulative actions as defined by the Council on 
Environmental Quality (40 CFR 1508.25). Part of the proposed project's 
activities lie within an Inventoried Roadless Area (IRA), Zulu #166.
    The Proposed Action was developed using various principles of 
Ecosystem Management. In doing so, the post-fire conditions were 
characterized at a broad scale with consideration to natural processes 
that historically shaped this ecosystem. A Forest Plan exception to 
certain Management Area standards may be needed to implement this 
alternative.

DATES: Writen comments should be received on or before March 9, 1995.

ADDRESSES: The Responsible Official is Robert L. Schrenk, Forest 
Supervisor, Kootenai National Forest. Send written comments and 
suggestions on the proposed management activities or a request to be 
placed on the project mailing list to Michael L. Balboni, District 
Ranger, Three Rivers Ranger District, Kootenai National Forest, 1437 
North Highway 2, Troy, Montana, 59935.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Jack Zearfoss, South Fork Yaak EIS Team Leader, Three Rivers Ranger 
District (406) 295-4693.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The timber salvage activities under 
consideration would occur within the 45,197 acre South Fork Yaak 
Physiographic Area. The specific areas considered are the Fowler Creek, 
Zulu Creek, and Clay Mt. areas. Primary salvage activities would occur 
in two specific fire-affected areas: the Fowler Fire (2,589 acres) and 
the Pink Mt. Fire (475 acres). Previous planning efforts (Zulu Smoot 
Environmental Impact Statement) have identified other salvage 
opportunities outside of the fire-affected areas which are included in 
this Proposed Action.
    The project area lies within all or portions of T35N, R31W, 
Sections 10, 11, 14, 15, 21, 22, 23, 26, 27, 33, and 34, T34N, R31W, 
Sections 3 and 4, T35N, R32W, Sections 36, T34N, R32W, Sections 1, and 
12 and Sections 6, and 7 T43N, R31W, PMM, Lincoln County, Montana.
    The Proposed Action would harvest about 16.2 million board feet. 
Ninety-seven percent of this would be dead or high-risk trees. Three 
percent would be live trees. Conventional cable and ground-based 
logging systems would be utilized for harvest operations. This would 
occur from 33 harvest units totalling 1156 acres. Fuel reduction 
accomplished in conjunction with harvest includes grapple piling and 
prescribed burning. Reforestation is proposed on approximately 1383 
acres of which 227 are burned plantations. Approximately 3.51 miles of 
new road would be constructed and 6.99 miles of existing road would be 
reconstructed. Road maintenance would occur on about 25.61 miles of 
existing road. Planting for wildlife forage would occur on 94 acres. 
Revegetation in riparian areas would occur on 35 acres. Placement of 
large woody debris would occur along 5.0 miles of stream channel. 
Existing roads would be rehabilitated through a variety of methods 
including the removal of approximately 25 in-stream culverts, 
recontouring of 3.44 miles of road, ripping and seeding of 22.65 miles 
of road and seeding of 3.12 miles of road.
    Approximately 218 acres proposed for harvest lie within the Zulu 
#166 IRA. Approximately 1.41 miles of road construction would occur 
within the area.
    The primary purposes of the Proposed Action are:
    (1) To revegetate the fire-affected areas as quickly as possible
    (2) To reduce the potential for future high intensity wildfires
    (3) To salvage fire and insect killed trees
    (4) To contribute to the supply of timber to local mills
    (5) To facilitate watershed recovery
    (6) To accelerate the recovery of some wildlife habitat.

The purpose of road construction and reconstruction is to facilitate 
access to the areas to be harvested and treated.
    The decision to be made is, what action (if any) should be taken in 
the South Fork Yaak Physiographic Area to:
    (1) Recover the fire affected areas using Ecosystem Management 
principles
    (2) Provide goods and services to the local economy and U.S. 
citizens
    (3) Reduce the risk for high-intensity wildfire in the future
    (4) Develop and manage the road system to facilitate the removal of 
timber, post harvest treatments, reduce sedimentation, restore stream 
channel equilibrium, and maintain or improve wildlife habitat.
    The Kootenai Forest Plan provides guidance for management 
activities within the potentially affected area through its goals, 
objectives, standards and guidelines, and management area direction. 
The areas of proposed activities would occur within Management Areas 
12, 13, 14, 15, 17 and 19. Timber harvest would occur in all Management 
Areas. Road construction would occur in Management Areas 12, 13, 14, 
15, and 17. Below is a brief description of the applicable management 
direction.
    Management Area 12.--These are areas that contain productive timber 
[[Page 7158]] lands which are suitable for timber harvest, provided 
that big game summer habitat objectives are met.
    Management Area 13.--These are areas that contain special habitat 
characteristics which are allocated as Old-Growth. Local road 
construction is permitted, providing that they are restricted following 
use to protect snag characteristics.
    Management Area 14.--These are areas that contain productive timber 
lands which are suitable for timber harvest, provided that grizzly bear 
habitat objectives are met.
    Management Area 15.--These are areas that contain productive timber 
lands which are suitable for timber harvest while providing for other 
resource values.
    Management Area 17.--These are areas that contain productive timber 
lands which are suitable for timber harvest while achieving scenery 
management objectives in major travel routes.
    Management Area 19.--These are areas that contain steep slopes 
requiring only activities which minimize surface disturbance and 
maintain a health vegetative cover.
    The Forest Service will consider a range of alternatives, One of 
these will be the ``No Action'' alternative, in which none of the 
proposed activities will be implemented. Additional alternatives will 
examine varying levels and locations for the proposed activities to 
achieve the desired conditions, as well as to respond to the issues and 
other resource values.
    The EIS will analyze the direct, indirect, and cumulative 
environmental effects of the alternatives. Past, present, and projected 
activities on National Forest Lands will be considered. The EIS will 
disclose the analysis of site-specific mitigation measures and their 
effectiveness.
    Public participation is an important part of the analysis. It will 
start with the initial scoping process (40 CFR 1501.7) which will begin 
with the publication of the notice. In addition, the public is 
encouraged to visit with Forest Service officials at any time during 
the analysis and prior to the decision. The Forest Service will be 
seeking information, comments, and assistance from Federal, State and 
local agencies and other individuals or organizations who may be 
interested in or affected by the Proposed Action. Public meetings are 
scheduled for February 28th in Troy, Montana, and March 1st at the 
Upper Ford Work Center on the Kootenai National Forest. Comments from 
the public and other agencies will be used in preparation of the Draft 
EIS. The scoping process will be used to:
    1. Identify potential issues.
    2. Identify major issues to be analyzed in depth.
    3. Eliminate minor issues or those which have been covered by a 
previous environmental analysis, such as the Kootenai Forest Plan EIS.
    4. Identify alternatives to the proposed action.
    5. Identify potential environmental effects of the Proposed Action 
and alternatives (i.e. direct, indirect, and cumulative effects).
    6. Determine potential cooperating agencies and task assignments.
    The principle environmental issues identified to date are related 
to:
    1. Revegetation for wildlife habitat and watershed recovery.
    2. Security for Threatened, Endangered, and Sensitive species.
    3. Reallocation of designated Old-Growth.
    4. Protection of fish habitat and water quality.
    5. Sustaining natural processes.
    6. Entry into Roadless areas.
    Other issues commonly associated with salvage harvesting and road 
construction include: heritage resources, soils, and scenery 
management. The list may be verified, expanded, or modified based on 
public scoping for this proposal.
    Consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has been 
ongoing with regard to listed species. The Montana Department of Health 
and Welfare-Division of Environmental Quality, Montana Department of 
Fish and Game, and the Kootensai Salish Indian Tribe will also be 
consulted.
    While public participation in this analysis is welcome at any time, 
comments received within 30 days of the publication of this notice will 
be especially useful in the preparation of the Draft EIS, which is 
expected to be filed with the EPA and available for public review in 
June, 1995. A 45-day comment period will follow publication of a Notice 
of Availability of the draft EIS in the Federal Register. The comments 
received will be analyzed and considered in preparation of a final EIS, 
which will be accompanied by a Record of Decision. The final EIS is 
expected to the filed in September, 1995.
    The Forest Service believes it is important at this early stage to 
give reviewers notice of several court rulings related to public 
participation in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of 
draft EIS's 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, 513 (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 very important that 
those interested in this Proposed Action participate by the close of 
the 30 day comment period so that substantive comments and objections 
are 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 should be as specific as 
possible. 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.
    I have the final authority for issuing a decision regarding this 
proposal. I have delegated the responsibility of preparing the EIS to 
Three Rivers District Ranger, Michael Balboni. My address is Kootenai 
National Forest, Supervisor's Office, 506 Hwy 2 West, Libby, MT 59923.

    Dated: January 30, 1995.
Robert L. Schrenk
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 95-2953 Filed 2-6-95; 8:45 am]
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