[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 43 (Monday, March 4, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Page 8235]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-4937]



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 Notices
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules 
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  Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 43 / Monday, March 4, 1996 / 
Notices  

[[Page 8235]]


DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Formulation of the Prerevision Review Process for the Cibola 
National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan Revision

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

SUMMARY: The Cibola National Forest requests comments on draft 
Prerevision review topics that have been developed through the 
monitoring of the current Forest Plan and interdisciplinary team 
review. This is an invitation to the public and representatives of 
government entities to express their ideas and suggestions on what 
needs to be changed in the current Forest Plan. Upon completion of the 
prerevision review, the Regional Forester shall initiate the forest 
plan revision process by publishing a Notice of intent to revise the 
forest plan and to prepare the draft environmental impact statement.

DATES: This notice is effective March 6, 1996. Comments must be 
submitted in writing on or before April 15, 1996.

ADDRESSES: Direct comments to: Jeanine A. Derby, Forest Supervisor, 
Cibola National Forest, 2113 Osuna Road NE, Suite A, Albuquerque, New 
Mexico, 87110.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Barney Lyons, Forest Planner, Cibola National Forest at 505-761-4650.

Background

    The Land and Resource Management Plan defines the long-term 
direction for managing the Cibola National Forest and the Kiowa, Rita 
Blanca, Black Kettle, and McClellan Creek National Grasslands. The 
Forest Plan will take an ecological approach to achieve multiple-use 
management of the National Forest and National Grasslands. It means 
that we must blend the needs of people and environmental values in such 
a way that the National Forest and Grasslands represent diverse, 
healthy, productive, and sustainable ecosystems. The present Cibola 
National Forest Plan was approved in 1985 and has been amended six 
times. Revision of a forest plan should occur about every 10 years, but 
no later than 15 years from the date of approval of the original plan 
or the latest plan revision.
    A prerevision review of the forest plan has been conducted to 
identified changed conditions and/or new information which appears to 
indicate a need to change direction in the current plan. The Cibola 
National Forest developed criteria to separate between Revision Topics, 
Implementation Topics, Legislative Topics, Topics for other Government 
Entities, and Research Topics. Other information required by the 
National Forest Management Act will also be evaluated with the topics 
that indicate a need for change, such as roadless areas and wild and 
scenic rivers. This review was a combination of interdisciplinary team 
efforts and Forest plan monitoring. We are seeking comments on these 
topics as well as any other topics that might surface.
    The revision topics that surfaced during the prerevision review 
are: balancing land capability with resource demand; watershed 
condition assessment and water uses, rights, quality and availability 
assessment; biological diversity; Native American collaboration; Land 
Grant Community collaboration; land uses; oil and gas leasing; 
population growth and social demographics; rural community economics; 
Scenery Management System; urban interface; wilderness management; 
recreation management; fire management; response to legal mandates; 
access management; and Range Management.
    Implementation Topics were topics that needed additional emphasis 
but the present plan provide adequate direction for implementation. 
These topics are: infrastructure; balanced heritage resource 
management; land line location; limiting factors for wildlife; 
monitoring; resource inventories; small products as a vegetation 
management tool; planning coordination with local governments; 
Recreation Opportunity Spectrum, roadless areas and other special 
areas; public information and education; Research Natural Areas; budget 
constraints and workforce reductions; and law enforcement.
    Several topics will be referred to other agencies for their 
consideration and input. These are:
    Clean Air Act implementation; State wildlife departments 
regulations and hunting seasons; State forestry's responsibility for 
forestry practices on state and private lands; State's water quality 
management under the Clean Water Act; and the Department of Energy/
Department of Defense responsibilities on land withdrawals.
    Some of the research topics include:
    Social impact on ecosystems; bats and their habitat; recreation 
uses and acceptable limits; grassland ecosystems and disturbances; 
pinyon-juniper treatment thresholds; medicinal plants and other forest 
products; bio-solid effects and applications; stream channel/wet meadow 
restoration, and health effects of smoke from prescribed burning.
    No legislative topics have surfaced to date.
    A copy of the draft Prerevision Review Topics is available at the 
Cibola National Forest Supervisor's Office, 2113 Osuna Road NE, Suite 
A, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87110, 505-761-4650.

    Dated: February 26, 1996.
Kenneth D. Knarr,
Acting Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 96-4937 Filed 3-1-96; 8:45 am]
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