[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 125 (Monday, June 30, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35145-35146]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-16985]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement; 
Finger Mountain Timber Sale(s), Sitka Ranger District, Tongass National 
Forest, Chatham Area, Sitka, AK

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: 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 to disclose the environmental impacts of 
proposed actions within the Finger Mountain Project Area, which is 
located on Chichagof Island in South-east Alaska. The proposed action 
provides for: (1) Timber harvest and subsequent regeneration of 
approximately 1872 acres of forested land. This harvest would result in 
the production of approximately 49 million board feet of sawlog and 
utility timber. (2) Construction of approximately 50 miles of permanent 
and temporary road and reconstruction of approximately 1 mile of road. 
(3) Construction of one log transfer facility and use of two existing 
log transfer facilities. This proposed action is one alternative for 
meeting the purpose and need for the project.
    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 August 15, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Finger Mountain Planning Team, 
Sitka Ranger District, 204 Siginaka Way, Sitka, AK 99835.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lisa Winn, Team Leader, Sitka Ranger 
District, 204 Siginaka Way, Sitka, AK 99835, phone (907) 747-6671, fax 
(907) 747-4331.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Environmental Impact Statement for the Finger Mountain Project 
will tier to the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Tongass 
National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan of May 1997. The Land 
and Resource Management Plan provides the overall guidance (goals, 
objectives, management prescriptions, standards and guidelines) to 
achieve the desired future condition for the area in which this project 
is proposed.
    The Finger Mountain Project Area is located about 38 air miles 
north of Sitka, Alaska, 24 air miles of northeast of Angoon, Alaska, 
and 3 air miles southwest of Tenakee Springs, Alaska on the 
southeastern part of Chichagof Island. The Project Area covers 
approximately 73,000 acres and extends from Peril Strait on the south 
to Tenakee Inlet on the north. In includes all of Management Area C34 
and encompasses six Value Comparison Units (230, 231, 232, 233, 234, 
and 246) as described in the 1979 Tongass Land Management Plan. These 
Value Comparison Units include the watersheds of In between Creek, 
Saltery Bay, Crab Bay, Fog Creek, Broad Finger Creek, and Broad Creek. 
The Project Area is administered by the Sitka Ranger District of the 
Tongass National Forest, Chatham Area, Sitka, Alaska.

Purpose and Need

    The Finger Mountain Project is being scheduled at this time to 
provide supplemental analysis for six Value Comparison Units within the 
1992 Southeast Chichagof Project Area. This supplemental analysis is 
undertaken to meet the terms of the Settlement Agreement (filed May 16, 
1996) for Alaska Wilderness Recreation and Tourism Association v. 
Morrison, Case No J94-033. It is intended to supplement the analysis 
contained in the Final Environmental Impact Statement and the Record of 
Decision for the Southeast Chichagof Project Area, published in 
September 1992.
    The purpose and need for the Finger Mountain Project is: (1) To 
implement the direction contained in the Tongass National Forest Land 
and Resource Management Plan of May 1997, including goals, objectives, 
management prescriptions, and standards and guidelines; (2) to maintain 
wood production from suitable timber lands, providing a continuous 
supply of wood to meet society's needs; (3) to help provide a stable 
supply of timber from the Tongass National Forest which meets existing 
and potential market demand and is consistent with sound multiple use 
and sustained yield objectives; and (4) to help meet the desired future 
condition of the landscape as described by the Land and Resource 
Management Plan.
    The Finger Mountain Project Area is expected to provide between 20 
and 60 million board feet of timber to the timber industry in one or 
more timber sales.

Public Comment

    Federal, State, and local agencies, as well as individuals and 
organizations

[[Page 35146]]

who may be interested in, or affected by, the proposed action are 
invited to participate in the scoping process. This process will 
determine the scope and significant issues to be analyzed in depth in 
the Environmental Impact Statement.
    Following the publication of this notice, a scoping document will 
be mailed to interested people and organizations. The document will 
briefly describe the project and project area, the purpose and need for 
the project, the proposed action, and will invite public comment. 
Scoping meetings will then be held in Sitka and Tenakee Springs, 
Alaska. Locations and times of the scoping meetings will be announced 
in local newspapers and on local radio stations.
    Following scoping, the Interdisciplinary Planning Team will review 
comments received during the scoping period to determine which issues 
as significant and within the scope of this project. The team will then 
develop a range of alternatives to address the significant issues. One 
of these will be the ``No Action'' alternative, in which no additional 
timber harvest or road construction is proposed. Other alternatives 
will consider various levels and locations of timber harvest in 
response to-issues and non-timber objectives. The team will then 
prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement which will display the 
alternatives and the direct, indirect, and cumulative effects of each 
alternative.
    The Draft Environmental Impact Statement is expected to be filed 
with the Environmental Protection Agency after March, 1998. The comment 
period on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement will be 45 days from 
the date the Environmental Protection Agency publishes the Notice of 
Availability in the Federal Register. In addition to commenting on the 
proposed action and the Draft Environmental Impact Statement when it is 
released, agencies and other interested persons or groups are invited 
to write to or speak with Forest Service officials at any time during 
the planning process.
    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 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 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 an objections are made available to the Forest 
Service at a time when it can meaningfully consider 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 Environmental Impact Statement. Comments may also address the 
adequacy of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement or the merits of 
the alternatives formulated and discussed in the document. 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.
    Comments received in response to this solicitation,including names 
and addresses of those who comment, will be considered part of the 
public record on this proposed action and will be available for public 
inspection. Comments submitted anonymously will be accepted and 
considered; however, those who submit anonymous comments will not have 
standing to appeal the subsequent decision under 36 CFR Parts 215 or 
217. Additionally, pursuant to 7 CFR 1.27(d), any person may request 
the agency to withhold a submission from the public record by showing 
how the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) permits such confidentiality. 
Persons requesting such confidentiality should be aware that, under the 
FOIA, confidentiality may be granted in only very limited 
circumstances, such as to protect trade secrets. The Forest Service 
will inform the requester of the agency's decision regarding the 
request for confidentiality, and where the request is denied, the 
agency will return the submission and notify the requester that the 
comments may be resubmitted with or without the name and address.

Decisions To Be Made

    Gary A. Morrison, Forest Supervisor of the Chatham Area, is the 
Responsible Official and will decide whether or not to authorize timber 
harvest within the Finger Mountain Project Area. In addition, if timber 
harvest will occur, he will determine the following: (1) Is the design 
of the timber sales consistent with meeting resource protection 
standards and guidelines in the Land and Resource Management Plan? (2) 
How much timber volume is to be made available and what are the effects 
of the planned activities? (3) What is the location and design of the 
timber harvest units, log transfer facilities, and road system needed 
to develop the project area? (4) What mitigation and monitoring 
measures are required for sound resource management? (5) Is there a 
significant possibility of a significant restriction on subsistence 
uses?
    The Final Environmental Impact Statement and Record of Decision is 
expected to be released by August, 1998. The Responsible Official will 
make a decision regarding this proposal after considering public 
comments, and the environmental consequences displayed in the Final 
Environmental Impact Statement, and applicable laws, regulations, and 
policies. The decision and supporting reason will be documented in the 
Record of Decision.

    Dated: June 23, 1997.
Gary A. Morrison,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 97-16985 Filed 6-27-97; 8:45 am]
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