[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 117 (Thursday, June 18, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33318-33319]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-16199]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Hells Canyon National Recreation Area Comprehensive Management 
Plan, Wallowa-Whitman, Nez Perce, and Payette National Forests, Baker 
and Wallowa Counties in Oregon and Nez Perce, Idaho, and Adams Counties 
in Idaho

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare a Revised Environmental Impact 
Statement.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the USDA, Forest Service will 
prepare a revised draft environmental impact statement for the Hells 
Canyon National Recreation Area Comprehensive Management Plan. The 
decision to revise the draft environmental impact statement is based on 
two factors: (1) Over two years have passed since the release of the 
draft environmental impact statement and new information has been 
released from the Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project 
that may affect the project area, thus warranting a review. This new 
information will be evaluated in the context of the affected 
environment to determine if proposed management direction should be 
modified; and (2) an additional alternative should be analyzed in 
detail that was submitted by interest groups in 1995 and was never 
fully analyzed in the February 1996 draft environmental impact 
statement. This alternative proposes management direction to manage the 
Hells Canyon National Recreation Area to thrive as a healthy native 
ecosystem that is an integral component of a larger bioregion. The 
proposed action is unchanged from that described in the November 16, 
1994 issue of Federal Register (59 FR 59203).

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis should be received 
in writing, no later than June 30, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Wallowa-Whitman National Forest, 
P.O. Box 907, Baker City, Oregon 97814.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Direct questions regarding this notice of intent and its modification 
to Kurt Wiedenmann, Ecosystem Planning Staff Officer at 541-523-1296 or 
e-mail at: kwiedenmann/[email protected].


[[Page 33319]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Wallowa-Whitman National Forest proposes 
to amend the Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan) to 
modify management direction for the Hells Canyon National Recreation 
Area (HCNRA) and affirm continuation of other existing management 
direction. The planning process will be guided by the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) with implementation scheduled for 
January 2000.
    This modified or affirmed direction will provide programmatic 
management direction for the next 10 to 15 years. The changes will 
reflect the intent of the HCNRA Act (Pub. L. 94-199), public and 
private land use regulations (36 CFR Part 292), Forest Service 
directives, changing social values, agency emphasis on ecosystem 
sustainability, new information and research findings, and results from 
the monitoring and evaluation process.
    The proposed action would integrate management direction from the 
HCNRA within the framework of Forest Plan decisions and would 
establish: management goals; management objectives; standards and 
guidelines; management area direction; and monitoring and evaluation. 
Management goals, objectives, standards, and guidelines will be 
developed for the following resource areas: recreation; access and 
facilities; wild and scenic rivers; wilderness; heritage resources; 
scientific; vegetation; biologically unique habitat; soil; air; fire; 
fish habitat; wildlife habitat; heritage resources/pre-historic sites; 
heritage resources/historic sites; minerals; landownership; and tribal 
trust responsibilities.
    The HCNRA consists of an estimated 652,488 acres. The HCNRA is 
comprised of the following management areas: wilderness, wild and 
scenic rivers, dispersed recreation/native vegetation, forage, 
dispersed recreation/timber management, research natural areas, and 
developed recreation and administrative facilities.
    The analysis will consider a range of alternatives, including no-
action.
    Public participation will be especially important at several points 
during the analysis, beginning with the scoping process (40 CFR 
1501.7). The Forest Service will be seeking information, comments, and 
assistance from Federal, State, local agencies and other individuals, 
organizations, or governments who may be interested in or affected by 
the proposed project. This input will be used in preparation of the 
draft EIS. The scoping process includes:
    1. Identifying potential issues.
    2. Identifying major issues to be analyzed in depth.
    3. Identifying issues which have been covered by a relevant 
previous environmental analysis.
    4. Exploring additional alternatives based on themes which will be 
derived from issues recognized during scoping activities.
    5. Identifying potential environmental effects of this project and 
alternatives (i.e., direct, indirect, and cumulative effects and 
connected actions).
    6. Determining potential cooperating agencies and task assignments.
    7. Notifying interested publics of opportunities to participate 
through meetings, personal contacts, or written comment. Keeping the 
public informed through the media and/or written material (i.e., 
newsletters, correspondence, etc.).
    The draft EIS will be filed with the Environmental Protection 
Agency (EPA) and is expected to be available for public review by 
January 1999. 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 final EIS is expected to be available for public review 
by June 1999.
    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 have been raised at the draft stage may be waived or dismissed by 
the court if not raised until after completion of the final EIS. 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 the proposed action participate by the close of the 30-
day comment period so that substantive comments and objections are made 
available to the Forest Service at a time when it can meaningfully be 
considered and responded to in the final EIS.
    To be most helpful, comments on the draft EIS should be as specific 
as possible and may address the adequacy of the statement or the merit 
of the alternatives discussed. 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.
    In the final EIS, the Forest Service is required to respond to 
comments and responses received during the comment period that pertain 
to the environmental consequences discussed in the draft EIS and 
applicable laws, regulations, and policies considered in making the 
decision regarding the proposal. Karyn L. Wood, Forest Supervisor, is 
the Responsible Official. As the Responsible Official, she will decide 
whether to implement the proposal or a different alternative. The 
Responsible Official will document the decision and reasons for the 
decision in the Record of Decision. That decision will be subject to 
Forest Service Appeal Regulations (36 CFR 217).

    Dated: June 18, 1998.
William R. Gast, Jr.,
Deputy Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 98-16199 Filed 6-17-98; 8:45 am]
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