[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 220 (Monday, November 16, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63663-63664]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-30508]


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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 
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  Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 220 / Monday, November 16, 1998 / 
Notices  

[[Page 63663]]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Pretty Tree Bench Prescribed Burn Project, Dixie National Forest, 
Garfield County, UT

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Forest Service, USDA, will 
prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for a Forest Service 
proposal to implement management prescribed burning and cutting and a 
travel management plan for the Pretty Tree Bench Project Area of the 
Escalante Ranger District, Dixie National Forest. The area is located 
approximately 14 miles northeast of Escalante, Utah and approximately 1 
mile west of Boulder, Utah. The project would be implemented in 
accordance with direction in the Dixie National Forest Land and 
Resource Management Plan (LRMP).
    The agency gives notice that the environmental analysis process is 
underway. Interested and potentially affected persons, along with 
local, state, and other federal agencies, are invited to participate 
and contribute to the environmental analysis. The Dixie National Forest 
invites written input regarding issues specific to the proposed action.

DATES: Written comments to be considered in the preparation of the 
Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) should be submitted by 
December 14, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments to: District Ranger, Escalante 
Ranger District, 755 West Main, P.O. Box 246, Escalante, Utah 84726.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Direct questions about the proposed action and EIS to Kevin R. 
Schulkoski, District Ranger, 435-826-5400.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The proposed project covers an analysis area 
of approximately 33,938 acres of National Forest System Lands. There 
are approximately 2,749 acres of wilderness and an additional 1,459 
acres of RARE II Inventoried Roadless Area (IRA) within the project 
boundary. No treatment activities are planned within the wilderness 
acres. In the RARE II Inventoried Roadless Area (IRA), there would be 
management prescribed burning on 83 acres of ponderosa pine, management 
prescribed cutting and burning on 85 acres of pinyon-juniper, and 
management prescribed burning on 24 acres of sagebrush. No roads would 
be constructed or reconstructed in the IRA. Of the several thousand 
additional acres of unroaded/undeveloped land within the project 
boundary, approximately 60% were included in unroaded/undeveloped 
inventory in 1983/1984 and also included in the 1997 update prepared by 
the Dixie National Forest.
    The proposed actions, including travel management and road 
closures, would occur in Sections 8, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 28, 29, 30, 
31, 32, and 33, Township 32 South, Range 4 East; Sections 23, 24, 25, 
26, 27, 28, 33, 34, 35, and 36, township 32 South, Range 3 East; 
Sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 25, 35, and 36, Township 33 
South, Range 3 East; and Sections 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 14, 15, 16, 17, 
18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, and 34, Township 33 South, 
Range 4 East, Salt Lake Base Meridian, Garfield County, Utah.
    The Proposed Action would implement management direction and 
projects identified in the LRMP. This project EIS will be tiered to the 
LRMP EIS, which provides goals, objectives, standards and guidelines 
for the various activities and land allocations on the Forest.
    The purpose of the Proposed Action is to provide the appropriate 
levels of prescribed fire and other management actions to create 
healthier vegetation conditions, enhance elk and deer winter range, 
reduce ground and ladder fuels in ponderosa pine and mixed conifer 
types and reduce density within the pinyon/juniper. In addition, the 
proposal includes a travel management plan which would close some roads 
year round and some roads on a seasonal basis. An Off-Highway Vehicle 
(OHV) loop served by an existing trailhead would be included. Under the 
proposal, no roads would be constructed or reconstructed and there 
would be no management activities in the Box-Death Hollow Wilderness 
Area. The treatments are designed to move the project area closer to 
proper functioning condition. The proposed actions would be located in 
Management Areas 7A (Wood Products and Utilization), 6A (Livestock 
Grazing), 2A (Semi-primitive Recreation), 5A (Big Game Winter Range), 
8A2 (Box Death Hollow CO2) and 2B (Rural and Roaded Recreation 
Opportunities).
    Under the Proposed Action, approximately 200-250 acres of sagebrush 
would be burned and reseeded. Where needed, to ensure that management 
prescribed fire will carry in the sagebrush component, pinyon-juniper 
would be cut and scattered. This activity is needed to increase the 
sagebrush age class variety which is presently mature to over-mature 
and being succeeded by pinyon and juniper.
    Approximately 450-500 acres of oak would be burned with a repeat 
burn in 3-5 years if necessary. This activity is needed to move about 
\1/3\ of the existing oak vegetation out of a single aged stand 
structure.
    The Proposed Action would cut and burn 3,000-3,500 acres of pinyon-
juniper with follow-up reseeding to control erosion. This stand 
replacement activity is needed because the current stand densities were 
not identified as desirable biological conditions. Treatment would 
eliminate the current stand structure and age class resulting in early 
seral vegetation conditions. The components of early seral conditions 
are: shrub, grass and forb species. These specieis are our desired 
biological conditions.
    Prescribed fire would be used to underburn approximately 7,000 
acres of ponderosa pine and if needed, this treatment would be repeated 
in 3-5 years. This activity is needed to alleviate the unnatural fuel 
build up and loading, which has resulted from fire suppression. 
Treatment would maintain existing ponderosa pine trees while reducing 
the risk of these pines to a catastrophic wildfire event.
    In the mixed conifer, the Proposed Action would underburn 
approximately 300-350 acres and if needed, the treatment would be 
repeated in 3-5 years. This activity is needed to

[[Page 63664]]

decrease current levels of fuel loading and thus avoid large scale tree 
mortality from future catastrophic events.
    Within the Aspen component, approximately 700 acres would be burned 
by stand replacing fire. If necessary, understory (encroaching) 
conifers would be cut to build a sufficient fuel bed to carry the fire. 
A temporary fence would be constructed to protect regeneration, if 
deemed necessary. This treatment is necessary to provide age class and 
structural diversity and strengthen the overall health of the 
community.
    On approximately 1,000 acres of aspen, understory conifers would be 
removed through non-commercial cutting. This action is needed to 
promote younger age classes and diverse structure. Succession would be 
set-back allowing a more pure aspen stand condition.
    Approximately 302 acres of aspen would be commercially and non-
commercially clear cut in patches up to 40 acres. This action would 
provide for age and structure diversity and would strengthen the 
overall health of the aspen community.
    The Proposed Action would emphasize the use of native seed in 
restoring disturbed areas and would also utilize non-native seed, where 
necessary for erosion control and big game forage. With the Proposed 
Action, a Travel Management Plan would be implemented. Major roads 
(arterial) would remain open all year and other roads (collector) would 
be opened seasonally or closed year round. An OHV loop trail would be 
developed from existing jeep trails, forest development roads 
(collector) and the Great Western Trail. The existing trailhead at the 
north end of Forest Development Road 566 is sufficiently developed to 
accommodate the additional use from the proposed OHV loop trail.
    Preliminary issues that have been identified through scoping to 
date include concerns about commercial aspen harvest, use of native 
seed only, reconstructing and realigning certain wet sections of Road 
Draw road, and year long or seasonal closure of Road Draw road to 
provide a big game corridor. Other issues include concerns about 
cutting any trees in any inventoried unroaded/undeveloped areas and the 
effects of the proposal on roadless area characteristics.
    Tentative alternatives to the Proposed Action include: No action 
(the project will not take place but current management will continue); 
elimination of any cutting, even for pre-ignition preparation, in 
unroaded/undeveloped areas; The use of only native seed throughout the 
project; The reconstruction of Road Draw road; The closure of Road Draw 
road seasonally, or year long.
    As lead agency, the Forest Service will analyze and document 
direct, indirect, and cumulative environmental effects for a range of 
alternatives. Each alternative will include mitigation measures and 
monitoring requirements.
    Hugh C. Thompson, Forest Supervisor, Dixie National Forest, is the 
responsible official.
    The Forest Service is seeking comments from individuals, 
organizations, and local, state, and Federal agencies who may be 
interested in or affected by the proposed action.
    Scoping notices have been sent to the Dixie National Forest NEPA 
mailing list. Other interested individuals, organizations, or agencies 
may have their names added to the mailing list for this project at any 
time by submitting a request to: Kevin R. Schulkoski, District Ranger, 
Escalante Ranger District, 755 West Main, P.O. box 246, Escalante, Utah 
84726.
    A public review of the proposed project was held on February 3, 
1998 with the Boulder, Utah City Council. In general, the Boulder City 
Council expresses concurrence with the Proposed Action. The entire 
project areas lies within National Forest System lands. No federal or 
local permits, licenses or entitlements would be needed. There are no 
potential conflicts with the plans and policies of other jurisdictions.
    The comment period on the Draft EIS will be 45 days from the date 
of the EPA's notice of availability appears in the Federal Register. It 
is very important that those interested in the proposed action 
participate at this time. To be most helpful, comments on the DEIS 
should be as specified as possible and may discuss the adequacy of the 
statement or the merits of the alternatives discussed (see CEQ 
Regulations for implementing the procedural provisions of NEPA at 40 
CFR 1503.3).
    In addition, Federal court decisions have established that 
reviewers of the DEIS's must structure their participation in the 
environmental review of the proposal so that it is meaningful and 
alerts an agency to the reviewers' position and contentions. Vermont 
Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519, 553 (1978). 
Environmental objections that could have been raised at the draft stage 
may be waived if not raised until after completion of the FEIS, City of 
Angoon v. Hodel, (9th Circuit, 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v. 
Harris, 490 F. Supp.1334. 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980). This is to ensure that 
substantive comments and objections are made available to the Forest 
Service at the time it can meaningfully consider them and respond to 
them in the final.
    The DEIS is expected to be available for review by January 1999. 
The Record of Decision and Final Environmental Impact Statement is 
expected to be available by March 1999.

    Dated: November 6, 1998.
Hugh C. Thompson,
Forest Supervisor, Dixie National Forest.
[FR Doc. 98-30508 Filed 11-13-98; 8:45 am]
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