[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 228 (Monday, November 29, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66609-66610]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-30865]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Lakeface-Lamb Fuel Reduction, Idaho Panhandle National Forests, 
Bonner County, Idaho

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The USDA Forest Service will prepare an environmental impact 
statement (EIS) to disclose the potential environmental effects of 
reducing the wildfire risk and treating stands with insect and disease 
problems in the Lakeface-Lamb project area on the Priest Lake Range 
District, Idaho Panhandle National Forests, Bonner County, Idaho.
    The proposed action includes unit-specific fuel and silvicultural 
treatments as well as reforestation needs, harvest techniques, and 
other site-specific connected actions. The proposed action is divided 
into several themes based on treatment needs responding to the purpose 
and need.
    These management activities will be administered by the Priest Lake 
Ranger District of the Idaho Panhandle National Forests in Bonner 
County, Idaho. This EIS will tier to the Idaho Panhandle National 
Forests Forest Plan (September 1987).
DATES: Comments should be postmarked on or before December 29, 1999. 
Please include your name and address and the name of the project you 
are commenting on.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments and suggestions on the proposed 
management activities or request to be placed on the project mailing 
list to Kent Dunstan, Priest Lake Ranger District, 32203 Highway 57, 
Priest River, Idaho 83856.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Asleson, Project Team Leader, 
Priest Lake Ranger District, 32202 Highway 57, Priest River, ID 83856.
    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 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 name and address within 10 
days.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    The public has raised concern about the threat of fires escaping 
from National Forest lands and endangering private land values. On a 
landscape level, the threat of severe lethal fires as defined in the 
Interior Columbia Basin Science Assessment has increased by nearly 20 
percent, including the moist forest types found in the project area. 
The buildup of natural fuels is outside acceptable levels and the 
frequency and

[[Page 66610]]

intensity of fire is not within historic pattern for this area. The 
developed and natural resources on the National Forest lands and 
private property within the area are of considerable value both locally 
and regionally. For these reasons, this area has been identified as a 
top priority to reduce the wildfire potential.
    The project includes approximately 7200 acres, encompassing 2030 
acres of private lands and 5100 acres of National Forest lands. The 
area is situated totally within Bonner Country, Idaho, approximately 22 
airmiles north of the community of Priest River, Idaho. The legal 
description for the project includes all or portions of the following 
sections:

Sections 5-8; Township 59 North; Range 4 West
Sections 1-3 and 10-12; Township 59 North; Range 5 West
Sections 5-7, 17, 19, 20 and 29-32; Township 60 North; Range 4 West
Sections 1-3, 10-15, 22-27, and 34-36; Township 60 North; Range 5 West.

    As Deciding Officer, I will decide how much and what, if any, 
actions including fuel treatments, timber harvesting and related 
activities, and road construction/reconstruction will occur on National 
Forest lands. I also will decide specific project mitigation measures, 
as necessary, to achieve Forest Plan objectives and standards for 
affected resources.
    Public participation plays an important role in the environmental 
analysis process. The initial scoping process (40 CFR 1501.7) for this 
analysis began October 1999. Earlier public participation occurred 
during the preparation of the Lakeface-Lamb Fuel Reduction 
environmental assessment beginning in 1995. This environmental 
assessment led us to the conclusion that we needed to further the 
assessment in the format of an EIS, hence the issuance of this NOI. The 
mailing list for public scoping will include those individuals who have 
previously expressed interest in this project as well as those 
responding to this NOI and to the Idaho Panhandle National Forests 
Quarterly Schedule of Proposed Actions, October 1999. In addition, the 
public is encouraged to visit with Forest Service officials during the 
analysis and prior to the decision. The Forest Service will also 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 actions.
    Comments from the public and other agencies will be used in 
preparation of the Draft EIS. The scoping process is used to:
    1. Identify potential issues.
    2. Identify major issues to be analyzed in depth.
    3. Eliminate minor issues or those covered by a relevant previous 
environmental analysis
    4. Identify alternatives to the proposed action.
    5. Identify potential environmental effects of the proposed action 
and alternatives including cumulative effects.
    Some public concerns have already been expressed through earlier 
scoping and the following significant issues have been identified: 
scenery; social; and white-tailed deer winter range.
    This list will be verified, expanded, or modified based on public 
scoping and interdisciplinary review for this proposal.
    The draft environmental impact statement is expected to be filed 
with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and available for public 
review in January 2000. The final environmental impact statement is 
expected to be completed in March 2000. 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.
    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, 
533 (1978). Also, environmental objections that could be raised at the 
draft environmental statement stage but that are not raised until after 
completion of the final environmental 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 very 
important that those interested in this proposed action participate by 
the close of the 45-day comment period so that substantive comments and 
objections are made available to the Forest Service at a time when it 
can meaningfully consider them and respond to them in final 
environmental impact statement.
    To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues 
and concern 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 chapter of the draft statement. 
Comments may also address the adequacy of the draft environment impact 
statement or the merits of the alternatives formulated and discussed in 
statement. Reviews 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.
    The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits 
discrimination in its programs on the basis of race, color, national 
origin, sex religion, age, disability, political beliefs, and marital 
or familial status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) 
Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of 
communication of program information (braille, large print, audiotape, 
etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center ad (202) 720-2600 (voice and 
TDD).
    To file a complaint, write the Secretary of Agriculture, U.S. 
Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20250, call 1-800-245-6340 
(voice) or 202-720-1127 (TDD). USDA is an equal employment opportunity 
employer.

    Dated: November 22, 1999.
David J. Wright,
Forest Supervisor, Idaho Panhandle National Forests.
[FR Doc. 99-30865 Filed 11-26-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M