[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 243 (Monday, December 20, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71101-71103]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-32833]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Copper Mountain Resort Trails and Facilities Improvements Plan
White River National Forest--Summit County, Colorado
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.
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SUMMARY: The USDA Forest Service will prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) to disclose the anticipated environmental effects of
Copper Mountain Resort's (CMR) proposed Trails and Facilities
Improvements Plan. The proposed development includes the replacement
and upgrading of two existing lifts, development of two new lifts,
expanding on-mountain snowmaking coverage, creation of additional
skiing trails and glades, the renovation and expansion of an existing
on-mountain restaurant, construction of a snow-vehicle maintenance shop
with fuel storage, the development of two skier warming facilities, and
upgrading one existing ski patrol facility.
The agency gives notice of the full environmental analysis and
decision-making process that will occur on the proposal so that
interested and affected individuals may become aware of how they may
participate in the process and contribute to the final decision.
DATES: Comments concerning the proposal and environmental analysis
should be received by January 21, 2000.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments concerning this proposal to Michael
Liu, Special Project Coordinator, Dillon Ranger District, P.O. BOX 620,
Silverthorne, Colorado, 80498. Fax: 970 468-7735. E-mail: Liu__Mike/
[email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Direct questions about the proposed
action and EIS to Michael Liu, Special Project Coordinator, Dillon
Ranger District, P.O. BOX 620, Silverthorne, Colorado, 80498. Phone:
970 262-3440.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The proposed action would increase
recreational opportunities at Copper Mountain Resort while remaining
within the existing Special Use Permit Boundary. Presently, alpine
skiing/snowboarding and other resort activities are provided to the
public through a Special Use Permit (SUP) issued by the U.S. Forest
Service and administered by the White River National Forest (WRNF).
Many of the proposed projects have been conceptually approved through
previous National Environmental Policy Act analysis of the resort's
Master Development Plan.
The project is located on National Forest System lands within
sections 29, 30, 31, and 32, Township 6 South, Range 78 West, sections
5, 6, and 7, Township 7 South, Range 78 West, section 25, 26, 35, and
36, Township 6 South, Range 79 West, and sections 1, 2, 11, and 12,
Township 7 South, Range 79 West, of the 6th Principal Meridian.
The proposed improvements were found to be generally consistent
with the White River National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan
(Forest Plan) and Regional Guide direction. It was determined that a
non-significant Forest Plan amendment may be required
[[Page 71102]]
to meet the Visual Quality objective contained within the Management
Prescription for the 9A Management Area. The proposed improvements are
considered necessary in light of current resort deficiencies, increased
visitation experienced over the past decade, and projected future
visitation. The ensuing analysis will provide additional site specific
detail for portions of the MDP to accommodate changing socio-economic
and environmental considerations, and may modify previous approvals
shown in the MDP in response to environmental issues.
Over the past five months, a ``Collaborative Frontloaded
Interagency Process'' was conducted to establish a cooperative dialogue
with various state, local, and federal agencies and to garner their
input to the preliminary proposal. Additionally, CMR conducted several
public forums allowing the community an opportunity to provide input to
the proposal formulation process.
Purpose and Need: Purpose 1: To qualitatively improve Alpine skiing
and snowboarding opportunities and bring infrastructure into balance
with current use levels.
A. To improve quality, distribution, and circulation of
intermediate through expert skiers and riders by enhancing access to
and from less accessible terrain.
B. To enhance teaching facilities completing the learning area, and
to provide an atmosphere responsive to the needs of beginning level
guests.
C. To increase the amount of groomed, gladed terrain, responding to
changing skier/boarder preferences, desires for these types of terrain,
and develop appropriate management of gladed area throughout the
resort.
D. To improve the balance between skiable terrain and existing lift
capacity.
E. To improve circulation and address guest expectations for
reliable, diverse, high-quality, early-season terrain. Additional
snowmaking would provide durable coverage on high traffic, and exposed
areas.
F. To increase the quantity, and improve the quality of on-mountain
seating, improving the quality of the guest experience, increasing the
range of services provided, and minimizing base area congestion.
Purpose 2: To improve operational efficiencies by incorporating
technological innovations and through the development, renovation,
relocation, and centralization of facilities.
A. To provide a snow vehicle maintenance shop, which can be easily
accessed by employees, vehicles, and materials during the winter, and
is located closer to the majority of the terrain and facilities being
served. Development of a new facility would allow reallocation of the
existing shop space to maintenance of the rubber-tired fleet, thus
maximizing operational efficiencies. A more centrally located facility
would increase operational efficiencies, and increase the effective
productivity of the grooming and maintenance fleet.
B. To upgrade and replace aged infrastructure, thereby reducing
maintenance requirements, increasing operational efficiencies and
reliability, meeting guest expectations, and incorporating modern
technologies.
C. To install underground snowmaking infrastructure on trails
currently being covered, thereby reducing risks to personnel,
decreasing labor requirements, and incorporating current technology
resulting in higher productivity.
D. To provide an emergency egress route from Copper Bowl, allowing
guest and employee egress in the event of a lift failure, and
facilitating rapid evacuation of patients with life-threatening
conditions. To provide a ski patrol duty station in the Tucker Mountain
pod sized to ensure the appropriate availability of emergency equipment
and personnel.
Purpose 3: To integrate ski area development and use with
ecological principals such as managing habitats, water resources,
forest cover, and connectivity thus maintaining viable plant and animal
populations.
A. To ensure projects are designed and implemented to maintain
functions and values of critical or unique habitats as identified by
resource professionals.
The Proposed Action: The proposed improvements include: the
replacement and upgrading of two existing lifts (Alpine and Sierra),
development of two new lifts (one on Tucker Mountain and a teaching
lift in the Union Creek area), expanding on-mountain snowmaking
coverage by approximately 400 acres, creation of additional skiing
trails and glades, the renovation and expansion of an existing on-
mountain restaurant (Solitude Station), construction of a snow-vehicle
maintenance shop with fuel storage, the development of two skier
warming facilities, and upgrading one existing ski patrol facility.
Preliminary Issues: Identified preliminary issues include potential
forest fragmentation, effects to wildlife, botanical resources,
wetlands, water quality, mountain hydrology, and the relationship of
the proposed action to future development of adjacent real estate.
Public Involvement: Public questions and comments regarding this
proposal are an integral part of this environmental analysis process.
Comments will be used to identify issues and develop alternatives to
CMR's proposal. To assist the Forest Service in identifying and
considering issues and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the
draft EIS should be as specific as possible. It is also helpful if
comments refer to specific pages or chapters of the draft statement.
Comments may also address the adequacy of the draft EIS or the merits
of the alternatives formulated and discussed in the statement.
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.
A public meeting will be held on January 11, 2000 at 5:30 p.m. in
the Summit County Commons Building, 37 County Road 1005, Frisco
Colorado. The purpose of the meeting will be to provide the public with
an opportunity to become more familiar with the proposal and to ask
questions. Additional information may also be obtained on the web by
accessing: http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/whiteriver/reading__room.html
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 Part 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 requestor 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 names and addresses within
thirty (30) days.
Public comments are appreciated throughout the analysis process.
The draft EIS is expected to be filed with the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) in September 2000 and will be available
[[Page 71103]]
for public review at that time. 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. Completion of the final EIS is
anticipated in February 2001.
The Forest Service believes it is important to give reviewers
notice of this early stage of public participation and of several court
rulings related to public participation in the environmental review
process. First, reviewers of the draft EIS must structure their
participation in the environmental review of the proposal so that it is
meaningful and alerts an agency to the reviewer's positions 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 the 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 this
proposed action participate by the close of the comment period so
substantive comments and objections are made available to the Forest
Service at a time when it can meaningfully consider and respond to them
in the final EIS.
In the Final EIS, the Forest Service is required to respond to
substantive comments received during the comment period, which pertain
to the environmental consequences discussed in the draft EIS.
Responsible Official: The responsible official is Martha Ketelle,
Forest Supervisor for the White River National Forest. The responsible
official will document the decision and reasons for the decision in a
Record of Decision. That decision will be subject to appeal under 36
CFR part 215 or part 251.
Dated: December 13, 1999.
Martha J. Ketelle,
Forest Supervisor,
White River National Forest.
[FR Doc. 99-32833 Filed 12-17-99; 8:45 am]
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