[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 86 (Friday, May 3, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22392-22393]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-10465]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Manti-La Sal National Forest; State of Utah, State Institutional 
Trust Lands Administration Access Route on East Mountain, Emery County, 
UT; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

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

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SUMMARY: The Forest Service (FS) will prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) to disclose the impacts of authorizing an access route 
across National Forest System Lands to the State of Utah State 
Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) inholdings in Emery 
County, Utah.

Agency Decision

    The Regional Forester, Intermountain Region, must decide whether or 
not to authorize access to SITLA inholdings and what Terms and 
Conditions to require for resource protection.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received 
within 30 days from the date of publication of this Notice of Intent 
(NOI) in the Federal Register. The Draft Environmental Impact Statement 
(DEIS) is expected by May 2003, and the Final Environmental Impact 
Statement (FEIS) is expected by February 2004.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Elaine J. Zieroth, Forest 
Supervisor, Manti-La Sal National Forest, 599 West Price River Drive, 
Price, Utah, 84501, ATTN: Leland Matheson.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Aaron Howe, Mineral and Lands Staff 
Officer, Manti-La Sal National Forest 599 West Price River Drive, 
Price, Utah, 84501.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Forest Service will prepare an EIS to 
decide whether to authorize SITLA to construct and reconstruct an 
access route across National Forest System Lands, for management 
purposes including timber removal, on their inholdings on East 
Mountain. A segment of the access route would traverse portions of the 
East Mountain Inventoried Roadless Area.
    The SITLA inholdings consist of two sections: Section 36, T15S, 
R6E, (about

[[Page 22393]]

634 acres) and Section 2, T16S, R6E (about 987 acres). Provisions of 
the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) of 1980, 
section 1323(a)(16 U.S.C. 3210) provides that the owners of non-Federal 
land within the National Forest System shall be provided adequate 
access to their land. Regulations implementing section 1323(a) are set 
forth in Title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, part 251, subpart D--
Access to Non-Federal Lands. The Forest Service Policy is further 
explained in the Forest Service Manual (FSM) 5400 and 2700. Access must 
comply with other laws and regulations such as the Threatened and 
Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act, Historic Preservation Act, and 
the National Environmental Protection Act.

Purpose and Need for Action

    The purpose and need for this action is to provide an adequate 
access route across National Forest System Lands to SITLA inholdings 
consistent with applicable laws, regulations, and Forest Service 
Policy.

Proposed Action

    The Forest Service proposes to authorize SITLA permanent occupancy 
and use of National Forest System Lands along the proposed access 
location subject to terms and conditions.

Responsible Official

    The Responsible Official for the Record of Decision is Jack G. 
Troyer, Regional Forester, Intermountain Region, 324 25th Street, 
Ogden, Utah 84401.

Scoping Process

    This Notice of Intent initiates the scoping process which guides 
the development of the EIS. Scoping will be by Newspaper Legal Notice, 
mailings to interested parties and Quarterly Schedule of Proposed 
Actions. No public meetings are planned.

Preliminary Issues

    Preliminary issues have been identified as new road construction in 
the East Mountain Inventoried Roadless Area and unstable steep slopes.

Comment Requested

    If you choose to participate, your comments should be in writing 
and as specific as possible. All comments will be considered. Please 
note: comments submitted, as well as the names and addresses of those 
who comment, are considered part of the public record and will be 
released if requested under the Freedom of Information Act. If you 
provide a comment, you will remain on our mailing list for this 
project. If you do not comment but want to remain on the mailing list, 
please notify us. Those who do not comment or otherwise notify us will 
be dropped from the mailing list for this project. The estimated dates 
for filing the draft EIS is May 2003 and the FEIS is February 2004.

Early Notice of Importance of Public Participation in Subsequent 
Environmental Review

    A DEIS will be prepared for comment. The comment period on the DEIS 
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 
DEIS 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 DEIS stage but that are not raised until after 
completion of the FEIS 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 the FEIS.
    To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues 
and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the DEIS 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 DEIS 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.

    Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 1508.22; Forest Service Handbook 
1909.15, Section 21.

    Dated: April 19, 2002.
Elaine J. Zieroth,
Forest Supervisor, Intermountain Region.
[FR Doc. 02-10465 Filed 5-2-02; 8:45 am]
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