[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 163 (Thursday, August 22, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54406-54407]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-21402]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Sawtooth National Forest, Idaho; Upper and Lower East Fork 
Allotment Management Plan Analysis

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) for the Upper and Lower East Fork Allotments. The 
proposed action in the EIS is to authorize grazing through revised 
allotment management plans (AMPs) for the Upper East Fork Allotment and 
the Lower East Fork Allotment by reducing the stocking rate and 
reducing the area of the two allotments. The EIS will analyze the 
effects of the proposed action and alternatives. The agency gives 
notice of the full National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analysis 
and decision making process on the proposal so interested and affected 
members of the public may participate and contribute to the final 
decision. The Sawtooth National Forest invites written comments and 
suggestions on the scope of the analysis and the issues to address.

DATES: Written comments concerning the proposed project should be 
postmarked within 30 days from the day after publication of this 
announcement in the Federal Register. Comments received in response to 
this solicitation, including the names and addresses to those who 
comment, will be considered part of the public record on this proposal 
and will be available to public inspection. The draft environmental 
impact statement is expected to be available for public review and 
comment in January, 2003 and the final environmental impact statement 
is expected to be available September, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Lisa Stoeffler, Deputy Area Ranger 
at

[[Page 54407]]

Stanley Ranger Station; HC 64, Box 9900; Stanley, Idaho, 83278. Faxes 
should be sent to 208-774-3003 and e-mails to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the proposed project 
and scope of analysis should be directed to Seth Phalen, Team Leader, 
at the above address, or phone at (202) 774-3000.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The analysis area is located in the White 
Cloud Mountain range in Custer County, south of Clayton, ID and is 
administered by the Sawtooth National Recreation Area (SNRA) of the 
Sawtooth National Forest. The two allotments are located in portions of 
Townships 7 and 8 North and Ranges 15, 16, and 17 East, Boise Meridian. 
The proposed action will be in compliance with Sawtooth National Forest 
Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan of 1987), as amended, 
which provides overall guidance for management of this area and Public 
Law 92-400, the Organic Act for the Sawtooth National Recreation Area.

Purpose and Need for Action

    Existing conditions on the allotments do not meet the desired 
future conditions identified in the Forest Plan. The AMPs were written 
prior to the listing of threatened chinook salmon, steelhead trout, 
bull trout, Canada lynx and Utes' Ladies Tresses and do not reflect 
their needs. Ten years of monitoring the project area has shown 
consistent overuse of riparian vegetation. The purpose and need for the 
proposed action is to prepare new AMPs to meet the present Forest 
Service policy and direction, Forest Plan direction, standards and 
guidelines, and to protect recently listed species.

Proposed Action

    The Proposed Action would authorize grazing on the allotments but 
at reduced stocking rates and would reduce the area available for 
grazing within the two allotments. AMPs would be revised to reflect 
these changes. An adaptive management strategy, which would allow for 
flexibility during the implementation for grazing strategy, would allow 
permittees to respond to changing conditions and unexpected results. 
Permitted numbers and seasons would be modified as necessary to meet 
standards, based on monitoring results of the previous season.

Possible Alternatives

    Possible alternatives include: Alt. 1--continued grazing as 
currently permitted (No action); Alt. 2--reduced stocking rate and 
permitted area; Alt. 3--reduced stocking rate with the current 
permitted area; Alt. 4--current stock rate and permitted area under a 
deferred grazing system (applies to the Lower East Fork Allotment 
only), and Alt. 5--No grazing (grazing phased out).

Responsible Official

    The responsible official is the Area Ranger of the Sawtooth 
National Recreation Area, Sawtooth National Forest.

Nature of the Decision To Be Made

    The responsible official will decide if domestic livestock grazing 
can occur within the analysis area, and if so, where within the 
analysis area and at what intensity (timing and duration). The 
responsible official will also decide what structural range 
improvements (fences, water troughs, etc.), if any, are needed.

Scoping Process

    Public notices have been placed in local newspapers.

Preliminary Issues

    The following preliminary issues have been identified. (1) 
Livestock grazing may affect water quality and habitat for listed fish. 
(2) Livestock grazing may affect riparian and upland vegetation. (3) 
Livestock grazing may affect wildlife habitat. (4) Livestock grazing 
may affect the recreation experiences of visitors. (5) Changes in the 
current grazing numbers may affect the permittees.

Early Notice of Importance of Public Participation in Environmental 
Review

    A draft environmental impact statement will be prepared for 
comment. The comment period on the draft environmental impact statement 
will be 45 days form the date of Environmental Protect Agency publishes 
the notice of availability in the Federal Register.
    The Forest Services 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 be raised at the 
draft environmental impact statement stage but that are not raised 
until after completion of the final environmental impact 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, (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 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 
final environmental impact statement.
    To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues 
raised by 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 chapters of the draft statement. 
Comments may also address the adequacy of the draft environmental 
impact statement 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.

    Dated: August 16, 2002.
Ruth Monahan,
Sawtooth Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 02-21402 Filed 8-21-02; 8:45 am]
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