[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 227 (Monday, November 25, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70575-70576]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-29951]


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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 
 and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings, 
 delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency 
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  Federal Register / Vol. 67, No. 227 / Monday, November 25, 2002 / 
Notices  

[[Page 70575]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Office of the Secretary


Clarification of Language in the 1994 Record of Decision for the 
Northwest Forest Plan; National Forests and Bureau of Land Management 
Districts Within the Range of the Northern Spotted Owl; Western Oregon 
and Washington, and Northwestern California

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a supplement to a final 
environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: The Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) 
(collectively the Agencies) will prepare and consider a supplemental 
environmental impact statement (SEIS) on a proposal to amend the Record 
of Decision for the Northwest Forest Plan, which was signed on April 
13, 1994. Specifically, this proposed action will make the Aquatic 
Conservation Strategy (ACS) in the Record of Decision consistent with 
the original intent of the report prepared by the Forest Ecosystem 
Management Assessment Team, entitled ``Forest Ecosystem Management: An 
Ecological, Economic, and Social Assessment Report of the Forest 
Ecosystem Management Assessment Team (FEMAT Report).'' The proposed 
action would amend land and resource management plans for National 
Forests and BLM Districts within the range of the northern spotted owl 
(generally western Oregon and Washington, and northwestern California).
    The Forest Service and BLM will be joint lead agencies for this 
proposal. The two Agencies will consult as appropriate with the U.S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service and National Oceanographic and Atmospheric 
Administration Fisheries (NOAA Fisheries), pursuant to the Endangered 
Species Act (ESA). Other Federal agencies may also be involved, 
including the Forest Service's Pacific Northwest and Pacific Southwest 
Research Stations, Bureau of Indian Affairs, National Park Service, 
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 
Natural Resources Conservation Service, the U.S. Geological Survey 
Biological Resources Division, EPA Research Laboratory, and Tribal, 
local, and state governments. Although the two Agencies have no plans 
to hold public scoping meetings regarding this proposed action, public 
comments are invited.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis should be received 
in writing by December 26, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments concerning this proposal to: Comments, 
SEIS for Aquatic Conservation Strategy, P.O. Box 2965, Portland, Oregon 
97208. Copies of the Record of Decision and Attachment A to the Record 
of Decision can be obtained electronically at http://www.reo.gov/library/reports/newsandga.pdf. Hard copies can be obtained from the 
Office of Strategic Planning; P.O. Box 3623, Portland, Oregon 97208.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joyce Casey, SEIS Team Leader, P.O. 
Box 2965, Portland, Oregon 97208.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Agencies propose to amend the Aquatic 
Conservation Strategy (ACS) in Attachment A of the Record of Decision, 
entitled, ``Standards and Guidelines for Management of Habitat for 
Late-Successional and Old-Growth Forest Related Species Within the 
Range of the Northern Spotted Owl.'' The ACS was designed to operate 
over multiple spatial scales, with a focus on the broader scales 
(watershed and landscape). In recent litigation involving claims under 
the Endangered Species Act, the Ninth Circuit interpreted the ACS 
provisions of the Northwest Forest Plan.
    In Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations v. National 
Marine Fisheries Service, 265 F.3d 1028 (9th Cir. 2001) the Ninth 
Circuit interpreted the ACS provisions as requiring that each project 
be consistent with the overall ACS at the site-specific scale, rather 
than simply satisfying the Standards and Guidelines set forth in the 
Northwest Forest Plan's Record of Decision Attachment A, sections C and 
D. This interpretation is not what was intended by the Agencies, and 
makes it nearly impossible to implement any management actions that 
could have any effect on riparian areas.
    The proposed action would replace portions of text in the Record of 
Decision at pages i, A-6, B-10, and C-1 of Attachment A with text that 
clearly reflects the Agencies' original intent. The SEIS will disclose 
the anticipated effects of the proposed action, as well as of the 
interpretation as stated in the Ninth Circuit's decision. The SEIS will 
also consider relevant new science since 1994 and Northwest Forest Plan 
implementation monitoring results.
    Adoption of the proposed action would affect National Forest System 
(NFS) lands and public lands administered by the BLM within the range 
of the northern spotted owl, generally in western Oregon and 
Washington, and in northwestern California.
    The Record of Decision for this SEIS will amend, for the Forest 
Service, the following National Forest Land and Resource Management 
Plans: Gifford Pinchot, Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie, Olympic, Wenatchee and 
Okanogan National Forests in Washington; Deschutes, Mt. Hood, Rogue 
River, Siuslaw, Siskiyou, Umpqua, Willamette, and Winema National 
Forests in Oregon; and Six Rivers, Klamath, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, 
and Shasta-Trinity National Forests in California. The responsible 
official for NFS lands will be the Secretary of Agriculture.
    The Record of Decision for this SEIS will amend, for the Bureau of 
Land Management, the following Resource Management Plans: Salem, 
Eugene, Roseburg, Medford, and Coos Bay Districts in Oregon; the 
Klamath Falls Resource Area of the Lakeview District, also in Oregon; 
the Arcata, Redding, and Ukiah field offices in California, and also 
the King Range National Conservation Area Management Plan in the Arcata 
Resource Area in California. This decision would not apply to the 
Headwaters area in California, for which a separate management plan is 
being written. The responsible official for public lands administered 
by BLM will be the Secretary of the Interior.
    Preliminary issues expected to be addressed in the SEIS include: 
ensuring that the proposed minor changes in

[[Page 70576]]

language do not slow the momentum of the Agencies' substantial 
investment in watershed restoration and aquatic habitat improvement; 
and whether the proposed action meets all applicable laws and 
regulations including the Oregon and California Lands Act, the Federal 
Land Policy and Management Act, the National Forest Management Act, and 
the Endangered Species Act, and those statutes' implementing 
regulations.
    Although scoping is not required for supplements to environmental 
impact statements (40 CFR 1502.9(c)(4)), the Agencies are inviting 
scoping comments at this time. Comments are sought (1) to help the 
Agencies identify issues to be addressed in the SEIS; (2) to identify 
significant issues related to the proposed action; refine the proposed 
action; (3) to identify reasonable alternatives to the proposed action; 
and (4) to identify interested and affected persons. For comments to be 
most useful in this analysis, they should be submitted in writing by 
the date identified above. To assist the Agencies in identifying and 
considering issues and concerns on the proposed action, comments should 
be as specific as possible.
    The Agencies have no plans to conduct public scoping meetings. 
However, a scoping letter will be prepared and circulated to affected 
Federal, State, and local agencies, affected tribes, and individuals 
and organizations previously expressing an interest in the ACS.
    The draft SEIS is expected to be filed with the EPA in February 
2003 and will be available for public review. The comment period on the 
draft SEIS will be 90 days from the date the EPA publishes the notice 
of availability in the Federal Register. It is helpful if comments 
refer to specific pages or chapters of the draft document. Comments may 
also address the adequacy of the draft SEIS 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.
    The Agencies believe, 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 
the draft SEIS 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 SEIS stage, but that are not raised 
until after completion of the final SEIS, 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 90-day comment period so that substantive comments and 
objections are made available to the Agencies at a time when the 
Agencies can meaningfully consider them and respond to them in the 
final SEIS.
    It is expected that the final SEIS will be filed with the EPA 
approximately July 2003. The Agencies anticipate there will be a Record 
of Decision signed in August 2003.

    Dated: November 20, 2002.
David P. Tenny,
Deputy Under Secretary, Natural Resource and Environment.
[FR Doc. 02-29951 Filed 11-21-02; 10:33 am]
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