[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 250 (Monday, December 30, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 79560-79561]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-32957]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Payette National Forest, Idaho; Sloan-Kennally Timber Sale, Goose 
Creek Watershed Projects, Brown Creek Timber Sale, Middle Fork Weiser 
Vegetation Management Project; Little Weiser Vegetation Management 
Project

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare supplemental environmental impact 
statement.

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SUMMARY: The USDA Forest Service will prepare five supplemental 
environmental impact statements (SEISs). The projects are: Sloan-
Kennally Timber Sale, Goose Creek Watershed Projects, Brown Creek 
Timber Sale, Middle Fork Weiser Vegetation Management Project; Little 
Weiser Vegetation Management Project. The proposed actions in the 
original EISs are to harvest timber, conduct prescribe burns, manage 
roads, and implement related activities. The SEISs will provide 
additional information on the Forest-wide status of the pileated 
woodpecker on the Forest. The Payette National Forest invites written 
comments and suggestions on the scope of the analysis and the issues to 
address. The agency gives notice of the full National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) analysis and decision-making process so that 
interested and affected people know how they may participate and 
contribute to the final decision.

DATES: Comments need to be received in writing by January 17, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Mark Madrid, Forest Supervisor, 
Payette National Forest, P.O. Box 1026, McCall ID 83638.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the proposal action 
should be directed to Curtis Spalding, Environmental Coordinator, at 
the above address, phone (208) 634-0796.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Payette National Forest completed Draft EISs 
(DEISs) and Final EISs (FEISs) for five projects between August 1998 
and December 2001. The Forest Supervisor signed Record of Decisions 
(RODs) for each. Each project proceeded through the administrative 
appeal process (36 CFR 215) and was affirmed by the Deputy Regional 
Forester. In June 2002, the projects were named in a court complaint 
filed by the group Neighbors of Cuddy Mountain (Civ. 02-244-MJW) in 
District Court for the District of Idaho. After a series of hearings, 
on November 8, 2002, the Court ordered an injunction against the five 
projects based on the issue of old growth habitat retention.
    Habitat and population monitoring has provided a body of data 
indicating the population trends of the pileated woodpecker on the 
Forest. The purpose of the supplemental environmental impact statements 
(SEISs) is to provide additional environmental analysis on the 
projects' compliance with the Forest Plan's old growth retention 
standard in light of the body of available data, to disclose that 
analysis to the public for review and comment, and to provide a basis 
for the original or new project decisions.
    The preliminary issue for these SEISs is the effect of the proposed 
timber harvest on old growth habitat for pileated woodpecker, the 
management indicator for old growth habitat on the Payette National 
Forest.
    A range of reasonable alternatives will be considered. The no-
action alternative will serve as a baseline for comparison of 
alternatives. The proposed action will be considered along with 
additional alternative(s) needed to address major issues identified 
during scoping while meeting the meet the purpose and need of the 
projects defined in the original EISs.
    Comments received in response to this notice, including names and 
addresses of those who comment, will be part of the project record and 
available for public review.
    The Forest Service is seeking information and comments from other 
Federal, State, and local agencies; Tribal governments; organization; 
and individuals who may be interested in or affected by the proposals. 
This input will be used in preparation of the SEISs.
    Comments will be appreciated throughout the analysis process. The 
draft SEISs will be filed with the Environmental Protection Agency 
(EPA) and are anticipated to be available for public review by January, 
2003. The comment period on the draft SEISs will be 45 days. It is 
important that those interested in the management of the Payette 
National Forest participate at that time.
    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, 
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, 1002 (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 important that those interested in this proposed action 
participation 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 final environmental impact statement.
    To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues 
raised by the proposed actions, comments on the draft environmental 
impact statements should be as specific as possible. It is also helpful 
if comments refer to specific pages or chapters of the draft 
statements. Comments may also address the adequacy of the draft 
statements or the merits of the alternatives formulated and discussed 
in the statements. Reviewers may wish to refer to the Council on 
Environmental Quality

[[Page 79561]]

Regulations for implementing the procedural provisions of the National 
Environmental Policy Act at 40 CFR 1503.3 in addressing these points.
    After the 45-day comment period ends on the draft EIS, the Forest 
Service will analyze comments received and address them in the final 
supplemental EISs (FSEISs). The FSEISs are scheduled to be completed in 
April 2003. The Responsible Official is the Payette National Forest 
Supervisor. For each project, if different from the original decision, 
the new decision will be documented, including the rationale for the 
decision, in a Record of Decision (ROD). Any decision will be subject 
to review under the Forest Service Appeal Regulations at 36 CFR 215.

    Dated: December 23, 2002.
Mark J. Madrid,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 02-32957 Filed 12-27-02; 8:45 am]
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