[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 78 (Wednesday, April 23, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20025-20026]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-10026]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


Draft Environmental Impact Statement[bs]Fire 
Management Plan, Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, Shasta County, 
CA; Notice of Availability

SUMMARY: Pursuant to Sec.  102(2)(C) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969 (Pub. L. 91-190, 42 U.S.C. 4321-4347, January 1, 
1970, as amended), and the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations 
(40 CFR Part 1500-1508), the National Park Service, Department of the 
Interior, has prepared a Draft Environmental Impact Statement 
identifying and evaluating four alternatives for a Fire Management Plan 
for Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, in northern California. 
Potential impacts and mitigating measures are described for each 
alternative. The alternative selected after this conservation planning 
and environmental impact analysis process will serve as a blueprint for 
fire management actions at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area over 
the next 10 years.
    This Whiskeytown Fire Management Plan (FMP) and Draft Environmental 
Impact Statement (DEIS) identifies and analyzes three action 
alternatives, and a no action alternative, for a revised Fire 
Management Plan at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. Revisions to 
the current plan are needed to meet public and firefighter safety, 
natural and cultural resource management, and wildland urban interface 
objectives of the park. The action alternatives vary in the emphasis 
they place on fire management goals developed by the park. The current 
program has been effective in fire suppression, but has not been able 
to restore large portions of the park landscape to circa 1800 
conditions as required by the 2000 General Management Plan (GMP). Each 
action alternative contains an amendment to the park's GMP to clarify 
that the park's administration building may be rebuilt in its current 
location at park headquarters in conjunction with relocating the fire 
cache to the Oak Bottom recreational complex.
    Whiskeytown National Recreation Area is located eight miles west of 
Redding, California and encompasses 42,500 acres, including the 3000-
acre Whiskeytown Lake--a reservoir created as part of California's 
Central Valley Project, Trinity River Diversion. In the past, wildland 
fire occurred naturally in the park as an important ecosystem process 
that kept forest fuels and vegetation structure within the natural 
range of variability. Mining, logging and fire suppression activities 
have lead to increased fuel loads and changes in vegetation community 
structure. This has increased the risk of large, high-intensity 
wildland fire within the park, threatening developed zones, the park's 
natural and cultural resources, and neighboring landowners and 
communities.
    Alternatives: Under the park's preferred alternative (Alternative 
IV), the park would focus on restoring Whiskeytown's plant communities 
to reduce the risk of high severity wildland fire by decreasing forest 
stand density, reducing surface fuels, and attempting to restore fire 
as a natural disturbance process to the greatest extent feasible using 
prescribed fire, mechanical treatment and managed wildland fire when 
appropriate. Up to 2,200 acres per year would be treated through 
prescribed fire and wildland fire use. Three levels of mechanical 
treatment would be utilized to reduce fuel levels and mimic the effects 
of fire on structural patterns of woody vegetation, including the use 
of hand tools, chainsaws, weed eaters, chippers, brush mastication and 
small-scale logging of trees up to 12 inches in diameter at breast 
height. Mechanical treatment would be used to reduce forest fuels in 
and around developed areas, and to install and widen some new and 
existing shaded fuel breaks. Mechanical treatment would be used on up 
to 1,075 acres per year.
    Under the no-action alternative (Alternative I), the current fire 
management program would continue utilizing a limited range of fire 
management strategies--including prescribed fire, limited mechanical 
treatment and suppression of all wildland fires (including natural

[[Page 20026]]

ignitions). The current program includes both broadcast and pile 
burning components, with prescribed fire projects ranging in size from 
0.5 to 1,000 acres occurring in all vegetation types. Maximum burning 
in a given year under this alternative would be 1,400 acres. Limited 
mechanical treatment methods would be utilized to reduce hazardous fuel 
levels in the park. These would include the use of chain saws, weed-
eaters, hand crews, and chippers to clear around buildings, to install 
and maintain shaded fuel breaks, and to clear along roadways. Total 
maintained shaded fuel break system would be 850 acres, with 
maintenance occurring at least once every three years as needed. Annual 
average maintenance of all mechanically treated areas under Alternative 
I would be 275 acres.
    Under Alternative II, the fire program would focus on the 
application of prescribed fire to meet ecological restoration 
objectives, and to reduce hazardous fuels throughout the park. All 
other fires would be suppressed including natural ignitions. Mechanical 
treatment would only be used to construct prescribed fire burn unit 
boundaries and to reduce fuels around developed areas. Alternative II 
would only utilize hand tools, chainsaws, weed eaters and chippers for 
mechanical treatment for an average 80 acres annually. This alternative 
would include pile burning and broadcast burning. Projects under 
Alternative II would include areas up to 1,000 acres in size to 
simulate, to the greatest extent feasible, the scale and pattern of 
natural fire events. Up to 3,000 acres would be burned during each year 
of implementation. Due to windows of opportunity during the dormant 
season, Alternative II would implement prescribed burns during the non-
dormant season from 10%-20% of the time to maximize opportunities for 
execution of prescribed fire projects.
    Under Alternative III, all natural and human-ignited wildland fires 
would be suppressed. Prescribed burning would only occur in conjunction 
with mechanical fuel treatments around developments and on shaded fuel 
breaks. Alternative III would consist of pile burning and a few 
prescribed fire projects to strengthen and widen by up to \1/4\ to \1/
2\ mile shaded fuel breaks for tactical purposes in the case of 
suppression fire events. No large, prescribed fires would be conducted. 
Up to 250 acres would be burned during each year of implementation. 
This alternative would use mechanical treatment to reduce forest fuels 
in and around developed areas, and to install new, and widen existing 
shaded fuel breaks. Hand tools, chainsaws, weed eaters, chippers, and 
brush masticators would be used. Annual program levels would be up to 
225 acres for each of the two mechanical treatment levels proposed in 
this alternative.
    Alternative IV is the ``environmentally preferred'' alternative; 
comparative analysis in this regard is provided in the DEIS. Also, an 
element common to all of the action alternatives is the possible 
amending of the 2000 GMP with regard to options for future locations of 
operational and administrative facilities.
    Planning Background: A Notice of Intent was published in the 
Federal Register on August 8, 2001, and the scoping period ended on 
September 15, 2001 (although comments were accepted throughout 2002). 
During this time the NPS held discussions and briefings with local 
communities; local residents; local, regional and state fire 
organizations; air quality regulators; other agency representatives; 
tribes; park staff; elected officials; public service organizations and 
other interested members of the public. A public scoping meeting was 
held on August 23, 2001 in the town of Old Shasta, in the Shasta 
Elementary School Multipurpose room. Twenty members of the public 
attended. The meeting included a question and answer period and time 
for public comments. The issues raised during this period are 
summarized in Chapter 1, Purpose and Need of the DEIS.
    Comments: The FMP/DEIS will be sent directly to those who have 
requested it. Copies will also be available at park headquarters and at 
local and regional libraries, and the complete document will be posted 
on the park's Web site at http://www.nps.gov/whis/exp. Written comments 
must be postmarked (or transmitted by e-mail) no later than sixty days 
from the date of EPA's notice of filing published in the Federal 
Register--immediately upon determining this date it will be announced 
on the park's Web site. All comments should be addressed to the 
Superintendent and mailed to Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, PO 
Box 188, Whiskeytown, CA 96095 (Attn: Fire Management Plan); or e-
mailed to [email protected] (in the subject line, type: Fire 
Management Plan).
    In order to facilitate public review and comment on the FMP/DEIS, 
the Superintendent will schedule public meetings in the local area, 
which at this time are anticipated to occur in late spring, 2003. 
Whiskeytown employees will attend all sessions to present the FMP/DEIS, 
to receive oral and written comments, and to answer questions. 
Participants are encouraged to review the document prior to attending a 
meeting. As with the public scoping meeting, confirmed details on 
location and times for these comment opportunities will be widely 
advertised in the local and regional media, on the park's website, and 
via direct mailings to agencies, organizations and interested members 
of the public.
    All comments are maintained in the administrative record and will 
be available for public review at park headquarters. If individuals 
submitting comments request that their name and/or address be withheld 
from public disclosure it will be honored to the extent allowable by 
law. Such requests must be stated prominently in the beginning of the 
comments. As always: NPS will make available to public inspection all 
submissions from organizations or businesses and from persons 
identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations 
and businesses; and, anonymous comments may not be considered.
    Decision Process: Depending on the degree of public interest and 
response from other agencies and organizations, at this time it is 
anticipated that the Final Environmental Impact Statement and Fire 
Management Plan will be completed in late 2003. The availability of the 
Final EIS will be published in the Federal Register, and announced via 
local and regional press and website postings. Subsequently, a Record 
of Decision may be approved not sooner than thirty days after the Final 
EIS and FMP document is distributed. As a delegated EIS, the official 
responsible for the final decision is the Regional Director, Pacific 
West Region, National Park Service. Subsequently, the official 
responsible for implementation is the Superintendent, Whiskeytown 
National Recreation Area.

    Dated: March 6, 2003.
Jonathan B. Jarvis,
Regional Director, Pacific West Region.
[FR Doc. 03-10026 Filed 4-22-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-70-P