[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 94 (Thursday, May 15, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26283-26284]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-12104]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Idaho Panhandle National Forest, Idaho--Quartz Gold Project EIS

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

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

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SUMMARY: The Forest Service will prepare an environmental impact 
statement on a proposal of ecosystem management in the Quartz Gold 
project area, which is approximately 44,000 acres in size. 
Opportunities were developed through a comparison of existing project 
area conditions with desired future conditions for all the resources in 
the project area. The assessment utilized the Idaho Panhandle Forest 
Plan and findings from the St. Joe Geographic Assessment, Upper 
Columbia River Basin Assessment along with trends observed by 
interdisciplinary specialists conducting on the ground assessments. The 
proposal improves forest health, wildlife and fisheries habitat, and 
watershed health. It reduces risks to wildfire, and maintains a 
spectrum of access for public recreation. The project is intended to 
move the landscape toward long-term ecologic, economic and social 
sustainability.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received 
within 30 days of publication of this notice in the Federal Register. 
The draft environmental impact statement is expected to be available 
for public review in July 2003 and the final environmental impact 
statement is expected November 2003.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to George Bain, District Ranger, St. 
Joe Ranger District, PO Box 407, St. Maries, Idaho 83861 or 
electronically to [email protected]. For further information, mail 
correspondence to Kimberly Johnson, EIS Team Leader at the address 
listed above. Information on this project can be found on the Internet 
by going to http://www.fs.fed.us/ipnf/ and looking under Ecosystems, 
Management, Index of NEPA Project and St. Joe Ranger District.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kimberly Johnson, Quartz Gold Project 
Team Leader, 208-245-6072.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Purpose and Need for Action

    The purpose of this proposal is to improve forest health by 
managing vegetative conditions that in the long term encourage more 
resilient and sustainable forest conditions. It also improves and 
maintains winter range conditions and white bark pine habitat, which 
are both declining. It will reduce the risk of resource loss through 
fuel management and improve growing conditions for sapling/pole stands. 
The proposal will contribute to watershed recovery processes by 
correcting sediment sources from the existing road system. 
Approximately 65% of stream-crossing culverts surveyed are undersized 
for a 100 year event (as required by Infish). It will also improve 
instream habitat conditions as several streams in the area are not 
meeting Infish standards as directed in the Forest Plan and provide 
fish passage on those road/stream crossing culverts. It will increase 
wildlife security which is currently below Forest Plan standards and 
maintain a spectrum of access for public recreation and provide 
opportunities for disabled hunters,

[[Page 26284]]

which currently, one exists on the District.

Proposed Action

    The proposed action to meet the purpose and need of the project 
area is: commercially harvest approximately 5,300 acres of which 4,000 
acres is intermediate harvest, 1,100 acres are sanitation salvage and 
approximately 200 acres of regeneration harvest (clearcut with 
reserve). The commercial harvest would include approximately 9 miles of 
road construction and reconstruction on existing roads. The proposal 
also includes the use of prescribe burning on approximately 466 acres 
on big game winter range, building approximately 3 miles of fuel breaks 
on the Idaho/Montana border, conducting pre-commercial stand 
improvement on approximately 2,000 acres, enhancement of whitebark pine 
habitat on 1,434 acres, by thinning around the remaining trees, and 
decommissioning approximately 160 miles of road and putting 
approximately 68 miles of road into storage. The proposal also adds 
access for disabled hunters, provides loops for ATV enthusiasts, 
increases wildlife security through effective road closures and 
improves instream fisheries habitat by placing structures in several 
streams in the area.

Responsible Official

    Ranotta McNair, Forest Supervisor, Idaho Panhandle National Forest, 
3815 Schreiber Way, Coeur D'Alene, Idaho 83815.

Nature of Decision To Be Made

    The St. Joe Ranger District will prepare the EIS. The Forest 
Supervisor of the Idaho Panhandle National Forest will decide whether 
to implement this project, and if so, in what manner. The decision will 
be documented in a Record of Decision (ROD).

Scoping Process

    Public Scoping packages describing the proposed action were sent 
out to the Quartz Gold Project mailing list in January 2003. An open 
house was held in February of 2003. A field trip to the project area is 
planned for May or June of 2003.

Preliminary Issues

    Preliminary issues from scoping have been identified. These include 
effects of the proposed vegetation management and roads on water yield 
and sediment delivery to streams, the effects of management activities 
on riparian habitat conservation areas, the effects of proposed access 
management on the full spectrum of recreation use of roads and trial in 
the project area, and economic cost efficiency of proposed commercial 
harvest and road construction and decommissioning.

Comment Requested

    This notice of intent initiates the scoping process which guides 
the development of the environmental impact statement. To assist the 
Forest Service in identifying and considering issues and concerns on 
the proposed action, comments should be as specific as possible. Public 
participation in this analysis is welcome at any time, however; 
comments received within 30 days of publication of this notice will be 
especially useful in the preparation of the Draft EIS.
    Early Notice of Importance of Public Participation in Subsequent 
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 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 
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;, 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 final environmental impact statement.
    To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues 
and concerns on 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.
    Comments received, including the names and addresses of those who 
comment, will be considered part of the public record on this proposal 
and will be available for public inspection.

    (Authority: 40 CFR 1501. 7 and 1508.22; Forest Service Handbook 
1909.15, Section 21)
    Dated: May 9, 2003.
Ranotta K. McNair,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 03-12104 Filed 5-14-03; 8:45 am]
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