[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 171 (Thursday, September 4, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52562-52565]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-22491]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Special Use Permits for Outfitter and Guide Operations on the 
Lower Rogue and Lower Illinois Rivers, Siskiyou National Forest, Curry 
County, OR

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) to disclose the environmental effects of reissuing 63 
special use permits for outfitter and guide operations on the lower 
Rogue River from Lobster Creek to the pool below Blossom Bar Rapids and 
the lower Illinois River from the confluence with the Rogue River to 
the mouth of Nancy Creek. The types of special use activities on the 
Rogue River include: commercial tour boats offering scenic trips and 
transport of guests to lodges in the Wild Section; fishing guides using 
both float craft and motorboats; livery services transporting people 
and freight or offering scenic trips; whitewater motorboat training; 
half-day float trips from Foster Bar to Agness; and commercial 
transport of lodge guests from Foster Bar to Paradise Lodge. On the 
Illinois River, the type of commercial activity is guided fishing. As a 
connected action, there is also a need to issue or reissue special use 
permits for the docks of the three commercial lodges in the Wild 
Section of the Rogue River.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of this analysis should be 
received by October 3, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to John Borton, District Ranger, Gold 
Beach Ranger District, Siskiyou National Forest, 29279 Ellensburg, Gold 
Beach, OR 97444, Fax (541) 247-3617, e-mail: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bill Blackwell, District Recreation, 
Lands and Minerals Staff, Gold Beach Ranger District, (541) 247-3600.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Rogue River was designated a Wild and 
Scenic River by Congress in 1968. For the portion of the river where 
the outfitters and guides operate, the river is classified as either 
Recreational or Scenic from Lobster Creek to Watson Creek 
(approximately 24 river miles), and Wild from Watson Creek to the pool 
below Blossom Bar Rapids (approximately 10 river miles). The Illinois 
River was designated Wild and Scenic in 1984 and is classified as 
Recreational from its confluence with the Rogue River upstream to the 
mouth of Nancy Creek.
    Commercial fishing guides using motorboats and tour boats offering 
scenic trips started in the late 1920s and early 1930s. The number of 
guides and trips increased in the post-World War II era. The invention 
of hydro-jet powered motorboats in 1958 allowed boats to navigate the 
river during low summer flows. As the population has increased over the 
years, all types of recreational float craft and motorboat use has also 
increased. Today, thousands of people visit the Rogue River each year. 
The Rogue is internationally renowned for its fishing, and commercial 
fishing guides provide a recreational service to people who visit the 
area. The scenery of the Rogue is also internationally known, and each 
year thousands of people enjoy the recreational experience of riding on 
the tour boats that travel up the river.
    In 1959, the Oregon State Marine Board was given responsibility to 
establish and administer boating regulations in the State of Oregon. In 
the 1970s, due to the increased amount of boating in the Wild Section 
of the Rogue River, the Marine Board, in cooperation with the Bureau of 
Land Management and the Forest Service, introduced a permit system to 
help limit the amount of use in the Wild Section. In 1974, the Marine 
Board eliminated motorboat use from the pool below Blossom Bar Rapids 
upstream to Grave Creek between May 15 and November 15. In 1976, after 
much public comment, the Marine Board limited commercial motorboats in 
the Wild Section from Watson Creek to the pool below Blossom Bar Rapids 
between May 15 and November 15 to current permittees and at the use 
level that existed as of January 15, 1976.
    In 1979, the Forest Service first started requiring permits for 
commercial motorboat activities in the Wild Section of the Rogue River. 
In 1981, a Forest Service permit was required for any commercial 
motorboat or float craft activity from Lobster Creek to Watson Creek as 
well as in the Wild Section. In 1984, the Marine Board decided to re-
evaluate its role in the motorboat permit system and begin to solicit 
public comment. In 1986, the Gold Beach District Ranger wrote to the 
Marine Board and stated that the Forest Service would continue to 
administer the motorboat limits and regulations in the Wild Section as 
the Marine Board had done, with only minor variations. Later that year, 
the Marine Board decided to repeal their rules, consolidating the 
motorboat permit system with the Forest Service. The Forest Service 
continued to issue permits to the tour boats, fishing guides, livery 
services, and other uses for the same number of trips that had been 
issued previously by the Marine Board.
    In 1995, the Forest Service limited the number of fishing guides in 
the Lobster Creek to Watson Creek area to those that were currently 
under permit. These permits allowed use any time of the year, but they 
could only be used by the permittees and there could be no employees 
operating under that permit. Also in 1995, the Forest Service limited 
the number of trips by the tour boats from Lobster Creek to Watson 
Creek, based on the season of year: shoulder-season (May 1 to June 15 
and the day after Labor Day to October 31), main-season (June 16 to 
Labor Day), and off-season (November 1 to April 30).
    Prior to 1999, some guides who operated under permits issued by 
Bureau of Land Management and jointly administered by the Bureau of 
Land Management and the Forest Service would guide fishing trips 
entirely on the National Forest portion of the river. The language in 
these special use permits stated the outfitter and guide use was for 
the Rogue River from the Applegate

[[Page 52563]]

River to Lobster Creek, so the National Forest section was included in 
the permit. In 1999, the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management 
agreed that permittees operating entirely on National Forest must do so 
under permits issued by only the Forest Service. Permittees that could 
prove historical use (1974 to 1988) were issued permits for the same 
types of use and for the same number of trips that had been previously 
made. These permittees were limited to the maximum number of trips they 
could make, but were allowed to hire employees.
    Also in 1999, Paradise Lodge was authorized to transport lodge 
guests via motorboat from Foster Bar to the lodge in the Wild Section. 
Terms and conditions of the special use permit for this activity were 
negotiated with the parties that appealed the decision the Forest 
Service had made concerning this activity through an informal 
resolution process.
    In 2001, Riverhawks et al. filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court 
alleging the U.S. Forest Service had violated the Wild and Scenic 
Rivers Act, the National Forest Management Act, and the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by issuing special use permits and 
allowing motorboat use in the Wild Section of the Rogue River. The 
District Court ruled the Forest Service violated the procedural 
requirements of NEPA when reissuing the special use permits for 
outfitters and guides on the Rogue River, while all other claims made 
by the Plaintiffs were denied.

Purpose and Need for Action

    There are a variety of recreational activities that have become 
established on the lower Rogue and lower Illinois rivers and thousands 
of people participate in them each year. The commercial operations that 
provide these recreational activities on the Rogue River include guided 
fishing trips, scenic tours, half-day float trips, and the transport of 
guests to the lodges in the Wild Section. On the lower Illinois River, 
the commercial activity is guided fishing. These commercial operations 
are required to have special use permits for these activities by Forest 
Service policy (Forest Service Manual 2700).
    The purpose of this proposal is to provide these recreational 
activities on the lower Rogue and lower Illinois Rivers through 
outfitter and guide services as outlined by Forest Service policy. 
There is a need to respond to those permittees that want to continue 
their commercial operations and reissue their existing special use 
permits that expire on December 31, 2004 and April 30, 2006. As a 
connected action, there is also a need to issue or reissue special use 
permits for the docks of the three commercial lodges in the Wild 
Section of the Rogue River. These docks are needed for the tour boats, 
livery service boats, and the boats that transport commercial lodge 
guests to Paradise Lodge to safely load and unload passengers and their 
belongings.
    This proposal is in accordance with the Rogue National Wild and 
Scenic River Management Plan (1972) and the management decisions that 
have been made about limiting use since the Management Plan was issued. 
These decisions are described in the Supplementary Information section 
of this document. This proposal is also in accordance with the Illinois 
Wild and Scenic River Management Plan (1985). These plans were 
incorporated into the Siskiyou National Forest Land and Resource 
Management Plan (1989) in their entirety. The Rogue River Management 
Plan states, ``One of the key reasons for including the Rogue River in 
the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System was to protect and enhance 
the recreational values which the river possesses. These values are 
realized in a great variety of activities. They range from an 
individual pitting only his knowledge and skill against the sometimes 
hostile forces of nature to recreation uses where the facilities and 
equipment are so sophisticated that the river can be enjoyed with no 
special knowledge and skill. Since boating, fishing and sightseeing are 
the main recreational uses on the river, top priority for recreation 
development will be given to improving the quality of those 
activities.'' The Siskiyou Land and Resource Management Plan states, 
``Increased emphasis has been placed on the Recreation program, the 
focus of which will be toward meeting the needs of the recreating 
public and toward working with four Southern Oregon Counties to assist 
them in developing their Economic development goals. These goals are 
based on the development of the Recreation/Tourism industry.''

Proposed Action

    The proposed action is to reissue 63 special use permits for 
outfitter and guide operations on the lower Rogue River from Lobster 
Creek to the pool below Blossom Bar Rapids and the lower Illinois River 
from the confluence with the Rogue River to the mouth of Nancy Creek 
with the same terms and conditions as the current permits.
    This proposed action does not include and is not addressing the 
permit system for private recreational motorboat trips in the Wild 
Section, private recreational motorboat or float use below the wild 
Section, or motorboat trips for ingress/egress purposes to private 
property along the Rogue River. These issues will be addressed in the 
revision of the rogue Comprehensive Wild and Scenic River Management 
Plan in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management.
    The types of activities on the Rogue River that would be permitted 
include: Commercial tour boats offering scenic trips and transport of 
guests to lodges in the Wild Section; fishing guides using both float 
craft and motorboats; livery services transporting people and freight 
or offering scenic trips; whitewater motor boat training; half-day 
float trips from Foster Bar to Agness; and commercial transport of 
lodge guests from Foster Bar to Paradise Lodge. On the Illinois River, 
the type of permitted commercial activity is guided fishing. The 
following details the terms and conditions for each type of permit:
    Commercial tour boats. There are three permits for two companies to 
operate tour boats providing scenic trips from Gold Beach. There are 
three types of trips and the permitted area is from Lobster Creek to 
either Snout Creek (Agness), Watson Creek (where the Wild Section 
begins), or to the pool below Blossom Bar Rapids (approximately 10 
miles upriver in the Wild Section). The boat size is limited to 43 feet 
long and/or 14 feet wide for those boats going to Snout Creek and 31.5 
feet long and/or 12 feet wide with a maximum capacity of 42 passengers 
for those boats going past Snout Creek. The following are the seasons 
of use and maximum number of trips allowed: (1) Shoulder Seasons--May 1 
through June 15 and the day following Labor Day through October 31. The 
maximum number of trips per day is 16. The maximum number of trips 
upstream of Snout Creek (Agness) per day is 13. The maximum number of 
trips upstream of Watson Creek (Wild Section) per day is six; (2) Main 
Season--June 16 through Labor Day. The maximum number of trips per day 
is 28. The maximum number of trips upstream of Snout Creek (Agness) per 
day is 17. The maximum number of trips upstream of Watson Creek (Wild 
Section) per day is six; and (3) Off Season--November 1 through April 
30. The maximum number of trips per day is four with a maximum of eight 
trips per day.
    Fishing guides. There are a total of 59 guides permitted to operate 
guided fishing trips and other trips on some portion of lower Rogue 
River and the lower Illinois River. Of the 59, there are 46 guides 
authorized to conduct guided

[[Page 52564]]

fishing trips from Lobster Creek to Watson Creek. There is no limit to 
the number of days the permit can be used, but the permit is valid only 
for the permitee and the trips can be by either motorboats or float 
craft such as drift boats. There can be no employees operating under 
the permit. Of these 46 guides, nine guides can also operate on the 
lower Illinois River.
    There are get guides currently operating the wild Section who 
originally authorized by the Oregon State Marine Board in 1976 or who 
bought a guide business that was authorized by the State. Their current 
permits autohrize use on the Rogue River from Lobster Creek to the pool 
below Blossom Bar Rapids with a motorboat or float craft. These guides 
are limited to the number of trips and user days (number of clients) 
they are permitted on an annual basis. These permittees can operate 
year-round with a maximum of 394 trips a year in the Wild Section, 
cumulatively. Six of the permittees can hire employees, but any trips 
the employees make are counted towards the total number of trips and 
user days the permittee is allowed. Two of the permittees operate a 
livery service (transporting people and freight), scenic trips (maximum 
32 trips), whitewater boat training, and guided raft trips from Foster 
Bar to Agness (maximum 31 trips). Three of the permittees can operate 
on the lower Illinois River. All of these various trips count towards 
the total annual number of trips and user days that the permittee is 
authorized.
    Nine fishing guides who originally operated under the jointly 
managed Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service permits are now 
operating under Forest Service permits as described in the 
Supplementary Information section. These guides can use both float 
craft and motorboats. Of these nine guides, four can guide fishing 
trips in the Wild Section year-around as described above. Three guides 
can operate in the Wild Section from November 15 to May 14 with a 
maximum of 57 trips a year, cumulative. Six guides can operate from 
Foster Bar to Watson Creek and Foster Bar downstream to Lobster Creek 
for a cumulative maximum of 197 trips a year and eight guides can 
operate from Foster Bar to Watson Creek and Foster Bar downstream to 
Quosatana Creek for a cumulative maximum of 285 trips a year.
    Commercial transport of lodge guests. There is one permit to 
transport lodge guest from Foster Bar to Paradise Lodge which is 
located approximately 10 miles upstream of Foster Bar. A trip is 
defined as a round-trip from Foster Bar to the lodge and return. The 
maximum number of trips is 365 annually. Trips not used in the summer 
season can be carried over into the winter season, but trips not used 
in the winter season cannot be carried over into the summer season. The 
number of trips by season are: (1) Summer Season--May 1 to October 31. 
A maximum of two round trips per day, not to exceed 180 trips for the 
season, and not to exceed 15 total passengers (commercial and non-
commercial combined) upstream in any one day, and not to exceed 15 
total passengers (commercial and non-commercial) downstream in any one 
day; and (2) Winter Season--November 1 to April 30. No daily limit of 
trips, but not to exceed 185 trips for the season. There is no daily 
limit of passengers, but there is a limit of 18 total passengers and 
one operator on any one trip.

Preliminary Alternatives

    In addition to the Proposed Action, the No Action alternative will 
be analyzed. With the No Action alternative, the special use permits 
would not be reissued. The development of any other alternatives will 
be completed following the public response to initial scoping.

Scoping Proceess

    Scoping is an ongoing process throughout the planning process. A 
scoping letter will be mailed to those people and organizations on the 
Gold Beach Ranger District's mailing list that have indicated an 
interest in Rogue River management. A press release announcing the 
filing of this Notice of Intent will be sent to local newspapers and 
media. The public will be notified of any meetings regarding this 
proposal by mailings and press release sent to the local newspapers and 
media.

Comment Requested

    This notice of intent initiates the scoping process under NEPA, 
which will guide the development of the draft EIS. The draft EIS is 
expected to be filed with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and 
to be available for public comment by January 2004. The comment period 
for the draft EIS will be 45 days from the date EPA publishes the 
Notice of Availability in the Federal Register.
    At the end of this period, comments submitted to the Forest 
Service, including names and addresses of those who responded, will be 
considered part of the public record for this proposal and, as such, 
will be available for public review. Comments submitted anonymously 
will be accepted and considered; however, those who submit anonymous 
comments will not have standing to appeal the subsequent decision under 
36 CFR part 215. Additionally, pursuant to 7 CFR 1.27(d), any person 
may request the agency to withhold a submission from the public record 
by showing how the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) permits such 
confidentiality. Persons requesting such confidentiality should be 
aware that, under the FOIA, confidentiality may be granted in only very 
limited circumstances, such as to protect trade secrets. The Forest 
Service will inform the requester of the agency's decision regarding 
the request for confidentiality, and if the request is denied, the 
agency will return the submission and notify the requester that the 
comments may be resubmitted with or without name and address within a 
specified number of days.
    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 EISs 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 EIS stage, but that are not raised 
until completion of the final EIS, 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 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 EIS.
    To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues 
and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the draft EIS should 
be as specific as possible. It is also helpful if comments refer to 
specific pages or chapters of the draft EIS. Comments may also address 
the adequacy of the draft EIS 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 on the draft EIS will be analyzed, considered, and 
responded to

[[Page 52565]]

by the Forest Service in preparing the final EIS. The final EIS is 
scheduled to be completed in July 2004. The Responsible Official, John 
Borton, District Ranger, will review the analysis contained in the 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to determine if the special use 
permits should be reissued and under what terms and conditions. The 
responsible official will consider comments, responses, environmental 
consequences discussed in the final EIS and applicable laws, 
regulations, and policies in making this decision and will document the 
decision and rationale in the Record of Decision. The decision will be 
subject to Forest Service Appeal Regulations (36 CFR part 215).

    Dated: August 26, 2003.
John Borton,
District Ranger.
[FR Doc. 03-22491 Filed 9-3-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M