[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 197 (Friday, October 10, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58649-58650]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-25675]



[[Page 58649]]

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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Lost Cabin Mine, Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests, Carbon 
County, WY

AGENCY Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Revised Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement.

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SUMMARY: The Forest Service will prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) to assess and disclose the environmental effects of a 
Plan of Operations, submitted by Broken Arrow Mining, LLC, to conduct 
mineral exploration at the Lost Cabin Mine. The Lost Cabin Mine is 
located in Sections 1 and 12 of T. 14N., R. 86 W., 6th Principle 
Meridian, Carbon County, Wyoming. Approval of the Plan of Operations 
would allow the claimants to use National Forest System Roads (NFSR) 
439, 431, and 431.A while conducting mineral exploration. In addition, 
they would be allowed to clear deadfall from and use roughly 0.4 miles 
of NFSR 4172. Finally, they would be allowed to improve and use 1.6 
miles of an historic mining road (Way \1\ 4170H) that accesses the mine 
site. Improvements would include individual tree removal in isolated 
locations to improve maneuverability and sight distance and the 
installation of drainage structures to reduce erosion and 
sedimentation. The historic road falls within the Mowry Peak 
Inventoried Roadless Area (IRA) boundary. All roads and ways are 
currently closed to motorized vehicle use.
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    \1\ Ways are routes not currently shown as part of the Forest 
Transportation System.
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    The EIS will comply with the requirements of the National 
Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. sections 4321-4370a), the National 
Forest Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1600-1614), and the U.S. Mining Laws 
(30 U.S.C. 21-54), as amended.

DATES: An original Notice of Intent for this proposal was published in 
the Federal Register on March 20, 2002. Comments concerning the 
proposal and the scope of the analysis were requested to be received in 
writing by April 21, 2002. The Forest Service expects to file a Draft 
EIS with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and make it 
available for public comment in October 2003. The agency expects to 
file the Final EIS in February 2004.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Mary Peterson, Medicine Bow-Routt 
National Forests Supervisor's Office, 2468 Jackson Street, Wyoming 
82070.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tom Florich, Recreation and Lands 
Program Manager, Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests, 2468 Jackson 
Street, Laramie, Wyoming, 82070 Telephone: (307) 745-2435.
    Responsible Official: Mary H. Peterson, Medicine Bow-Routt National 
Forests Supervisor, 2468 Jackson Street, Laramie, Wyoming, 82070.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a revised Notice of Intent for the 
prior notice promulgated in the Federal Register, Vol. 67, No. 54, pp. 
12958-12959, on March 20, 2002. The scope of the project has not 
changed; therefore, this revised Notice of Intent does not initiate a 
second scoping period for this proposal. The Notice of Intent is being 
revised for the following reasons:
    (1) The Draft EIS has been delayed more than one year. The original 
expected release date was July 2002; the new expected date is October 
2003 with the Final EIS to be released in February 2004; and
    (2) The Responsible Official has changed. Rick D. Cables was 
identified as the Responsible Official in the March 20, 2002 Notice of 
Intent because of Inventoried Roadless Area issues associated with the 
project proposal. Since that time, rules and regulations affecting 
Inventoried Roadless Areas have changed, and the signing authority for 
decisions of this nature has been delegated to Forest Supervisors. 
Therefore, the Responsible Official for this proposal is now Mary H. 
Peterson, Forest Supervisor of the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests.

Estimated Dates for Filing

    The Draft EIS is expected to be filed with the Environmental 
Protection Agency (EPA) and available for public review during October 
2003. At that time, the EPA will publish a Notice of Availability (NOA) 
of the Draft EIS in the Federal Register. The comment period on the 
Draft EIS will be for a period of not less than 45 days from the date 
the EPA publishes the NOA in the Federal Register. It is important that 
those interested in the management of this area comment at that time. 
The Final EIS is expected to be available in February 2004.

Release of Names

    Comments received in response to this Notice of Intent, including 
names and addresses of those who comment, will be considered part of 
the public record on this Proposed Action and will be available for 
public inspection. 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 parts 215 or 
217. 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 where 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 ten 
(10) days.

The Public Obligation To Comment

    The Forest Service believes it is important to give reviewers an 
early notice of several court rulings related to public participation 
in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of Draft EIS's 
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 during the Draft EIS state, but are not raised until 
after completion of the final EIS, may be waived or dismissed by the 
courts. City of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F.3d 1016, 1022 (9th Cir. 1986) 
and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490 F. Supp. 1334, 1338 (E.D. 
Wis. 1980). As a result of these previous 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 EIS.
    To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues 
and concerns related to 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 document. Comments may also 
address the adequacy of the Draft EIS or the merits of the alternatives 
displayed in the document. Reviewers should refer to the Council on 
Environmental Quality Regulations at 40 CFR 1503.3 for implementing the 
procedural provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act for 
addressing these points. Please note that any comments that are

[[Page 58650]]

submitted in relation to this Draft EIS will be considered public 
information.
    After the comment period on the Draft EIS ends, comments will be 
analyzed, considered, and responded to by the Forest Service when 
preparing the Final EIS. As previously mentioned, the Final EIS is 
scheduled to be completed in February 2004. The Responsible Official 
will consider the comments, responses, environmental consequences 
discussed in the Final EIS, and applicable laws, regulations, and 
policies in making decisions regarding the Plan of Operations. The 
responsible official will document her decision and the reasons for the 
decision in a Record of Decision for the Lost Cabin Mine Final EIS. 
This decision will be subject to appeal in accordance with 36 CFR part 
2157.

    Dated: October 3, 2003.
Mary H. Peterson,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 03-25675 Filed 10-9-03; 8:45 am]
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