[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 234 (Friday, December 5, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68021-68023]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-30066]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


South Fork Wildfire Salvage Project, Boise National Forest, ID

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare Environmental Impact Statement.

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SUMMARY: The Cascade Ranger District of the Boise National Forest will 
prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for a resource 
management project in the South Fork Salmon River. The entire project 
area is located within watersheds that drain directly into the South 
Fork Salmon River or its tributaries, downstream of Warm Lake. The 
project area is located 25 miles northeast of Cascade, Idaho, and about 
120 miles north of Boise, Idaho.

[[Page 68022]]

    The agency invites written comments and suggestions on the scope of 
the analysis. The agency also hereby gives notices of the environmental 
analysis and decision-making process that will occur on the proposal so 
interested and affected people are aware of how they may participate 
and contribute to the final decision. At this time no public meetings 
to discuss the project are planned.
    Proposed Action: The primary objective of the project is to capture 
the value of fire-killed and imminently dead timber not needed to 
maintain or improve post-fire ecological function in the short (3-15 
years) and long term (15+ years). To further the achievement of Forest 
Plan goals, road maintenance and decommissioning activities have been 
integrated with the salvage proposal to support identified aquatic and 
watershed restoration activities. Revenue generated from the salvage 
operation would be used to accomplish all or some of these road-related 
activities.
    The Proposed Action would harvest fire-killed and imminently dead 
trees from a total of 2,536 acres in the 6,822-acre project area. Only 
those trees not needed to maintain or improve post-fire ecological 
function in the short (3-15 years) and long term (15+ years) would be 
harvested. An estimated 5.0 MMBF of timber would be available for 
harvest using ground-based (780 acres) and helicopter (1,756 acres) 
yarding systems. The Proposed Action would employ the salvage 
prescription only.
    No new road construction or reconstruction, as defined in the 
Revised Forest Plan, would occur. An estimated 0.1 mile of road 401, 
0.9 mile of road 467, and 0.4 mile of road 488 would be restored 
through maintenance activities to their approved road management 
objectives to improve fish habitat and hydrologic conditions, and 
reduce sedimentation. Specifically, three additional culverts and one 
hardened drive-through dip would be installed and two existing culverts 
replaced on road 401; eight additional culverts installed and 0.5 mile 
of the surface graveled on road 467, and; 0.4 mile of the surface 
graveled on road 488.
    An estimated 0.3 mile of existing roads (401C, 487, and 467A), 
currently closed year-round to motorized traffic, would be 
decommissioned to prevent unauthorized use. These three roads (401C, 
487, and 467A) and their associated arterial roads (487A, 487B, 487B1, 
487D, 467A1, and 467A2) would be removed from the transportation 
system. Decommissioning of this 0.3 mile would effectively prevent 
unauthorized access on roughly 10 miles of road.
    Preliminary Issues: Preliminary concerns with the Proposed Action 
include potential impacts on: (1) Fish habitat and water quality; (2) 
inventoried roadless areas; (3) visual quality of the area, and; (4) 
the suitable Wild and Scenic River corridor.
    Possible Alternatives To The Proposed Action: One alternative to 
the Proposed Action that has been discussed thus far is a no action 
alternative. Other alternatives will likely be developed as issues are 
identified and information received.
    Decisions To Be Made: The Boise National Forest Supervisor will 
decide the following. What amount, type, and distribution of dead and 
imminently dead trees within the wildfire area should be retained to 
improve or maintain post-fire ecological conditions? If dead and 
imminently dead trees within the wildfire area are found not to be 
needed to improve or maintain ecosystem functions, how should they be 
harvested while still protecting post-fire ecological conditions? 
Should existing classified roads within the project area receive 
maintenance activities to improve fish habitat and hydrologic 
conditions and reduce sedimentation, and if so, where within the 
project area? Should portions of roads currently closed year-round to 
motorized traffic be decommissioned to prevent unauthorized use, and if 
so, which roads? What design features and/or mitigation measures should 
be applied to proposed activities to help ensure the activities do not 
retard attainment of post-fire ecological recovery in the short and 
long term?

DATES: Substantive comments concerning the proposed project and 
analysis are encouraged and should be postmarked or received within 30 
days following publication of this announcement in the Federal 
Register.

ADDRESSES: Substantive comments should be addressed to the Cascade 
Ranger District, ATTN: Keith Dimmett, P.O. Box 696, Cascade, ID 83611 
or sent electronically to [email protected]. 
Electronic comments must be submitted in plain text or another format 
compatible with Microsoft Word. Substantive comments are those within 
the scope of, are specific to, and have a direct relationship to the 
proposed action and include supporting reasons that the Responsible 
Official should consider in reaching a decision. Comments received in 
response to this request will be available for public inspection and 
will be released in their entirety if requested pursuant to the Freedom 
of Information Act.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Further information can be obtained 
from Keith Dimmett at the address mentioned above or by calling 208-
382-7400.
    Schedule: Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), February 
2004. Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), May 2004.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Roughly half of the project area has been 
inventoried as roadless, including portions of both the Reeves Creek 
and Caton Lake Inventoried Roadless Areas. None of the activities 
associated with the Proposed Action would occur within any inventoried 
roadless area. With the exception of trees already felled within the 
powerline corridor, harvest would not occur within streamside riparian 
conservation areas (RCAs).
    The entire project area lies within Management Area 19 (Warm Lake), 
discussed on pages III-316 through III-331 in the Revised Boise 
National Land and Resource Management Plan. Several management 
prescription categories apply within this management area, however only 
Management Prescription Categories 2.1, 3.2, and 4.2 occur within the 
project area.
    The comment period on the DEIS 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 
the DEIS 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 DEIS stage but are not raised until after 
completion of the FEIS 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 very important that those 
interested in this proposed action participate by the close of the DEIS 
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 FEIS.

[[Page 68023]]

    To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues 
and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the DEIS should be as 
specific as possible. It is also helpful if comments refer to specific 
pages or chapters of the draft 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.
    Responsible Official: Richard A. Smith, Forest Supervisor, Boise 
National Forest, 1249 South Vinnell Way, Suite 200, Boise, ID 83709.

    Dated: November 26, 2003.
Richard A. Smith,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 03-30066 Filed 12-4-03; 8:45 am]
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