[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 247 (Wednesday, December 24, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 74547-74548]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-31660]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Bridger-Teton National Forest, Big Piney Ranger District, 
Wyoming. Cottonwood II Vegetation Treatment

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

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

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SUMMARY: The analysis area of 41,420 acres is located in the North and 
South Cottonwood Creek watershed on the Big Piney Ranger District of 
the Bridger-Teton National Forest. It is approximately 25 miles north 
of Big Piney, Wyoming on the east slope of the Wyoming Range. All lands 
within the analysis area are National Forest System lands, within 
Sublette and Lincoln Counties, Wyoming The legal description includes 
portions of: T32N, R115W; T32N, R116W; T33N, R114W; T33N, R115W; T34N, 
R115W.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received 
by February 3, 2004. The Draft Environmental Impact Statement (Draft 
EIS) is expected to be available to the public in September 2004 and 
the Final Environmental Impact Statement (Final EIS) is expected to be 
available to the public in January 2005.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to: District Ranger, Big Piney Ranger 
District, P.O. Box 218, Big Piney, Wyoming, 83113. For further 
information, e-mail correspondence to [email protected] and on the subject line put only ``Cottonwood 
Vegetation Treatment.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: District Ranger, Big Piney Ranger 
District, P.O. Box 218, Big Piney, Wyoming 83113 or phone (307) 276-
3375.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Purpose and Need for Action

    The purpose of this proposal is to improve Forest resource 
conditions in the North and South Cottonwood Creek drainage, bringing 
them closer to desired conditions. Attaining the Desiring Future 
Conditions for each Forest resource will help restore healthy ecosystem 
functioning and support sustainable resource use.

Alternative 1--Proposed Action

    This proposal was developed in response to public issues identified 
during initial scoping, changes in resource demand since the Cottonwood 
Plain Implementation Study, and recently identified resource issues. 
This proposal is also designed to improve

[[Page 74548]]

Forest resource conditions as identified in the Cottonwood Plan 
Implementation Study.

Possible Alternatives

Alternative 2--No Action Alternative

    Analysis of this alternative is required under National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations. The No Action Alternative 
also serves as a baseline of information for comparison of other 
alternatives. Though this alternative does not respond to the purpose 
and need for action, it does address some issues.

Responsible Official

    Greg Clark, District Forest Ranger, Big Piney Ranger District, P.O. 
Box 218, Big Piney, Wyoming 83113.

Nature of Decision To Be Made

    This decision will be whether or not the implement specific 
vegetation management projects and associated road and trail head 
improvements, as allowed in the Bridger-Teton National Forest Plan and 
Cottonwood Plan Implementation Study. The decision will include any 
mitigation measures needed in addition to those prescribed in the 
Forest Plan.

Scoping Process

    The Forest Service is seeking information, comments, and assistance 
from individuals, organizations, Tribal governments, and Federal, 
state, and local agencies interested in or affected by this project. 
Comments that were submitted during the May 14, 1999 scoping effort and 
during field trips of the project area will be used to prepare the 
Draft EIS, as will comments submitted through this public scoping 
request. Public participation will be solicited by notifying in person 
and/or by mail, known interested and affected publics. News releases 
will be used to give the public general notice. Public participation 
activities will include requests for written comments. The first formal 
opportunity to comment is to respond to this Notice of Intent, which 
initiates the scoping process (40 CFR 1501.7). Scoping includes: (1) 
Identifying potential issues, (2) narrowing the potential issues and 
identifying significant issues from those issues that have been covered 
by prior environmental review, (3) exploring alternatives in addition 
to the No Action Alternative, and (4) identifying potential 
environmental effects of the Proposed Action and alternatives.

Preliminary Issues

    The Forest Service has identified the following potential issues. 
In addition, through the May 1999 scoping effort, issues have been 
refined. Your input is especially valuable here. It will help us 
determine which of these issues merit detailed analysis. It will also 
help identify additional issues related to the Proposed Action that may 
not be listed here.
    Issue 1--Amount and/or types of vegetation treatments under the 
Proposed Action and the effects on old growth and mature vegetation for 
lynx, security cover for elk and other habitat, as well as Colorado 
cutthroat trout habitat.
    Issue 2--Forest health, specifically the high proportion of older 
age-class conifer stands and declining tree growht, drawf mistletoe 
infection levels in lodgepole pine, and high fuel loadings from dead 
and down material.
    Issue 3--Amount of aspen treatments.

Comment Requested

    This Notice of Intent initiates the scoping process, which guides 
the development of the Draft EIS.

Early Notice of Importance of Public Participation in Subsequent 
Environmental Review

    The Draft EIS is scheduled to be filed with the Environmental 
Protection Agency (EPA) in late August 2004 and to be available for 
public comment in September 2004. At that time, the EPA will publish a 
Notice of Availability for the Draft EIS in the Federal Register. The 
comment period on the Draft EIS will be 45 days from the date the EPA 
publishes the Notice of Availability in the Federal Register. The 
Forest Service believes, at this early stage, it is importance 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, 553 (1978)). Also, environmental 
objections that could be raised at the Draft EIS stage, but that 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.2d 1016, 1022 
(9th Cir. 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490 F. Supp. 
1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 19800]. 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 on the Draft EIS. 
This ensures that substantive comments and objections are made 
available to the Forest Service at a time when the Forest Service 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 Draft EIS. 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: December 17, 2003.
Gregory W. Clark,
District Forest Ranger.
[FR Doc. 03-31660 Filed 12-23-03; 8:45 am]
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