[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 242 (Friday, December 17, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 75503-75504]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-27591]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Hoosier National Forest, IN; Tell City Windthrow 2004 Project

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

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

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act, 
notice is hereby given that the Forest Service, Tell City Ranger 
District of the Hoosier National Forest will prepare a Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to disclose the environmental 
consequences of the proposed Tell City Windthrow 2004 Project. On July 
13, 2004, a severe storm producing winds at 70 to 80 miles per hour 
moved across southern Indiana. Heavy rain and high winds altered the 
stand structure of the forest with down and damaged trees. In the EIS, 
the USDA Forest Service will address the potential environmental 
impacts of salvage harvesting and prescribed burning. See the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for the purpose and need of the 
action.

DATES: The public comment period will be for 30 days from the date this 
notice is published in the Federal Register. Comments and suggestions 
concerning the scope of the analysis should be submitted (postmarked) 
30 days following this publication to ensure timely consideration. The 
draft environmental impact statement is expected in the fall of 2005, 
and the final environmental impact statement is expected in the winter 
of 2006.

ADDRESSES: Submit written or e-mail comments by: Mail-Tell City 
Windthrow 2004 Project, Attn: Mary Schoeppel, Tell City Ranger 
District, Tell City, IN 47586 or e-mail [email protected]. 
Please note: when commenting by e-mail, be sure to list Tell City 
Windthrow 2004 Project in the subject line and include a U.S. Postal 
Service address so we may add you to our mailing list.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary J. Schoeppel, project team leader 
at 812-547-7051. See the address above under ADDRESSES. Copies of 
documents may be requested at the same address. Another means of 
obtaining information is to visit the Forest Web page at http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/hoosier.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Purpose and Need for Action

    The primary purpose of this project is to implement management 
direction outlined in the Hoosier National Forest Land and Resource 
Management Plan while addressing site-specific needs and opportunities 
to move the project from the existing condition towards the desired 
condition. The following list describes the ``needs for action'' for 
the project to meet the purpose of implementing Forest Plan direction.

--Action is needed to address safety concerns along roads, trails, high 
use areas, and property boundaries.
--The risk of a wildland fire has increased as a result of the wind 
thrown timber. Many areas have down timber on greater than 50% of the 
identified area. Therefore, there is a need to improve public safety by 
reducing the potential for high-intensity fires to develop and spread. 
This can be accomplished by changing the horizontal continuity of fuels 
and reducing the amount of available fuel such as through prescribed 
burning.
--There is a need to salvage portions of the damaged area in a timely 
manner to capture timber product values that would be lost due to 
insect damage and decay with time.

[[Page 75504]]

--Salvage operations and prescribed burning would expedite the 
transition toward a more natural appearing landscape and help promote 
oak-hickory regeneration on the Forest, thus encouraging diversity of 
species.
--There is a need to provide timber to meet people's demand for wood 
products such as furniture, paper, fiber, and construction materials. 
The Forest Plan identifies areas suitable for timber production.

Proposed Action

    The Forest proposes to salvage harvest trees that are recently down 
or leaning, severely damaged, or identified as hazard trees throughout 
the project area. Trees deemed hazardous are those that adversely 
affect public safety, including logging operations and management 
activities, facilities, and public visitors using the forest. Trees 
would be retained to provide wildlife habitat and long-term snag 
recruitment. Salvage activities would occur on approximately 3,100 
acres.
    This project proposes prescribed burning. General activities to be 
undertaken in preparing or executing prescribed fires could include 
fire line construction, hazard tree mitigation, and mop-up. Where 
possible, roads, trails, and streams would be used as natural breaks to 
minimize fire line construction. Any rehabilitation measures for fire 
lines would be determined by Forest Service specialists. All proposed 
prescribed fires would have a prescribed fire plan prior to the burn. 
This activity would occur on approximately 5,590 acres.
    Road construction activities are anticipated on approximately 27 
miles to facilitate the removal of salvage material and minimize 
resource damage. This could include road reconstruction and road 
maintenance on existing road corridors. Temporary roads may be built to 
minimize resource damage and later decommissioned.

Responsible Official

    Kenneth G. Day, Forest Supervisor; Hoosier National Forest; 811 
Constitution Avenue; Bedford, Indiana 47421.

Nature of Decision To Be Made

    The decision to be made is whether the activities should proceed as 
proposed, proceed as modified by an alternative or be deferred at this 
time.

Scoping Process

    The Hoosier National Forest proposes to scope for information by 
contacting persons and organizations on the Hoosier's mailing list and 
publishing a notice in the local newspaper. The present solicitation is 
for comments on this Notice of Intent and scoping material available 
elsewhere, such as on the Forest Web page.

Comment Requested

    This notice of intent initiates the scoping process which guides 
the development of the environmental impact statement.
    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: December 10, 2004.
Kenneth G. Day,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 04-27591 Filed 12-16-04; 8:45 am]
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