[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 27 (Thursday, February 10, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7075-7077]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-2607]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Plumas National Forest, Feather River Ranger District, 
California, Watdog Project

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

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

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SUMMARY: The Forest Service will prepare an environmental impact 
statement on a proposal to construct approximately 24 miles of 
defensible fuel profile zones (DFPZs), harvest trees from approximately 
260 acres using group selection silviculture methods, and perform 
associated road-system improvements within the pilot project area 
defined in the Herger-Feinstein Quincy Library Group Forest Recovery 
Act, October 1998 (HFQLGFRA). The purpose of this project is to reduce 
the potential size of wildfires, provide fire suppression personnel 
safe locations for taking action against wildfires, achieve an all-
aged, multi-story, fire-resilient forest, and provide an adequate 
timber supply that contributes to the economic health of rural 
communities as directed in the HFQLGFRA and Sierra Nevada Forest Plan 
Amendment, January 2004.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received 
within 30 days of the publication of this notice in the Federal 
Register. The draft environmental impact statement is expected by 
April, 2005 and the final environmental impact statement is expected by 
July, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments concerning this notice to James M. 
Pe[ntilde]a, Forest Supervisor, Plumas National Forest, P.O. Box 11500, 
159 Lawrence

[[Page 7076]]

Street, Quincy, CA 95971. Submit electronic comments to [email protected]. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for 
file formats and other information about filing comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Katherine Worn, Project Leader, 
Feather River Ranger District, 875 Mitchell Avenue, Oroville, CA 95965, 
or call (530) 534-6500.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The project area is approximately 6,300 
acres and is entirely located within Plumas County, California. It is 
generally situated between Feather Falls to the west, Little Grass 
Valley Reservoir to the east, Table Mountain to the north, and Frey 
Creek to the south. Proposed DFPXZ are located primarily on Hartman and 
Watson Ridges and include a portion of the north and east ends of 
Lumpkin Ridge, an area around Camel Peak, and an area near Jackson 
Ranch. Group selection units are distributed throughout the DFPZs and 
in some adjacent areas. The area ranges in elevation from approximately 
3,000 to 6,200 feet above mean sea level. The legal description of the 
project area is as follows: Township (T) 21N, Range (R) 6E, portions of 
Sections 12, 13, 14, 22, 23, and 25; T21N, R7E, portions of Sections 5, 
6, 7, 8 and 18; T21N, R8E, portions of Sections 2, 3, and 5; T21N, R9E, 
portions of Section 19 and 30; T22N, R7E, portions of Sections 13, 14, 
23, 24, 26, 27, 32, 33, and 34; and T22N, R8E, portions of Sections 10, 
11, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 26,27, 28, 29, 33, 34, 35, and 36, 
Mount Diablo Base and Meridian.

Purpose and Need for Action

    Resource specialists examined the project area to determine the 
existing condition and to identify opportunities and specific 
management practices that could be implemented to accomplish management 
direction and goals described in the Plumas National Forest Land and 
Resource Management Plan, August 1988, as amended by the August 1999 
Record of Decision for the HFQLGFRA, as well as the recent Sierra 
Nevada Framework Forest Plan Amendment of January 2004, which amended 
the Sierra Nevada Framework Forest Plan Amendment of January 2001. 
Within the project area, treatment is needed to reduce the potential 
size of wildfires, provide fire suppression personnel safe locations 
for taking action against wildfires, achieve an all-aged, multi-story, 
fire-resilient forest, and provide an adequate timber supply that 
contributes to the economic health of rural communities. The purpose of 
the Watdog project is to meet those needs by constructing DFPZs and 
implementing group selection silvicultural system as directed in the 
HFQLGFRA and Sierra Nevada Forest Plan Amendment 2004 Record of 
Decision.

Proposed Action

    The Forest Service proposes to construct approximately 24 miles of 
DFPZs averaging \1/4\ mile in width with a total treatment area of 
approximately 4,000 acres. A DFPZ is a strategically located strip of 
land on which fuels, both living and dead, have been modified in order 
to reduce the potential for sustained crown fire and to allow fire 
suppression personnel a safer location from which to take action 
against a wildfire. Proposed DFPZs are located primarily on Hartman and 
Watson Ridges and include a portion of the north and east ends of 
Lumpkin Ridge, an area around Camel Peak, and an area near Jackson 
Ranch.
    Group selection timber harvest would be conducted in 172 groups 
covering approximately 260 acres within and near the DFPZ treatment 
units. Group selection involves harvest of trees up to 30-inches in 
diameter from small (less than two acres) areas, resulting in uneven-
aged (all-aged) forests made up of a patchwork of small groups of same-
aged trees.

Responsible Official

    James M. Pe[ntilde]a, Forest Supervisor, P.O. Box 11500, 159 
Lawrence Street, Quincy, CA 95971, is the Responsible Official.

Nature of Decision To Be Made

    The Forest Service must decide whether it will implement this 
proposal, an alternative design that moves the area towards the desired 
condition, or not to implement any project at this time.

Scoping Process

    In October of 2002, the Watdog DFPZ Project was included in the 
Plumas National Forest's Schedule of Proposed Action, which was posted 
on the Plumas National Forest's internet website and mailed to 
interested parties. The proposal was to construct approximately 25 
miles of DFPZs. A public field trip to units in proposed DFPZs was held 
on October 30, 2002. In March of 2003, a scoping letter for the Watdog 
DFPZ Project was mailed to interested and affected tribes, individuals, 
organizations, and Federal, State, and local agencies with 
responsibilities for local resource management. A Legal Notice 
announcing the start of the scoping process was published in the 
Oroville Mercury-Register on March 4, 2003.
    In December of 2004, a revised proposed action was mailed to 93 
individuals, groups, organizations, tribes, and Federal, State, and 
local agencies. The scoping letter was sent to those who expressed 
interest in the proposal, those who owned property or held mining 
claims in and adjacent to the project area, and to agencies with 
responsibilities for local resource management. The revised proposal 
called for the construction of approximately 24 miles of DFPZs and 
timber harvesting using group selection on approximately 260 acres. A 
Legal Notice announcing the start of the scoping process was published 
in the Feather River Bulletin on December 7, 2004. Six comments were 
received during the 30-day comment period.
    After evaluating responses to the December 2004 scoping period, the 
Forest Service has decided to prepare an environmental impact statement 
(EIS) for the Watdog project. This notice of intent invites additional 
public comment on this proposal and initiates the preparation of the 
environmental impact statement. The proposal has not been changed since 
scoping in December 2004. Comments submitted at that time will be used 
in the environmental analysis process. Due to the extensive scoping 
efforts already conducted, no scoping meeting is planned.
    The scoping process will include identification of potential 
issues, in depth analysis of significant issues, development of 
alternatives to the proposed action, and determination of potential 
environmental effects of the proposal and alternatives. While public 
participation in this analysis is welcome at any time, comments 
received within 30 days of the publication of this notice will be 
especially useful in the preparation of the draft environmental impact 
statement. The public is encouraged to take part in the planning 
process and to visit with Forest Service officials at any time during 
the analysis and prior to the decision.

Addresses

    Comments may be: (1) Mailed to the Responsible Official; (2) hand 
delivered between the hours of 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays Pacific Time; 
(3) faxed to (530) 283-7746; or (4) electronically mailed to: [email protected]. Comments submitted electronically 
must be in Rich Text Format (.rtf).

[[Page 7077]]

Comment Requested

    This notice of intent initiates the scoping process which guides 
the development of the environmental impact statement. Comments 
submitted during the December 2004 scoping period will be used in the 
environmental analysis process. Those who submitted comments at that 
time do not need to comment again, unless they have new comments they 
would like to provide. The public is encouraged to take part in the 
process and is encouraged to visit with Forest Service officials at any 
time during the analysis and prior to the decision. The Forest Service 
will be seeking information, comments, and assistance from Federal, 
State, and local agencies and other individuals or organizations that 
may be interested in, or affected by, the proposed vegetation 
management activities.

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 forty-five 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 forty-five 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: February 3, 2005.
Terri Simon-Jackson,
Acting Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 05-2607 Filed 2-9-05; 8:45 am]
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