[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 145 (Friday, July 29, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43866-43867]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-15049]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[ER-FRL-6665-8]


Environmental Impact Statements and Regulations; Availability of 
EPA Comments

    Availability of EPA comments prepared pursuant to the Environmental 
Review Process (ERP), under section 309 of the Clean Air Act and 
Section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental Policy Act, as amended. 
Requests for copies of EPA comments can be directed to the Office of 
Federal Activities at 202-564-7167. An explanation of the ratings 
assigned to draft environmental impact statements (EISs) was published

[[Page 43867]]

in the Federal Register dated April 1, 2005 (70 FR 16815).

Draft EISs

EIS No. 20050192, ERP No. D-AFS-K65283-CA, Empire Vegetation Management 
Project, Reducing Fire Hazards, Harvesting of Trees Using Group-
Selection (GS) and Individual Trees Selection (ITS) Methods, Mt. Hough 
Ranger District, Plumas National Forest, Plumas County, CA.

    Summary: EPA expressed environmental concerns about cumulative 
impacts to air and water quality as a result of prescribed fire, 
mechanical harvesting, and road construction, and requested the final 
EIS include additional information on monitoring and maintenance of the 
desired conditions.
    Rating EC2.

EIS No. 20050206, ERP No. D-SFW-E65074-NC, Roanoke River National 
Wildlife Refuge, Comprehensive Conservation Plan, To Determine and 
Evaluate a Range of Reasonable Management Alternatives, Bertie County, 
NC.

    Summary: EPA supports the agency's Preferred Alternative 3, which 
maximizes wildlife-dependent uses of Refuge resources.
    Rating LO.

EIS No. 20050210, ERP No. D-AFS-J65443-CO, Rock Creek Integrated 
Management Project, Propose Treatment to Address Mountain Beetle 
Epidemics, and to Reduce Wildfires within the Rock Creek Analysis Area, 
Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests and Thunder Basin National 
Grassland, Glenwood Springs Resource Area, Routt and Grand Counties, 
CO.

    Summary: EPA expressed environmental concerns about on the 
potential for adverse impacts to impaired streams and already 
significantly impacted watersheds, and requested that the final EIS 
include a more definitive estimation of water quality impacts and 
specific mitigation for measures for watershed impacts.
    Rating EC2.

EIS No. 20050211, ERP No. D-SFW-H65024-IA, Driftless Area National 
Wildlife Refuge Comprehensive Conservation Plan, To Recover and 
Conserve the Northern Monkshood and Iowa Pleistocene Snail, IA.

    Summary: EPA has no objections to the proposed project.
    Rating LO.

EIS No. 20050213, ERP No. D-FHW-F40432-MN, Trunk Highway 23 
Improvements Project, From 0.25 Miles West of CSAH 6 in Kandiyohi 
County to 0.3 Miles Southwest of CSAH 123 Stearns County, City of 
Paynesville, Kandiyohi and Stearns Counties, MN.
    Summary: EPA has environmental concerns about the proposed 
project's impacts to water quality and the drinking water supply, 
aquatic resources, wildlife habitat, wetlands, and sensitive noise 
receptors.
    Rating EC2.

Final EISs

EIS No. 20050140, ERP No. F-FHW-K40250-NV, Boulder City/US 93 Corridor 
Transportation Improvements, Study Limits are between a western 
boundary on U.S. 95 in the City of Henderson and an eastern boundary on 
U.S. 93 west of downtown Boulder City, NPDES and U.S. Army COE Section 
404 Permits Issuance and Right-of-Way Grant, Clark County, NV.
    Summary: EPA continues to have environmental concerns about the 
proposed project's impacts to water, biological resources, and air 
quality, as well as invasive species issues.

EIS No. 20050155, ERP No. F-AFS-L65114-00, Plentybob Ecosystem 
Restoration Project, Restoration Activities Include: Prescribed Fire, 
Timber Harvest, Road Obliteration, Hardwood Planting and Noxious Weed 
Treatment, Implementation, Walla Walla Ranger District, Umatilla 
National Forest, Umatilla County, OR.
    Summary: The Final EIS addressed EPA's request for additional 
information on air quality impacts from smoke. EPA has no objections to 
the proposed project.

EIS No. 20050237, ERP No. F-NOA-K91012-00, Bottomfish and Seamount 
Groundfish Fisheries Conservation and Management Plan, Implementation, 
US Economic Zone (EEZ) around the State of Hawaii, Territories of Samoa 
and Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana and various Islands and 
Atolls known as the U.S. Pacific remove Island areas, HI, GU and AS.
    Summary: EPA continues to have concerns about potential impacts to 
the Hawaiian monk seal because the project no longer incorporate 
voluntary mitigation measures into the Fishery Management Plan or 
codified in regulations.

EIS No. 20050255, ERP No. F-BLM-A65175-00, Programmatic--Wind Energy 
Development Program, To Address Stewardship, Conservation and Resource 
Use on BLM-Administered Lands, Right-of-Way Grants, Western United 
States.
    Summary: No formal comment letter was sent to the preparing agency.

EIS No. 20050271, ERP No. F-AFS-J65021-MT, Gallatin National Forest 
Noxious and Invasive Weed Control Project, To Prevent and Reduce Loss 
of Native Plant, Bozeman, Carbon, Madison, Gallatin, Meagher, Park, and 
Sweet Grass Counties, MT.
    Summary: EPA has no objections to the proposed action and supports 
the integrated weed management program, emphasizing the need for 
adequate mitigation measures and monitoring to protect surface and 
ground waters and public health.

    Dated: July 26, 2005.
Robert W. Hargrove,
Director, NEPA Compliance Division, Office of Federal Activities.
[FR Doc. 05-15049 Filed 7-28-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P