[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 229 (Wednesday, November 30, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71801-71802]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-23262]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


White River National Forest; Summit County, CO; Arapahoe Basin 
Ski Area and Montezuma Bowl Projects

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

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

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SUMMARY: The USDA Forest Service will prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) to disclose the anticipated environmental effects of 
the Arapahoe Basin Ski Area and Montezuma Bowl Projects. The Proposed 
Action would upgrade and expand infrastructure within the existing 
Special Use Permit (SUP) area to accommodate parking demands and 
improve skiing opportunities for existing and proposed visitation, 
thereby enhancing the quality of the recreation experience.
    The major aspects of the Proposed Action include:
     Install a new fixed-grip triple of quad chairlift in 
Montezuma Bowl. Adding lift-served skiing within Montezuma Bowl would 
increase A-Basin's existing overall skiable acreage for approximately 
487 to 812 acres. The Montezuma Bowl area would add approximately 175 
acres of intermediate terrain and 149 acres of advanced and expert 
terrain, all accessible for round-trip skiing via one proposed 
chairlift.
     Install snowfencing west of the proposed lift terminal, 
below (south) of the ridgeline, to aid in snow retention.
     Install a raised ``avalauncher'' platform to allow A-Basin 
ski patrol to safely conduct snow safety operations in Montezuma Bowl.
     Replace the existing Exhibition lift (fixed-grip triple) 
with a high speed detachable quad chair accommodating 2,60 people per 
hour in a slightly modified alignment.
     Create an additional 231 parking spaces by widening and 
re-grading the Lower Overflow Lot and the High Noon Lot, bringing total 
parking capacity at A-Basin's five lots to 1,781 vehicles. In 
conjunction with the re-grading of the High Noon lot, a series of 
sediment detention basins are proposed along the west edge of the 
parking area, parallel with Highway 6.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis should be received 
by January 6, 2006.

ADDRESSES: Written comments concerning this notice should be addressed 
to Maribeth Gustafson, Forest Supervisor, c/o Peech Keller, Project 
Leader, Dillon Ranger District, PO Box 620, Dillon, CO 80498; (970) 
468-7735 (fax); or by submitting an e-mail to: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Peech Keller, Project Leader, at the 
Dillon Ranger District via telephone at (970) 468-5400 or e-mail at 
cpkeller2fs.fed.us. Individuals who use telecommunication devices for 
the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 
1-800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, Monday 
through Friday.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Proposed Action addresses issues related 
to the recreation experience. Presently, alpine skiing/snowboarding and 
other resort activities are provided to the public through a SUP issued 
by the Forest Service and administered by the White River National 
Forest. All elements of the proposal remain within the existing SUP 
boundary area.
    The proposed improvements are consistent with the 2002 Revised 
White River National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest 
Plan). The proposed improvements are considered necessary in light of 
current resort deficiencies and projected future visitation.

Purpose and Need for Action

    The Forest Service and A-Basin cooperatively identified a purpose 
for this proposal, which is to upgrade and expand infrastructure within 
the existing SUP area to accommodate parking demands and improve skiing 
opportunities for existing and proposed visitation, thereby enhancing 
the quality of the recreation experience.

Responsible Official

    The responsible official is Maribeth Gustafson, Forest Supervisor 
for the White River National Forest, 900 Grand Ave., P.O. Box 948, 
Glenwood Springs Colorado 81602. The responsible official will document 
the decision and reasons for the decision in a Record of Decision. That 
decision will be subject to appeal under 36 CFR part 215 or part 251.

Nature of Decision To Be Made

    Based on the analysis that will be documented in the forthcoming 
EIS, the responsible official for this project, the Forest Supervisor 
of the White River National Forest, will decide whether or not to 
implement, in whole or in part, the Proposed Action or another 
alternative developed by the Forest Service.

Scoping Process

    Public questions and comments regarding this proposal are an 
integral part of this environmental analysis process. Comments will be 
used to identify issues and develop alternatives to A-Basin's proposal. 
To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues and 
concerns on the proposed action, comments should be as specific as 
possible.
    Input provided by interested and/or affected individuals, 
organizations and governmental agencies will be used to identify 
resource issues that will be analyzed in the Draft EIS. The Forest 
Service will identify significant issues raised during the scoping 
process, and use them to formulate alternatives, prescribe mitigation 
measures, or analyze environmental effects.

Comment Requested

    This notice of intent initiates the scoping process which guides 
the development of the draft environmental impact statement, including 
the identification of the range of alternatives to be considered. While 
public participation is strictly optional at this stage, the Forest 
Service believes that it is important to give reviewers notice of 
several court rulings related to public

[[Page 71802]]

participation in the subsequent environmental review process. First, 
reviewers of draft statement 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. 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 during the scoping 
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 development of the alternatives. To assist 
the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues and concerns 
on the proposed action, comments on the proposed action should be as 
specific as possible.

    Dated: November 18, 2005.
Catherine Kahlow,
Acting Forest Supervisor, White River National Forest.
[FR Doc. 05-23262 Filed 11-29-05; 8:45 am]
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