[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 59 (Tuesday, March 28, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15372-15374]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-2952]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Tongass National Forest Plan Amendment Environmental Impact 
Statement

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

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

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SUMMARY: The Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, will prepare an 
environmental impact statement (EIS) that evaluates a potential 
significant amendment to the 1997 Tongass National Forest Plan. The 
Record of Decision will consider and identify changes, if any, to the 
current 1997 Forest Plan.

DATES: A specific proposed action is expected to be identified and 
posted on the Web site, http://tongass-fpadjust.net, in May 2006. The 
Draft EIS is expected to be mailed in November 2006, which will begin a 
90-day public comment period. Public meetings and subsistence hearings 
will be scheduled during the 90-day comment period. The Record of 
Decision is expected to be signed in July 2007.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Additional information is available on 
the Tongass Forest Plan Adjustment Internet site at 
http://www.tongass-fpadjust.net. General and specific comments on the amendment can be submitted online at this Internet site. Questions 
about the project can be also directed to Lee Kramer, Forest Plan Project Manager, (Telephone 
907-586-8811, ext. 225 or e-mail [email protected]). Written inquiries 
can be directed to: Forest Supervisor, Tongass National Forest, Attn: 
Forest Plan Amendment, 648 Mission Street, Ketchikan, AK 99901.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The National Forest Management Act of 1976 
requires the Forest Service to develop land and resource management 
plans for each unit of the National Forest System. These plans are 
often referred to as forest plans. The Tongass National Forest adopted 
its first forest plan in 1979. The Tongass National Forest issued a 
Record of Decision (ROD), which revised its forest plan in 1997. A new 
Forest Plan Record of Decision was issued in 1999, which was set aside 
in 2001 as a result of litigation. Other litigation, occurring at the 
same

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time, indicated the Forest Plan EIS needed to be supplemented to 
evaluate roadless areas on the Tongass for wildnerness recommendations. 
Therefore, a Forest Plan Supplemental EIS was completed in 2003.
    The Tongass forest plan is being amended to respond to the court 
decision in National Resources Defense Council v. U.S. Forest Service, 
421 F.3d 797 (9th Circ. 2005). In that decision, the Ninth Circuit held 
that the environmental impact statement and record of decision for the 
Tongass forest plan adopted in 1997 had errors relating to the use of 
projected market demand for timber, the range of alternatives 
considered, and the cumulative effects of activities on non-National 
Forest System lands.
    In addition, ongoing implementation, maintenance, and monitoring of 
the 1997 Forest Plan has generated a list of potential changes. Most of 
these changes were identified during the 5 Year Review of the Forest 
Plan conducted in 2004 and documented on the 5 Year Review Web site 
(http://www.tongass-5yearreview.net/). For additional related 
information see the Forest Plan Maintenance Program Web sites 
(http://www.tongass-fpmaintprog.net/). Examples of these potential 
Forest Plan changes include: new director for invasive species 
management, consideration of new direction on Off Highway Vehicle 
(OHV) use, and heritage sacred sites standards and guidelines. 
Information on these and other Forest Plan-related work items can be 
found on the Forest Plan Adjustment Web site 
(http://tongass-fpadjust.net).
    This amendment will draw upon a wealth of existing information. The 
environmental impact statements and planning records for the 1997 
forest plan and the 2003 wilderness evaluation contain a great deal of 
analysis of land allocations, effects on communities and impacts to 
fish and wildlife. It will also be informed by the ideas and 
information from five substantial public comment efforts that have 
occurred since the 1997 forest plan was adopted: (1) The 69 day comment 
period for the proposed national roadless area conservation rule that 
began May 10, 2000; (2) the 60 day comment period for the advance 
notice of proposed rulemaking for the roadless area conservation rule 
that began July 10, 2001; (3) the 90-day comment period for the Tongass 
2003 wilderness area Supplemental EIS that began May 17, 2002; (4) the 
30 day comment period for the interim roadless area conservation rule 
for the Tongass National Forest that began July 15, 2003; and (5) the 
122 day comment period on the 2004 roadless area conservation rule that 
began July 12, 2004.
    Further analysis, including new estimates of timber market demand 
by the Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station, follow-up 
studies commissioned after the 1997 forest planning process, and 
experience gained while implementing the 1997 Tongass forest plan will 
also aid in responding to the inadequacies identified by the Court and 
the potential changes that surfaced during the Forest Plan 5 Year 
Review. Appropriate alternatives for amending the Forest Plan will be 
developed and then evaluated in the EIS. The major issues that are 
likely to drive alternative development include timber demand and 
supply, wildlife and fish conservation, and maintaining inventoried 
roadless areas.
    Since 1997 timber harvest and road construction have been well 
below the level permitted by the Forest Plan. Because the 5 Year Review 
did not identify any individual concerns requiring revision, the 
proposed action would amend the Forest Plan. The amendment will respond 
to the 9th Circuit Court and some of the concerns identified in the 5 
Year Review. In addition, the proposed action will integrate past 
decisions (the 1997, 1999, and 2003 RODs, and all plan amendments 
completed to date) to resolve confusion regarding current management 
direction for the Tongass.
    The Forest Service recently issued the 2005 Forest Planning Rule. 
Because the Court indicated that an EIS needed to be prepared, and 
because the 2005 Rule does not require EISs for Forest Plans, the 
planning regulations in effect before November 9, 2000 will be followed 
for this amendment.
    Opportunities for the public to participate in the development of 
the EIS will be provided throughout the process. The Forest Service is 
using a combination of methods to engage and involve the public, but is 
emphasizing a Web-based approach. A Web site has already been 
established to provide information to the public and to accept comments 
(http://www.tongass-fpadjust.net/). The public is invited to visit this 
site to learn more about the amendment process and to provide comment 
on the process or on specific work items. Other potential public 
involvement methods include public mailings, public meetings, and use 
of the news media. Information from previous public input efforts 
related to the 1997 Forest Plan and the 2003 Supplemental EIS, will be 
incorporated.
    The comment period on the Draft EIS will be 90 days from the date 
the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) publishes the notice of 
availability of the EIS in the Federal Register. A series of public 
meetings and subsistence hearings will be held during the 90-day public 
comment period. The Draft EIS is projected to be filed with the EPA in 
November 2006.
    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 preview of the proposal so that it 
is meaningful and alerts the 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 the proposed action 
participate by the close of the 90-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 of 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 in response to this solicitation, including names 
and addresses of those who comment, will be considered part of the 
public record on this proposed action and will be available for public 
inspection. comments submitted anonymously will be accepted and 
considered; however, those who submit anonymous comments will not have 
standing to appeal the subsequent decision under

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36 CFR Parts 215 or 217. Additionally, pursuant to 7 CFR 1.27(d), any 
person may request the agency to withhold a submission from the public 
record by showing how the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) permits 
such confidentiality. Requesters should be aware that, under FOIA, 
confidentiality may be granted in only very limited circumstances, such 
as to protect trade secrets. The Forest Service will inform the 
requester of the agency's decision regarding the request for 
confidentiality, and where the request is denied, the agency will 
return the submission and notify the requester that the comments may be 
resubmitted with or without name and address within 7 days.
    No outside permits or licenses are required to implement the 
proposed action. Responsible Official: The Tongass Forest Supervisor, 
648 Mission Street, Ketchikan, AK, 99901, is the responsible official. 
The responsible official will consider the comments, response, 
disclosure of environmental consequences, and applicable laws, 
regulations, and policies in making the decision and stating the 
rationale in the Record of Decision.

    Dated: March 20, 2006.
Forrest Cole,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 06-2952 Filed 3-27-06; 8:45 am]
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