[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 138 (Wednesday, July 19, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40988-40990]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-6316]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Buckhorn Access Project, Okanogan and Wenatchee National Forests, 
Okanogan County, WA

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

[[Page 40989]]


ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the USDA, Forest Service will 
prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for a proposal by Crown 
Resources Corporation (Crown) to access their private lands and 
unpatented mining claims on National Forest System lands, and to 
utilize their unpatented mining claims for mining related facilities. 
The purpose of the EIS will be to evaluate a range of reasonable 
alternatives for this proposal and take public comment on the analysis. 
The proposed project will comply with the direction in the December 
1989 Okanogan National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest 
Plan), as amended. The Forest Plan provides the overall guidance for 
management of National Forest System lands included in this proposal.
    Scoping on this project was initiated in the Spring of 2005. After 
preparation and circulation of a preliminary Environmental Assessment 
on the project, the Forest Service has decided to prepare an 
Environmental Impact Statement, as provided for in the Council on 
Environmental Quality's Regulations for Implementing the Procedural 
Provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act (40 CFR 1501.4(c)). 
The Forest Service is giving notice of this analysis so that interested 
and affected individuals are aware of how they may participate and 
contribute to the final decision.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of this analysis must be received 
by August 7, 2006. Individuals who responded to the scoping done for 
this project in April 2005 need not resubmit those comments. The scope 
of the project has not changed since the initial Spring 2005 scoping, 
although some details have changed and will be displayed in the Draft 
EIS. The Draft EIS is expected to be filed in August 2006. The Final 
EIS is expected to be filed in November 2006.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments and suggestions concerning the scope 
of the analysis to Jan Flatten, Forest Environmental Coordinator, 1240 
Second Avenue South, Okanogan, WA 98840, phone: (509) 826-3277.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Direct questions about the proposed 
action and EIS to Jan Flatten, Forest Environmental Coordinator, 1240 
Second Avenue South, Okanogan, Washington 98840, phone: (509) 826-3277 
or Phil Christy, Minerals Program Manager, Tonasket Ranger District, 1 
West Winesap, Tonasket, WA 98855, phone: (509) 486-5137.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Purpose and Need for Action

    The purpose and need for the project is to respond to Crown's 
request for access to their private lands and unpatented mining claims, 
and to utilize their unpatented mining claims for mining related 
facilities reasonably incident to mining activities taking place on 
private lands as required by law, while minimizing impacts to National 
Forest System lands and considering impacts to residents living along 
National Forest rights-of-way.

Proposed Action

    The Forest Supervisor for the Okanogan and Wenatchee National 
Forests proposes to approve Crown Resource Corporation's Plan of 
Operations to reconstruct 5.25 miles of the Forest Roads 3550 and 3550-
125; construct 1.5 miles of new access road off the end of Forest Road 
3550-125 to the lower portal of the mine; and to build a fence, a pipe 
line, a treated-water infiltration area and access roads, monitoring 
wells, and underground utility conduits (power line, telephone line) on 
National Forest System lands and rights-of-way. The Proponent would be 
permitted to utilize these roads daily to haul ore and supplies to and 
from the private land inholding once construction is complete. Trucks, 
averaging approximately 55 round trips per day (50 ore trucks and 5 
supply trucks), would haul along the route, although average daily 
trips would increase just before and after spring breakup, if hauling 
is not feasible or permitted. Employee access, 24 hours/day, would be 
allowed on the haul route, Forest Roads 3575-120, 3575, 3575-100, and 
3575-150. Only the haul route, Forest Roads 3575-120 and 3575-140 to 
the water tower, access roads to the infiltration gallery and pipeline 
(3575-120, 3575-125, 3575-127, and 3575-142), and to monitoring wells 
and surface water minoring sites may be snowplowed. In addition, the 
following structures would be constructed to compensate for impacts to 
wildlife and range operations from this proposal and the Buckhorn 
Mountain Project currently being planned on private lands:
     A corral in lower Marias Creek,
     A well servicing three cattle troughs in mid-Marias Creek,
     A water augmentation line from the infiltration gallery 
pipeline to the Roosevelt Adit and to a new water trough in upper 
Marias Creek,
     Culvert replacements to allow for all aquatic life 
passage, and
     Water guzzlers in the headwaters of Ethel and South Fork 
Bolster Creeks.
    The Pontiac Ridge/Cow Camp access route; Forest Road 3575-120, and 
Forest Road 3575-140 would be used during the approximate 3 months it 
will take to construct and reconstruct the haul route. After that time, 
most construction traffic to the mine site on private lands would 
switch to the haul route. Implementation is expected to occur in winter 
on spring of 2007.
    The proposed action would require amendments to four Forest Plan 
standards and guidelines, two relating to road density, one relating to 
designation of an open route through deer winter range, and one 
relating to percent fines in fish bearing creeks. Road density 
standards would b exceeded in MA14-18 and 14-19, the Marias Creek road 
would be designated as an open route where it passes through deer 
winter range in MA-14 and MA-26, and fine sediment would be increased 
where it is currently above Forest Plan standards. In addition, the 
three small parcels left of MA14-19 after land patenting would be 
combined with their adjacent management areas.

Possible Alternatives

    Crown's land on Buckhorn Mountain can be accessed by three existing 
road systems:
     Marias Creek Road 3550 with powerline buried on the right-
of-way.
     Nicholson Creek 3575 with powerline buried in the right-
of-way except that the shorter route up the 3575-100 road would be used 
for the powerline.
     Cow Camp Road 3575-120 with powerline buried on the right-
of-way.
    All of these routes will be fully analyzed in the EIS. No other 
sites will be analyzed for the infiltration gallery because the 
location proposed by Crown is the only feasible location.

Lead Agency

    The USDA Forest Service will be the lead agency in accordance with 
40 CFR 1501.5(b), and is responsible for preparation of the EIS.

Nature of the Decision To Be Made

    The Forest Supervisor for the Okanogan and Wenatchee National 
Forests must decide whether or not to approve the Proponent's Plan of 
Operations and road use permit as submitted, or approve a Plan of 
Operations and road use permit for another route or with additional 
mitigation measures and monitoring items. Additionally, the Forest

[[Page 40990]]

Supervisor must decide whether to grant a special use permit to the 
Ferry County PUD and other providers for utility access. The Forest 
Supervisor will consider both the impacts as a result of project 
activities on National Forest Systems lands and rights-of-way, and 
cumulative impacts off of National Forest System lands, particularly to 
home owners along National Forest System rights-of-way, in choosing the 
preferred alternative. The Forest Supervisor must also decide whether 
or not to amend the Okanogan National Forest Land and Resource 
Management Plan to implement the project.

Scoping Process

    Initial scoping on this project was completed Spring of 2005, and a 
preliminary Environmental Assessment was sent to the public for comment 
in December 2005. Public participation will continue to be especially 
important at several points during the analysis. The participation 
agencies are seeking information, comments, and assistance from 
Federal, State, local agencies, Native American Tribe and other 
individuals and organizations who may be interested in or affected by 
the proposed project. Input submitted during initial scoping, comments 
received on the preliminary Environmental Assessment and input during 
this scoping period will be used in preparation of the Draft EIS. The 
scoping process includes:
     Identifying potential issues.
     Identifying major issues to be analyzed in depth and 
identify those that are not significant and can be eliminated from 
detailed study.
     Exploring alternatives to the proposed action.
     Identifying potentail environmental effects of this 
project.
     Determining potential cooperating agencies and task 
assignments.
     Notifying interested members of the public of 
opportunities to participate through personal contacts or written 
comment.

Issues

    A number of issues were identified in the preliminary Environmental 
Assessment including effects of fence construction, effects of road 
construction and reconstruction, effects of heavy mine traffic, effects 
to wildlife, spread of noxious weeds, cumulative impacts with the mine 
and borrow site, dust suppression and snow removal chemical on water, 
effects on residents and Colville Tribal members, and effects on water 
quality and quantity from the infiltration gallery.

Permits or Licenses Required

    Upon approval of this proposal, a final plan of operations, road 
use permit and special use permits for utility companies would be 
prepared.

Comment Opportunity

    This notice re-initiates the scoping process, which guides 
development of the EIS. The Forest Service is seeking public and agency 
comment on the proposed action to determine if any additional issues 
arise. Additional issues may lead either to other alternatives, or 
additional mitigation measures and monitoring requirements.

Early Notice of Importance of Public Participation in Subsequent 
Environmental Review

    A draft EIS will be prepared for comment. Copies will be 
distributed to interested and affected agencies, organizations, and 
members of the public for their review and comment. The comment period 
on the draft EIS 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 
a draft EIS 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 EIS stage but that are not raised 
until after the completion of the final EIS 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 participating agencies at a time 
when it can meaningfully consider them and respond to them in the final 
EIS.
    To assist the participating agencies in identifying and considering 
issues and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the draft EIS 
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 EIS 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.
    In the final EIS, the Forest Service is required to respond to 
comments and responses received during the comment period that pertain 
to the environmental consequences discussed in the draft EIS and 
applicable laws, regulations, and policies considered in making a 
decision regarding the proposal.
    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.
    The Forest Supervisor for the Okanogan and Wenatchee National 
Forest will be the responsible official for this EIS and it's Record of 
Decision. As the responsible official, the Forest Supervisor will 
document the decision and reasons for the decision in the Record of 
Decision. That decision will be subject to Forest Service Appeal 
Regulations (36 CFR Part 215).

    Dated: July 10, 2006.
James L. Boynton,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 06-6316 Filed 7-18-06; 8:45 am]
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