[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 191 (Wednesday, October 3, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56331-56333]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 07-4861]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Black River Land Exchange; Apache National Forest; Apache and 
Greenlee Counties, AZ

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

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

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SUMMARY: The Forest Service, USDA will prepare an environmental impact 
statement (EIS) on a proposal to exchange 337.74 acres of federal lands 
north of the unincorporated community of Greer, Arizona, for 396.35 
acres of non-federal lands along the West Fork of the Black River and 
the Blue River in east-central Arizona. The EIS will analyze the 
proposed change of the federal lands described as Tract A and Tract B 
for the non-federal lands described as Rancho Alegre, Thompson Ranch, 
and Blue River Ranch parcels. The federal and non-federal lands 
proposed for exchange are located in Apache and Greenlee Counties, 
Arizona. The affected Forest Service units are the Springerville and 
Alpine Ranger Districts of the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests. The 
exchange would occur with First American Title Insurance Company, 
Trustee, under Trust 8541, on behalf of Precision Components, Inc., 
Herbert W. Owens. Summit Resources, LLC is acting as a third-party 
facilitator for the non-federal landowner. Implementation of the 
proposed exchange is scheduled for August 2008. The Apache-Sitgreaves 
National Forest Supervisor invites the public to submit comments on the 
proposal and suggestions on the scope of the proposed exchange. The 
Forest Supervisor also invites the public to participate in the 
environmental analysis and decision-making process for the proposed 
exchange of lands.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received 
by October 31, 2007. The draft EIS is scheduled for availability in 
February 2008, and the final EIS is expected to be available in June 
2008.

[[Page 56332]]


ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Bruce Buttrey, Natural Resources 
Specialist, Springerville Ranger District, Apache-Sitgreaves National 
Forest, P.O. Box 760, Springerville, AZ 85938. Oral comments may be 
conveyed to Bruce Buttrey in person at the Springerville Ranger 
District, 165 S. Mountain Avenue, Springerville, AZ or by telephone at 
928-333-4372. For further information, mail correspondence to Bruce 
Buttrey at the above address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bruce Buttrey, Natural Resource 
Specialist, at [email protected] or (928) 333-4372.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Purpose and Need for Action

    The proposal to exchange lands in the Apache National Forest 
responds to the Forest Service's need for consolidation of federal land 
ownership patterns. The consolidation of federal ownership allows the 
Forest Service to enhance the management of the public's natural 
resources by acquiring lands that (1) protect habitat for several 
threatened, endangered, and sensitive species, (2) facilitate public 
access to federal lands, (3) improve wetlands, floodplains, and 
riparian areas, (4) decrease the complexity of maintaining property 
boundaries, and (5) improve the efficiency of resource management by 
focusing the Forest's funding and staff on consolidated ownerships. 
This action responds in part to an order dated March 1, 2007, by the 
United States District Court in Greer Coalition, Inc., and the Center 
for Biological Diversity v. U.S. Forest Service (D. AZ). The court 
remanded an October 14, 2005, decision authorizing the Black River Land 
Exchange to the Forest Service for proceedings consistent with its 
March 1, 2007 order. To comply with the court order the Forest Service 
will prepare an EIS addressing and evaluating the environmental impact 
should the federal land be developed using multiple shallow water 
wells.

Proposed Action

    The Forest Supervisor proposes to exchange 337.74 acres of federal 
lands north of the unincorporated community of Greer, Arizona, for 
396.35 acres of non-federal lands along with West Fork of the Black 
River and the Blue River in east-central Arizona. The federal lands 
proposed for exchange are located in Apache County; the non-federal 
lands proposed for exchange are located in Apache and Greenlee 
Counties, Arizona. the affected Forest Service units are the 
Springerville and Alpine Ranger Districts in the Apache-Sitgreaves 
National Forests. All acreages in this proposal have been verified. The 
United States of america would convey fee title to First American Title 
Insurance Company, Trustee, under Trust 8541 for the 70.57 acre Tract A 
and 267.17 acre Tract B parcels in Apache County, Arizona, in the 
Apache National Forest. First American Title Insurance Company, 
Trustee, under Trust 8541 would convey fee title to the United States 
of America for the 79.76 acre Rancho Alegre and 157.91 Thompson Ranch 
parcels in Apache County and the 158.68 acre Blue River Ranch parcel in 
Greelee County, Arizona, in the Apache National Forest.
    The proposed exchange of lands does not require an amendment to the 
Apach-Sitgreaves National Forests Land and Resource Management Plan. 
Pursuant to the regulations for land exchanges (36 CFR 254.3(f)): 
``Lands acquired by exchange that are located within areas having an 
administrative designation established through the land management 
planning process shall automatically become part of the area within 
which they are located, without further action by the Forest Service, 
and shall be managed in accordance with the laws, rules, and 
regulations, and land and resource management plan applicable to such 
area.''

Possible Alternatives

    A full range of alternatives to the proposed action, including a 
no-action alternative, were considered during the environmental 
analysis and will be discussed in the EIS. The no-action alternative 
represents no change from the current pattern of land ownership, and it 
serves as the baseline for the comparison among the action 
alternatives. In addition to the proposed action and the no-action 
alternatives, a deed restriction and a direct purchase alternative were 
considered.

Responsible Official

    The Responsible Official is the Director of Lands and Minerals, 
Southwestern Region. He will review all issues, alternatives, and 
environmental consequences associated with the analysis; consider all 
public comments and response; and comply with all policies, 
regulations, and laws in making a decision regarding the proposed 
exchange of lands documented in the final EIS for the Black River Land 
Exchange. The Responsible Official will document his decision and 
rationale for the decision in a Record of Decision (ROD). His decision 
will be subject to public notice, review, comment, and appeal under the 
Forest Service Regulations for Notice, Comment, and Appeal Procedures 
for National Forest System projects and Activities at 36 CFR part 215.

Nature of Decision To Be Made

    The Forest Service will determine if the lands to be exchanged are 
desirable, in the public interest and suitable for inclusion in the 
National Forest System. Land exchanges are discretionary, voluntary 
real estate transactions between the federal and non-federal parties. 
The exchange can only be completed after the authorized officer 
determines that the exchanges meets the requirements at 36 CFR 
254.3(b): (1) The resource values and the public objectives served by 
non-federal lands and interests to be acquired are equal to or exceed 
the resource values and public objectives served by the federal lands 
to be disposed, and (2) the intended use of the disposed federal lands 
will not substantially conflict with established management objectives 
on adjacent federal lands, including Indian Trust Lands.
    Lands will be exchanges on a value for value basis, based on 
current fair market value appraisals. The appraisal is prepared in 
accordance with the Uniform Appraisal Standards of Professional 
Appraisal Practice and the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land 
Acquisition. The appraisal prepared for the land exchange is reviewed 
by a qualified review appraiser to ensure that it is fair and complies 
with the appropriate standards. Under the Federal Land Policy and 
Management Act of 1976, all exchanges must be equal in value. Forest 
Service regulations at 36 CFR 254.3 require that exchanges must be of 
equal value or equalized pursuant to 36 CFR 254.12 by cash payment 
after making all reasonable efforts to equalize values by deleting 
lands. If lands proposed for exchange are not equal in value, either 
party may make them equal by cash payment not to exceed 25 percent of 
the federal land value. A March 2004, agency approval appraisal 
indicated by lands along with a federal cash payment were equal in 
value. A new appraisal will be prepared in 2008 to comply with the 
United States District Court March 1, 2007, court order.

Preliminary Issues

    Previous litigation dealt with the potential effects to existing 
shallow water wells on adjacent private property from possible future 
drilling of additional new shallow water wells on the federal lands.

[[Page 56333]]

Scoping Process

    The Forest Service encourages full participation in the proposed 
land exchange, beginning with the scoping process. Scoping will include 
notice in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests' Quarterly Schedule of 
Proposed Actions; distribution of letters to individuals, 
organizations, and agencies who have previously indicated interest in 
the Black River Land Exchange; communication with tribal interests; and 
publication of news releases in the White Mountain Independent and The 
Arizona Republic, the newspaper of record, for Regional Forester 
decisions for the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests. Any news releases 
will also be distributed to other local newspapers that serve areas 
affected by this proposal. Public meetings are not currently scheduled. 
Any future public meetings that may be held will have a notice of time 
and location provided to newspapers that serve areas affected by this 
proposal. The scoping process will include identifying any new key 
issues and previously unknown potential environmental effects of the 
proposed action.

Comment Requested

    This notice of intent initiates the scoping process which guides 
the development of the environmental impact statement. The Forest 
Service is seeking comments concerning the scope of the analysis from 
individuals, organizations, tribes, state and local agencies, and other 
federal agencies that may be interested in or affected by the proposed 
land exchange. All comments received in response to this notice, 
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 comment will be used in the 
preparation of the draft EIS.
    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 45 days from the date the Environmental 
Protection Agency publishes the notice of availability in the Federal 
Register.
    The Forest Service believes 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 contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power 
Corporation versus Natural Resources Defense Council, 435 US 519, 553 
(1978). Also, environmental objections that could be raised at the 
draft EIS stage, but that are not raised until completion of the final 
EIS, may be waived or dismissed by the courts. City of Angoon versus 
Hodel, 803 F 2d 1016, 1022 (9th Cir, 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, 
Incorporated versus Harris, 490 F Supp 1334, 1338 (ED Wis, 1980). 
Because of these court rulings, it is important that those interested 
in this proposed action participate by the close of the 45-day comment 
period, so that comments are made available to the Forest Service at a 
time when it can meaningfully consider them and respond to them in the 
final EIS. To assist the Forest Service 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 of 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: September 24, 2007.
Elaine J. Zieroth,
Forest Supervisor, Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests.
[FR Doc. 07-4861 Filed 10-2-07; 8:45 am]
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