[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 223 (Tuesday, November 20, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65289-65290]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 07-5754]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Umatilla National Forest, Grant County, OR Farley Analysis Area 
Vegetation Management Project

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

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

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Agriculture--Forest Service proposes to 
conduct vegetation management activities on approximately 17,500 acres 
of upland forest sites in the Farley Analysis Area to restore 
sustainable forest conditions in the Desolation Creek watershed. The 
proposed action will use a range of mechanical harvest and non-harvest 
thinning and prescribed fire activities to alter species composition, 
stand structure, and fire regime condition class to re-create 
conditions that are consistent with the historic range of variability 
for forests of the Blue Mountains of northeastern Oregon, and to 
capture the commercial value of forest raw materials for the benefit of 
local economies.
    The Farley Analysis Area encompasses the Desolation Creek watershed 
which covers 69,672 acres of diverse mountainous, mostly forested 
landscapes ranging in elevation from 7,765 ft at its headwaters to 2810 
ft at its confluence with the North Fork John Day River near Dale, 
Oregon. It includes both National Forest and privately-owned lands; 
private lands comprise about 18 percent of the total area, mostly at 
lower elevations at the western end of the watershed.
    Development and implementation of these actions will be conducted 
in accordance with the National Forest Management Act, National 
Environmental Policy Act, Council on Environmental Quality regulations, 
Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, Endangered Species Act, and with the 
Umatilla National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan and 
scientific recommendations of the Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem 
Management Project.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received 
by December 12, 2007. The Draft EIS is expected to be filed with the 
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and be available to the public 
for review by February 2008. The Final EIS is scheduled to be completed 
by April 2008.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to the Responsible Official, Kevin D. 
Martin, Forest Supervisor, Umatilla National Forest, 2517 S.W. Hailey 
Avenue, Pendleton, OR 97801. Send electronic comments to: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael A. Beckwith, Technical Writer-
Editor, North Fork John Day Ranger District, 401 Main Street, Ukiah, OR 
97880, phone (541) 427-5335. E-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Purpose and Need. Since the early 1900s, 
fire has been aggressively excluded from forest ecosystems throughout 
the Nation. From the mid to late 1900s, timber harvest practices in the 
interior Columbia Basin have emphasized removal primarily of mature 
ponderosa pine. The result has been a shift in forest conditions toward 
dense stands of Douglas and grand fir containing large amounts of dead 
and decaying wood that now are subject to insect infestations, disease, 
and very large wildfires, in contrast to the more open stands of fire-
adapted species (such as ponderosa pine) that would be expected to 
occur historically.
    In addition, in 1996 the Bull, Summit and Tower wildfires in and 
near the Farley Analysis Area involved mature lodgepole pine forests 
that had experienced substantial insect mortality. These fires were 
uncharacteristically intense and covered large areas (over 130,000 
acres) because, as a result of past fire suppression and timber harvest 
practices, the forests had become more dense (more trees per acre) and 
contained a larger amount of dead wood than would have existed 
historically. These fires resulted in greater loss of old forest 
structure, wildlife cover and habitat, riparian structure and 
vegetation, erosion and detrimental effects to soils over very large 
areas than would have been anticipated historically.
    The Desolation Watershed Analysis (1999) found that almost 60 
percent of upland-forest sites in the Farley area exhibit moderate or 
high departures from the characteristic species composition, structure 
and stand density conditions than would have existed historically. 
These conditions are outside the range of historic variability for 
forests in the Blue Mountains and are not sustainable over the long-
term, with the end result likely to be very large, destructive 
wildfires. Therefore, the purpose and need for the Farley Vegetation 
Management Project is to improve the long-term sustainability of upland 
forests by reducing stand densities and fuel loads, restoring 
appropriate species composition, altering forest structure and fire 
regime condition class, regenerating mature lodgepole stands that 
currently exist, and to capture the commercial value of raw wood 
materials for the benefit of local economies.
    Proposed Action. The Forest Service proposes to conduct mechanical 
harvest and non-harvest thinning, prescribed fire, fuels treatment, and 
reforestation activities on approximately 17,460 acres in the Farley 
Analysis Area in accordance with the resource management objectives and 
standards set forth in the Umatilla National Forest Land and Resource 
Management Plan (1990) and the scientific recommendations of the 
Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project (1996). These 
activities are anticipated to yield approximately 60,000 hundred cubic 
feet of merchantable material. Approximately 100 miles of open and 
seasonally open

[[Page 65290]]

roads will be required for the proposed action, including construction 
of approximately 40 miles of new system and temporary roads, and 
approximately 50 miles of reconstruction and maintenance of existing 
forest system roads. Approximately 2 miles of existing road will be 
closed and/or decommissioned at the conclusion of the proposed 
activities.
    The proposed action requires amendments to the Forest Plan with 
respect to connectivity among stands exhibiting old forest structure, 
scenic values, and total area (at the specific stand, subwatershed and 
watershed level) allowed to be in the less than 20 year old age class. 
Implementation of the proposed actions could begin in late 2008.
    Possible Alternatives. Alternatives will include the proposed 
action, no action, and additional alternatives that respond to issues 
generated during the scoping process. The agency will give notice of 
the full environmental analysis and decision-making process so 
interested and affected people may participate and contribute to the 
final decision.
    Scoping. Correspondence with tribes, government agencies, 
organizations, and individuals who have indicated interest will be 
conducted and input will be solicited.
    Preliminary Issues. Preliminary issues identified include the 
potential effects of the proposed action on long-term forest conditions 
and sustainability, fish and wildlife habitat, hydrology and water 
quality, soils and scenic values.
    Comment. Public comments on this proposed action are requested to 
identify issues and alternatives to the proposed action and to focus 
the scope of the analysis. 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 decisions 
under 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 confidentially. Persons requesting such confidentially 
should be aware that under the 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 a specified number of days.
    Early Notice of Importance of Public Participation in Subsequent 
Environmental Review. A draft EIS will be filed with the Environmental 
Protection Agency (EPA) and made available for public review by January 
2008. The EPA will publish a Notice of Availability (NOA) of the draft 
EIS in the Federal Register. The final EIS is scheduled to be available 
April 2008.
    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 impact statements must structure their participation in the 
environmental review 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 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 this proposed action participate by 
the close of the 45-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 on 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. Reviews 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 
substantive comments received during the comment period for the draft 
EIS. The Forest Service is the lead agency and the responsible official 
is Craig Dixon, District Ranger, North Fork John Day Ranger District, 
Umatilla National Forest. The responsible official will decide where, 
and whether or not to salvage timber, and remove potential hazard 
trees. The responsible official will select the treatment 
alternative(s) for the Farley Vegetation Management, as well as 
potential mitigation and monitoring measures that may be needed. The 
decision will be documented in a record of decision. The decision will 
be subject to Forest Service Appeal Regulations (36 CFR part 215).

    Dated: November 14, 2007.
Kevin Martin,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 07-5754 Filed 11-19-07; 8:45 am]
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