[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 27 (Wednesday, February 10, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6625-6627]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-2516]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Dixie National Forest, UT, Kitty Hawk Administrative Site Master 
Development Plan

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 analyze the master development plan for the Kitty 
Hawk Forest Service Administrative Site within the city limits of Cedar 
City, Utah. The site is administered by the Cedar City Ranger District, 
Dixie National Forest, Utah. The agency gives notice of the full 
environmental analysis and decision-making process that will occur on 
the proposal so that interested and affected people may become aware of 
how they can participate in the process and contribute to the final 
decision.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received 
by thirty days after publication of this Notice of Intent in the 
Federal Register. The draft environmental impact statement is expected 
in May, 2010. The final environmental impact statement is expected in 
September, 2010.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to: Kitty Hawk Administrative Site 
Master Development Plan Analysis Coordinator, Cedar City Ranger 
District, Dixie National Forest, 1789 Wedgewood Lane, Cedar City, Utah 
84721. Electronic comments must be submitted in rich text format 
(.rtf), or Word (.doc) to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kitty Hawk Administrative Site Master 
Development Plan Analysis Coordinator, Cedar City Ranger District, 
Dixie National Forest, 1789 Wedgewood Lane, Cedar City, Utah 84721.

[[Page 6626]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 14-acre Kitty Hawk Administrative Site 
is located in Cedar City at 1750 West Kitty Hawk Drive. The site is 
owned by the USDA-Forest Service and jointly occupied by the Dixie 
National Forest, the USDI-Bureau of Land Management Cedar City District 
Office and the USDI-National Park Service. The site is zoned as I&M1 
(Industrial and Manufacturing). Management of the site is in compliance 
with City zoning as well as State and Federal regulations regarding 
administrative sites. The site has been developed over the past 30 
years and currently has four permanent buildings, several parking 
areas, several sheds for equipment storage and open areas designated 
for a variety of vehicle and equipment storage.
    Recent review indicates the need for a Master Development Plan to 
guide future development of the site. Preliminary analysis found that 
the presence of Utah prairie dogs (a Threatened species) on the site 
warranted an environmental impact statement of the new Master 
Development Plan.
    The Proposed Action is a Master Development Plan (MDP) for the 
existing 14-acre administrative site. The MDP will detail planned 
facilities, other development and uses for the site into the 
foreseeable future.
    Existing facilities include an Interagency Fire Center, Fire Cache, 
Old Fire Center/Future Building Pad and Fire Engine Building.
    New facilities to be constructed include additions to the 
Interagency Fire Center, five new buildings (engine building, vehicle 
wash, HAZMAT storage, maintenance shop and equipment building.
    Part of the site will be hardened for outside storage for ATV's, 
equipment, and supplies. Six large parking lots will also be developed.
    Possible Alternatives: Two or more alternatives will be considered 
in the analysis. No action. Under this alternative, the existing 
administrative site will remain with no further development. This 
alternative will be fully evaluated and described.
    Proposed Action (as described above).
    Additional Alternatives--Additional alternatives may be developed 
in response to issues and resource conditions evaluated through the 
analysis.
    Responsible Official: The responsible official for this EIS and the 
Record of Decision is: Robert G. MacWhorter, Forest Supervisor, Dixie 
National Forest, 1789 Wedgewood Lane, Cedar City, Utah 84721; FAX: 
(435) 865-3791.
    Nature of Decision To Be Made: The Responsible Official will decide 
whether the proposed Master Development Plan would be adopted and the 
site developed accordingly.
    Scoping Process: Public participation was initiated through scoping 
in December, 2009. A scoping notice was sent to individuals and 
organizations who are potentially affected parties and those that have 
expressed interest in projects. Comments and issues were received in 
response to scoping.
    Scoping will continue. Public participation is especially important 
during scoping and review of the draft EIS. Individuals, organizations, 
Federal, State, and local agencies who are interested in or affected by 
the decision are invited to participate in the scoping process. This 
information will be used in the preparation of the draft EIS.
    Preliminary Issue. The following issue was identified through 
public scoping and internal resource analyses:
    The site has Utah prairie dog habitat and a colony of prairie dogs. 
This is a Threatened species listed under the Endangered Species Act. 
Consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have concluded 
that the prairie dog habitat will be adversely affected by the planned 
developments. Mitigation for the habitat loss will be developed during 
further consultation with USFWS.
    Comments Requested. Comments will continue to be received and 
considered throughout the analysis process. Comments received in 
response to this notice and through scoping, including names and 
addresses of those who comment, will be considered part of the public 
record of this proposed action and will be available for public 
inspection. 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. Persons requesting such confidentiality 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 environmental impact statement will be 
prepared for comment. The draft EIS is expected to be filed with the 
EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) and to be available for public 
review. At that time the EPA will publish a notice of availability of 
the draft EIS in the Federal Register. The comment period for the draft 
environmental impact statement will be forty-five days from the date 
the EPA's notice of availability appears in the Federal Register. 
Comments on the draft EIS should be as specific as possible and may 
address the adequacy of the statement or the merits of the alternatives 
discussed (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).
    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 review of the proposal so that it is 
meaningful and alerts an agency to the reviewers' position and 
contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519, 
553 (1978). Also, environmental objections that could have been 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 (9th Circuit, 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 the time it can meaningfully consider them and respond to 
them in the final environmental impact statement. Comments submitted 
anonymously will be accepted and considered; however, those who submit 
anonymous comments will not have standing to appeal the subsequent 
decision under 36 CFR Parts 215. To assist the Forest Service in 
identifying and considering issues and concerns about 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 statement or the merits of the alternatives 
formulated and

[[Page 6627]]

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 
substantive 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. The Responsible Official will 
document the decision and rationale for the decision in a Record of 
Decision. The final EIS is scheduled for completion in September, 2010. 
The decision will be subject to review under Forest Service Appeal 
Regulations.

    Dated: January 29, 2010.
Robert G. MacWhorter,
Forest Supervisor, Dixie National Forest.
[FR Doc. 2010-2516 Filed 2-9-10; 8:45 am]
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