[Federal Register: December 3, 2001 (Volume 66, Number 232)]
[Notices]
[Page 60180-60181]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr03de01-21]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
North End Sheep Allotment Range Analysis, Caribou-Targhee
National Forest, Caribou and Bonneville Counties, ID
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.
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SUMMARY: The Soda Springs Ranger District, Caribou-Targhee National
Forest, will be preparing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to
analyze the effects to grazing on several sheep allotments. Allotment
Management Plans for the following sheep allotments; Bald Mountain,
Barnes Creek, Black Canyon, Bridge Creek, Comb Creek, Deep Creek, Eagle
Creek-Morgan Meadow, Hell Creek, Keenan City, Little Elk Mountain,
Miners Delight, Pole Creek, Spring Creek, Squaw Creek, Taylor Creek,
West Jensen and Wolverine-Kirk will be updated based on the analysis.
All of these allotments are located on the North end of the Caribou
Range in Townships 2-5 South, Ranges 43-46 East, Boise Meridian, within
Caribou and Bonneville Counties. An EIS will be prepared to display the
effects of sheep grazing on these allotments. Public comments will be
used to develop issues and alternative management systems. The purpose
for this project is to assess current conditions on the allotments and
ensure that riparian and upland vegetation are meeting Forest Plan
objectives and other applicable laws and regulations. The EIS will
outline standards and guidelines for livestock management, which will
be used to revise Allotment Management Plans for each allotment. The
EIS and subsequent revision of the Allotment Management Plans will
bring these allotments into compliance with Public Law 104, the Caribou
National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan, and other applicable
laws and regulations. The decision to be made by the District Ranger is
what changes need to be made for future livestock management within the
boundaries of these allotments.
DATES: Written comments concerning the analysis should be received
within 30 days of the date of publication of this notice in the Federal
Register.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Soda Springs Ranger District, Attn:
David Whittekiend, 421 West 2nd South, Soda Springs, Idaho 83276. The
responsible official for this decision is David Whittekiend, District
Ranger.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions concerning the proposed
action and EIS should be directed to Derek Hinckley, Range Management
Specialist, at (208) 547-4356.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The EIS and subsequent revision of the
Allotment Management Plans will bring these allotments into compliance
with Public Law 104, the Caribou National Forest Land and Resource
Management Plan, and other applicable laws and regulations.
Initial scoping and issue development identified the following
tentative issues: riparian/fisheries, wildlife, vegetation and
watershed/soils.
The Forest Service has previously scoped this project in February
of 2001. If you have already commented, your comments are part of the
record and will be considered in determining issues, and alternatives.
The Forest Service invites written comments and suggestions on the
issues related to the proposal and the area being analyzed. Information
received will be used in preparation of the Draft EIS and Final EIS.
For most effective use, comments should be submitted to the Forest
Service within 30 days from the date of publication of this Notice in
the Federal Register.
Agency representatives and other interested people are invited to
visit with Forest Service officials at any time during the EIS process.
Two specific time periods are identified for the receipt of formal
comments on the analysis. The two comment periods are, (1) during the
scoping process, the next 30 days following publication of this Notice
in the Federal Register, and (2) during the formal review period of the
Draft EIS.
The Draft EIS is estimated to be filed with the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) and available for public review in August of
2002. At that time,
[[Page 60181]]
the EPA will publish an availability notice of the Draft EIS in the
Federal Register.
The Forest Service estimates the Draft EIS will be filed within 10
months of this Notice of Intent, approximately August of 2002. The
Final EIS will be filed within 6 months of that date, approximately
December of 2002.
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, 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 reviewer's position and
intentions.
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. Court 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 environmental impact 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 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.
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 10 days.
Dated: November 26, 2001.
David C. Whittekiend,
Soda Springs Ranger District.
[FR Doc. 01-29836 Filed 11-30-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M
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