[Federal Register: May 3, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 86)]
[Notices]
[Page 22392-22393]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr03my02-18]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Manti-La Sal National Forest; State of Utah, State Institutional
Trust Lands Administration Access Route on East Mountain, Emery County,
UT; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.
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SUMMARY: The Forest Service (FS) will prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) to disclose the impacts of authorizing an access route
across National Forest System Lands to the State of Utah State
Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) inholdings in Emery
County, Utah.
Agency Decision
The Regional Forester, Intermountain Region, must decide whether or
not to authorize access to SITLA inholdings and what Terms and
Conditions to require for resource protection.
DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received
within 30 days from the date of publication of this Notice of Intent
(NOI) in the Federal Register. The Draft Environmental Impact Statement
(DEIS) is expected by May 2003, and the Final Environmental Impact
Statement (FEIS) is expected by February 2004.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Elaine J. Zieroth, Forest
Supervisor, Manti-La Sal National Forest, 599 West Price River Drive,
Price, Utah, 84501, ATTN: Leland Matheson.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Aaron Howe, Mineral and Lands Staff
Officer, Manti-La Sal National Forest 599 West Price River Drive,
Price, Utah, 84501.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Forest Service will prepare an EIS to
decide whether to authorize SITLA to construct and reconstruct an
access route across National Forest System Lands, for management
purposes including timber removal, on their inholdings on East
Mountain. A segment of the access route would traverse portions of the
East Mountain Inventoried Roadless Area.
The SITLA inholdings consist of two sections: Section 36, T15S,
R6E, (about
[[Page 22393]]
634 acres) and Section 2, T16S, R6E (about 987 acres). Provisions of
the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) of 1980,
section 1323(a)(16 U.S.C. 3210) provides that the owners of non-Federal
land within the National Forest System shall be provided adequate
access to their land. Regulations implementing section 1323(a) are set
forth in Title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, part 251, subpart D--
Access to Non-Federal Lands. The Forest Service Policy is further
explained in the Forest Service Manual (FSM) 5400 and 2700. Access must
comply with other laws and regulations such as the Threatened and
Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act, Historic Preservation Act, and
the National Environmental Protection Act.
Purpose and Need for Action
The purpose and need for this action is to provide an adequate
access route across National Forest System Lands to SITLA inholdings
consistent with applicable laws, regulations, and Forest Service
Policy.
Proposed Action
The Forest Service proposes to authorize SITLA permanent occupancy
and use of National Forest System Lands along the proposed access
location subject to terms and conditions.
Responsible Official
The Responsible Official for the Record of Decision is Jack G.
Troyer, Regional Forester, Intermountain Region, 324 25th Street,
Ogden, Utah 84401.
Scoping Process
This Notice of Intent initiates the scoping process which guides
the development of the EIS. Scoping will be by Newspaper Legal Notice,
mailings to interested parties and Quarterly Schedule of Proposed
Actions. No public meetings are planned.
Preliminary Issues
Preliminary issues have been identified as new road construction in
the East Mountain Inventoried Roadless Area and unstable steep slopes.
Comment Requested
If you choose to participate, your comments should be in writing
and as specific as possible. All comments will be considered. Please
note: comments submitted, as well as the names and addresses of those
who comment, are considered part of the public record and will be
released if requested under the Freedom of Information Act. If you
provide a comment, you will remain on our mailing list for this
project. If you do not comment but want to remain on the mailing list,
please notify us. Those who do not comment or otherwise notify us will
be dropped from the mailing list for this project. The estimated dates
for filing the draft EIS is May 2003 and the FEIS is February 2004.
Early Notice of Importance of Public Participation in Subsequent
Environmental Review
A DEIS will be prepared for comment. The comment period on the DEIS
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
DEIS 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 DEIS stage but that are not raised until after
completion of the FEIS 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 FEIS.
To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues
and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the DEIS 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 DEIS 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.
Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 1508.22; Forest Service Handbook
1909.15, Section 21.
Dated: April 19, 2002.
Elaine J. Zieroth,
Forest Supervisor, Intermountain Region.
[FR Doc. 02-10465 Filed 5-2-02; 8:45 am]
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