[Federal Register: July 22, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 140)]
[Notices]
[Page 47761-47762]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr22jy02-27]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Winter Motorized Recreation Forest Plan Amendment, Flathead
National Forest, Flathead, Lake Missoula, Lincoln and Sanders Counties,
MT
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice; intent to prepare environmental impact statement.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Forest Service will prepare an environmental impact
statement (EIS) to amend the Flathead National Forest Land and Resource
Management Plan (hereafter referred to as Forest Plan) management
direction regarding winter snowmobile use. The amendment covers the
entire Flathead National Forest.
DATES: Comments concerning the proposed action should be received in
writing on or before 30 days after publication of this notice in the
Federal Register. The draft EIS is expected to be filed with the
Environmental Protection Agency and made available for public review in
October 2002. No date has yet been determined for filing the final EIS.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Terry Chute, Planning Staff
Officer, 1935 3rd Avenue East, Kalispell, Montana 59901 or call (406)
758-5243.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Terry Chute, Planning Staff Officer,
1935 3rd Avenue East, Kalispell, Montana 59901 or call (406) 758-5243.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The existing Forest Plan does not adequately
address winter-motorized access. In response to administrative appeals
of the Forest Plan, the Associate Chief of the Forest Service directed
the Regional
[[Page 47762]]
Forester ``to clarify the LRMP management direction to eliminate any
confusion about motorized use in MA-2A areas.'' For various reasons
that clarification did not occur.
In response to a 1999 lawsuit, a federal Magistrate recommended
that the Flathead National Forest be ordered to close all Management
Area (MA) 2A areas to motorized use. These MA 2A areas include many
popular snowmobile play areas, as well as groomed snowmobile trails.
The parties to the lawsuit agreed to a settlement that included
preparation of a Forest Plan amendment in an open public forum to
develop Forest-wide winter motorized recreation direction.
The Purpose and Need for this amendment is to:
1. Clarify Forest Plan management direction to eliminate any
confusion about motorized use in MA-2A areas.
2. Meet the requirements of a settlement agreement resulting from a
lawsuit challenging the Flathead Forest Plan.
3. Determine long-term winter recreation management direction
related to motorized use.
The Proposed Action for the Winter Motorized Recreation Amendment
includes the following features:
A new Forest-wide standard would be added to the Forest
Plan that would incorporate a set of winter motorized recreation maps
into the Forest Plan, which would provide direction on where winter
motorized use may and may not occur.
Forest-wide and management area direction would be
reviewed and clarified as needed to provide clear direction regarding
winter motorized access.
The Forest Service believes it is important to give reviewers
notice at this early stage 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
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 statement stage but that are not raised
until after completion of the final environmental impact statement may
be waived or dismissed by the courts. 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 of the comment period so
that substantive comments and objections are made available to the
Forest Service at a time when it can meaningfully consider and respond
to them.
To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues
and concerns on the proposed action, comments should be as specific as
possible.
The Responsible Official is the Forest Supervisor of the Flathead
National Forest, 1935 3rd Avenue East, Kalispell, Montana 59901. The
Forest Supervisor will make a decision regarding this proposal
considering the comments and responses, environmental consequences
discussed in the final EIS, and applicable laws, regulations, and
policies, The decision and rationale for the decision will be
documented in a Record of Decision. That decision will be subject to
appeal under applicable Forest Service regulations.
Dated: July 15, 2002.
Cathy Barbouletos,
Forest Supervisor--Flathead National Forest.
[FR Doc. 02-18483 Filed 7-19-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : 2002/07/22 EST