Plumas National Forest, Feather River Ranger District, California, Slapjack Project, 54707-54709 [05-17897]
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Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 179 / Friday, September 16, 2005 / Notices
their satisfaction with various aspects of
the locations they visited.
Forest Service or contractor personnel
will interview visitors as they exit
National Forest System lands at a
stratified random sample of recreational
sites and forest access points. Surveys
will be conducted on about one-fifth of
the National Forests each year, so that
complete coverage of agency lands
occurs over a five-year cycle. Results of
this study will be published in agency
reports and various research journals.
Data gathered in this collection is not
available from other sources.
Estimate of Annual Burden: 10
minutes.
Type of Respondents: People who
visit National Forest System lands.
Estimated Annual Number of
Respondents: 66,000.
Estimated Annual Number of
Responses per Respondent: 1.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on
Respondents: 11,000 hours.
Comment is invited on: (1) Whether
this collection of information is
necessary for the stated purposes and
the proper performance of the functions
of the agency, including whether the
information will have practical or
scientific utility; (2) the accuracy of the
agency’s estimate of the burden of the
collection of information, including the
validity of the methodology and
assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance
the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and (4)
ways to minimize the burden of the
collection of information on
respondents, including the use of
automated, electronic, mechanical, or
other technological collection
techniques or other forms of information
technology.
All comments received in response to
this notice, including names and
addresses when provided, will be a
matter of public record. Comments will
be summarized and included in the
request for Office of Management and
Budget approval.
Dated: September 2, 2005.
Frederick R. Norbury,
Associate Deputy Chief, National Forest
System.
[FR Doc. 05–18385 Filed 9–15–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–11–P
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Plumas National Forest, Feather River
Ranger District, California, Slapjack
Project
AGENCY:
Forest Service, USDA.
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Notice to intent to prepare an
environmental impact statement.
ACTION:
SUMMARY: The USDA Forest Service will
prepare an environmental impact
statement to disclose the environmental
effects from construction of defensible
fuel profile zones (DFPZs); harvest and
reforestation of timber stands; watersted
rehabilitation; control of noxious weeds;
construction of temporary roads and
reconstruction of specified roads;
decommissioning of roads; road access
restrictions, and underburning forest
fuels and debris in the Slapjack project
area.
DATES: Comments concerning the scope
of the analysis must be received within
30 days of the publication of this notice
in the Federal Register. The draft
environmental impact statement is
expected by January 2006, and the final
environmental impact statement is
expected by April 2006.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments
˜
concerning this notice to James M. Pena,
Forest Supervisor, Plumas National
Forest, P.O. Box 11500, 159 Lawrence
Street, Quincy, CA 95971. Comments
may be (1) mailed to the Responsible
Official; (2) hand-delivered between the
hours of 8 a.m.–4:30 p.m., Monday
through Friday, excluding holidays; (3)
faxed to (530) 283–7746; or (4)
electronically mailed to: commentspacificsouthwestplumas@fs.fed.us.
Comments submitted electronically
must be in Rich Text Format (.rtf).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Susan Joyce, Project Leader, Feather
River Ranger District, 875 Mitchell
Avenue, Oroville, CA 95965, or call
(530) 534–6500.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Project Location
The Slapjack project area is located
approximately 19 air miles east of
Oroville, California, near the
communities of Challenge, Brownsville,
Dobbins, Forbestown, Feather Falls,
Woodleaf, Clipper Mills, and Strawberry
Valley. The project area consists of
approximately 27,000 acres of public
and private land and is located within
Butte, Yuba, and Plumas Counties,
California. It is generally situated
between Lake Oroville to Dobbins to the
west, the North Yuba River to Wambo
Bar on the East, and from Barton Hill to
the town of Feather Falls to the North.
The area ranges in elevation from
approximately 1,300 to 3,800 feet above
mean sea level.
The legal description of the project
area is: Township (T) 20N, Range (R) 6E,
portions of Sections 15, 23, 25, 26, and
34; T20N, R8E, portions of Section 32;
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54707
T19N, R6E, portions of Sections 2–5, 9,
11 and 14; T19N, R7E, portions of
Sections 1, 8, 11–13, 16–21 and 27–34;
T19N, R8E, portions of Sections 4, 5,
and 6; T18N, R7E, portions of Sections
2, 3, 12, 14, 22, 23, 26, and 34, Mount
Diablo Base and Meridian.
Proposed Action
The Forest Service proposes to
construct approximately 18 miles of
DFPZs with a total treatment area of
approximately 4,800 acres. A DFPZ is a
strategically located strip of land
approximately 1⁄4 mile in width on
which fuels, both living and dead, have
been modified in order to reduce the
potential for sustained crown fire and to
allow fire suppression personnel a safer
location from which to take action
against a wildfire. Proposed DFPZs are
located primarily on ridges. Due to
dense brush in the area, use of
herbicides is proposed to maintain the
effectiveness of the DFPZs. Use of
mechanical ground based equipment is
proposed on 1,099 acres in DFPZs for
masticating woody shrubs and trees
under 10 inches in diameter at breast
height. The healthiest, largest, and
tallest conifers would be left at a
spacing of 18 to 25 feet, depending on
size of the remaining trees. Mastication
would break up fuel continuity in these
stands.
The Forest Service also proposes to
harvest approximately 12 million board
feet of timber through application of
group selection and individual tree
selection harvest methods. Group
selection timber harvest would be
conducted on approximately 240 acres
within and near the DFPZ treatment
units. Group selection involves harvest
of trees up to 30-inches in diameter
from small (1⁄2 to 2 acres) groups. The
240 acres would be harvested from a
total area of about 2,291 acres. Over
time, this would create an uneven-aged
(all-aged) forests made up of a
patchwork of small groups of same-aged
trees. Individual tree selection harvest
would be conducted on 148 acres to
improve forest health and favor fire
resilient tree species.
Use of existing and temporary roads
would be needed to access timber and
DFPZ treatment areas. An estimated 26
miles of existing road would be
reconstructed with 2 additional miles of
road resurfacing. An additional 26 miles
of road, no longer in use or needed,
would be decommissioned or closed by
various methods, such as removal of
culverts, ripping and seeding,
recountouring, and installing barriers.
Use of herbicides to control the
spread of noxious weeds is proposed on
10 to 15 acres. Aquatic and riparian
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54708
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 179 / Friday, September 16, 2005 / Notices
restoration projects include removal of
five fish barriers, 1,000 feet of stream
bank stabilization, and 15 acres of
meadow restoration.
Underburning is proposed on 841
acres. An underburn is a prescribed
burn under an existing canopy of trees
designed to reduce excessive live and
dead vegetation. Firelines would be
constructed and burning would be
initiated based on prescribed burn plans
and on ‘‘burn days’’ designated by the
State Air Quality Control Board.
Purpose and Need
The purposes of the project are: (1) To
reduce the wildfire threat to
communities located in the wildlandurban interface by creating a strategic
Defensible Fuel Profile Zone (DFPZ)
that provides fire suppression personnel
control points for fireline construction
and access; (2) to create all-aged, multistory, fire resilient forest stands;
promote ecological health; and increase
the number of seedling and saplingsized stands to better match estimated
pre-European settlement conditions for
the various seral (successional) stages.
Fire resilient species include ponderosa
pine, Douglas-fir, black oak, and sugar
pine; (3) to contribute to the economic
stability of rural communities by
providing an adequate timber supply;
(4) to implement restoration projects to
promote healthy aquatic and riparian
ecosystems; and (5) To control the
spread of non-native, invasive plants
within forest communities in order to
maintain native plant diversity, natural
communities, and maintain the
effectiveness of DFPZs.
Preliminary Issues
The following preliminary issues have
been identified for this proposal: Use of
herbicides for control of noxious weeds
and DFPZ maintenance, timber harvest
within watersheds approaching or over
the threshold of concern, and DFPZ
construction costs. Additional issues
may be identified during the scoping
process.
Responsible Official
˜
James M. Pena, Forest Supervisor,
P.O. Box 11500, 159Lawrence Street,
Quincy, CA 95971, is the Responsible
Official.
Nature of Decision To Be Made
The Responsible Official will decide
whether to implement this proposal, an
alternative design that moves the area
towards the desired condition, or not to
implement any project at this time.
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15:04 Sep 15, 2005
Jkt 205001
Scoping Process
Public questions and comments
regarding this proposal are an integral
part of this environmental analysis
process. Comments will be used to
identify issues and develop alternatives
to the proposed action. To assist the
Forest Service in identifying and
considering issues and concerns on the
proposed action, comments should be as
specific as possible.
Information about the proposed action
will be mailed to adjacent landowners,
as well as to those people and
organizations that have indicated a
specific interest in the project, to Native
American entities, and federal, state and
local agencies. The public will be
notified of any meetings regarding this
proposal by mailings and press releases
sent to the local newspaper and media.
There are no meetings planned at this
time.
Public involvement was an integral
part of the proposed action development
as well. Forest Service personnel began
working with local tribes, fire safe
councils, Butte and Yuba County
officials, State Congressional aides,
South Feather Water and Power, the
Quincy Library Group, and California
Department of Forestry and Fire
Protection in 2002–2003. The
collaborators on the Slapjack Project,
known collectively as the Eastern Butte/
Yuba Border group (EBYB), worked to
develop a series of fuel reduction
treatments on National Forest System
lands that extend and connect with fuel
treatments on private lands, including
those owned by industrial timber
companies. In the years since
collaboration began, Forest Service
personnel have continued to meet with
members of the Butte and Yuba Fire
Safe Councils, local residents, and
industrial timberland owners to refine
the Slapjack project proposal.
Comment Requested
This notice of intent initiates the
scoping process which guides the
development of the environmental
impact statement. The public is
encouraged to take part in the process
and is encouraged to visit with Forest
Service officials at any time during the
analysis and prior to the decision. The
Forest Service will be seeking
information, comments, and assistance
from Federal, State, and local agencies
and other individuals or organizations
that may be interested in, or affected by,
the proposed vegetation management
activities.
Early Notice of Importance of Public
Participation in Subsequent
Environmental Review: A draft
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environmental impact statement will be
prepared for comment. 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 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. 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
fifty-five 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. 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, including the
names and addresses of those who
comment, will be considered part of the
public record on this proposal and will
be available for public inspection.
(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 1508.22;
Forest Service Handbook 1909.15, Section
21)
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Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 179 / Friday, September 16, 2005 / Notices
Dated: September 2, 2005.
Robert G. MacWhorter,
Acting Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 05–17897 Filed 9–15–05; 8:45 am]
DATES:
Procurement List; Proposed Additions
3. There are no known regulatory
alternatives which would accomplish
the objectives of the Javits-WagnerO’Day Act (41 U.S.C. 46–48c) in
connection with the product and
services proposed for addition to the
Procurement List.
Comments on this certification are
invited. Commenters should identify the
statement(s) underlying the certification
on which they are providing additional
information.
AGENCY:
Committee for Purchase From
People Who Are Blind Or Severely
Disabled.
ACTION: Proposed additions to
Procurement List.
End of Certification
The following product and services
are proposed for addition to
Procurement List for production by the
nonprofit agencies listed:
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
SUMMARY: The Committee is proposing
to add to the Procurement List a product
and services to be furnished by
nonprofit agencies employing persons
who are blind or have other severe
disabilities.
Comments must be received on or
before: October 16, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Committee for Purchase
From People Who Are Blind or Severely
Disabled, Jefferson Plaza 2, Suite 10800,
1421 Jefferson Davis Highway,
Arlington, Virginia 22202–3259.
Product
Parts Kit, Hydraulic Transmission.
NSN: 2520–01–398–4589—Parts Kit,
Hydraulic Transmission.
NPA: Goodwill Industries—Knoxville, Inc.,
Knoxville, Tennessee.
Contracting Activity: Defense Supply Center
Columbus, Columbus, Ohio.
54709
BILLING CODE 3410–11–M
COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM
PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR
SEVERELY DISABLED
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OR TO SUBMIT
COMMENTS CONTACT: Sheryl D. Kennerly,
Telephone: (703) 603–7740, Fax: (703)
603–0655, or e-mail
SKennerly@jwod.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
notice is published pursuant to 41 U.S.C
47(a)(2) and 41 CFR 51–2.3. Its purpose
is to provide interested persons an
opportunity to submit comments on the
proposed actions.
If the Committee approves the
proposed additions, the entities of the
Federal Government identified in the
notice for each product or service will
be required to procure the products and
services listed below from nonprofit
agencies employing persons who are
blind or have other severe disabilities.
Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification
I certify that the following action will
not have a significant impact on a
substantial number of small entities.
The major factors considered for this
certification were:
1. If approved, the action will not
result in any additional reporting,
recordkeeping or other compliance
requirements for small entities other
than the small organizations that will
furnish the product and services to the
Government.
2. If approved, the action will result
in authorizing small entities to furnish
the product and services to the
Government.
VerDate Aug<31>2005
15:04 Sep 15, 2005
Jkt 205001
Services
Service Type/Location: Custodial Services;
Law Enforcement Center, FR 19, MP2
South of San Miguel, Sells, Arizona.
NPA: J.P. Industries, Inc., Tucson, Arizona.
Contracting Activity: Department of
Homeland Security, Washington, DC.
Service Type/Location: Custodial Services;
Somersworth U.S. Army Reserve Center,
Route 108, Somersworth, New
Hampshire.
NPA: Northern New England Employment
Services, Portland, Maine.
Contracting Activity: Devens Reserve Forces
Training Area, Devens, Massachusetts.
Service Type/Location: Custodial Services;
U.S. Army Reserve Center and
Maintenance Shop, 7400 S. Pulaski
Road, Chicago, Illinois.
NPA: Jewish Vocational Service and
Employment Center, Chicago, Illinois.
Contracting Activity: 88th Regional Support
Command, Fort Snelling, Minnesota.
Sheryl D. Kennerly,
Director, Information Management.
[FR Doc. E5–5087 Filed 9–15–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6353–01–P
Effective October 16, 2005.
Committee for Purchase
From People Who Are Blind or Severely
Disabled, Jefferson Plaza 2, Suite 10800,
1421 Jefferson Davis Highway,
Arlington, Virginia, 22202–3259.
ADDRESSES:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OR TO SUBMIT
COMMENTS CONTACT: Sheryl D. Kennerly,
Telephone: (703) 603–7740, Fax: (703)
603–0655, or e-mail
SKennerly@jwod.gov.
On July 8,
2005, the Committee for Purchase From
People Who Are Blind or Severely
Disabled published notice (70 FR 39484)
of proposed additions to the
Procurement List.
After consideration of the material
presented to it concerning capability of
qualified nonprofit agencies to provide
the service and impact of the addition
on the current or most recent
contractors, the Committee has
determined that the service listed below
is suitable for procurement by the
Federal Government under 41 U.S.C.
46–48c and 41 CFR 51–2.4.
Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification
I certify that the following action will
not have a significant impact on a
substantial number of small entities.
The major factors considered for this
certification were:
1. The action will not result in any
additional reporting, recordkeeping or
other compliance requirements for small
entities other than the small
organizations that will furnish the
service to the Government.
2. The action will result in
authorizing small entities to furnish the
service to the Government.
3. There are no known regulatory
alternatives which would accomplish
the objectives of the Javits-WagnerO’Day Act (41 U.S.C. 46–48c) in
connection with the service proposed
for addition to the Procurement List.
COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM
PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR
SEVERELY DISABLED
End of Certification
Procurement List; Addition
Service
Committee for Purchase From
People Who Are Blind Or Severely
Disabled.
ACTION: Addition to Procurement List.
Service Type/Location: Custodial Services;
U.S. Post Office—Brooklyn, 271 Cadman
Plaza East, Brooklyn, New York.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: This action adds to the
Procurement List a service to be
furnished by nonprofit agencies
employing persons who are blind or
have other severe disabilities.
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Accordingly, the following services
are added to the Procurement List:
NPA: NYSARC, Inc., NYC Chapter, New
York, New York.
Contracting Activity: GSA, Property
Management Center, New York, New
York.
This action does not affect current
contracts awarded prior to the effective date
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 179 (Friday, September 16, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54707-54709]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-17897]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Plumas National Forest, Feather River Ranger District,
California, Slapjack Project
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice to intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The USDA Forest Service will prepare an environmental impact
statement to disclose the environmental effects from construction of
defensible fuel profile zones (DFPZs); harvest and reforestation of
timber stands; watersted rehabilitation; control of noxious weeds;
construction of temporary roads and reconstruction of specified roads;
decommissioning of roads; road access restrictions, and underburning
forest fuels and debris in the Slapjack project area.
DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received
within 30 days of the publication of this notice in the Federal
Register. The draft environmental impact statement is expected by
January 2006, and the final environmental impact statement is expected
by April 2006.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments concerning this notice to James M.
Pe[ntilde]a, Forest Supervisor, Plumas National Forest, P.O. Box 11500,
159 Lawrence Street, Quincy, CA 95971. Comments may be (1) mailed to
the Responsible Official; (2) hand-delivered between the hours of 8
a.m.-4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays; (3) faxed to
(530) 283-7746; or (4) electronically mailed to: comments-
pacificsouthwestplumas@fs.fed.us. Comments submitted electronically
must be in Rich Text Format (.rtf).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Susan Joyce, Project Leader, Feather
River Ranger District, 875 Mitchell Avenue, Oroville, CA 95965, or call
(530) 534-6500.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Project Location
The Slapjack project area is located approximately 19 air miles
east of Oroville, California, near the communities of Challenge,
Brownsville, Dobbins, Forbestown, Feather Falls, Woodleaf, Clipper
Mills, and Strawberry Valley. The project area consists of
approximately 27,000 acres of public and private land and is located
within Butte, Yuba, and Plumas Counties, California. It is generally
situated between Lake Oroville to Dobbins to the west, the North Yuba
River to Wambo Bar on the East, and from Barton Hill to the town of
Feather Falls to the North. The area ranges in elevation from
approximately 1,300 to 3,800 feet above mean sea level.
The legal description of the project area is: Township (T) 20N,
Range (R) 6E, portions of Sections 15, 23, 25, 26, and 34; T20N, R8E,
portions of Section 32; T19N, R6E, portions of Sections 2-5, 9, 11 and
14; T19N, R7E, portions of Sections 1, 8, 11-13, 16-21 and 27-34; T19N,
R8E, portions of Sections 4, 5, and 6; T18N, R7E, portions of Sections
2, 3, 12, 14, 22, 23, 26, and 34, Mount Diablo Base and Meridian.
Proposed Action
The Forest Service proposes to construct approximately 18 miles of
DFPZs with a total treatment area of approximately 4,800 acres. A DFPZ
is a strategically located strip of land approximately \1/4\ mile in
width on which fuels, both living and dead, have been modified in order
to reduce the potential for sustained crown fire and to allow fire
suppression personnel a safer location from which to take action
against a wildfire. Proposed DFPZs are located primarily on ridges. Due
to dense brush in the area, use of herbicides is proposed to maintain
the effectiveness of the DFPZs. Use of mechanical ground based
equipment is proposed on 1,099 acres in DFPZs for masticating woody
shrubs and trees under 10 inches in diameter at breast height. The
healthiest, largest, and tallest conifers would be left at a spacing of
18 to 25 feet, depending on size of the remaining trees. Mastication
would break up fuel continuity in these stands.
The Forest Service also proposes to harvest approximately 12
million board feet of timber through application of group selection and
individual tree selection harvest methods. Group selection timber
harvest would be conducted on approximately 240 acres within and near
the DFPZ treatment units. Group selection involves harvest of trees up
to 30-inches in diameter from small (\1/2\ to 2 acres) groups. The 240
acres would be harvested from a total area of about 2,291 acres. Over
time, this would create an uneven-aged (all-aged) forests made up of a
patchwork of small groups of same-aged trees. Individual tree selection
harvest would be conducted on 148 acres to improve forest health and
favor fire resilient tree species.
Use of existing and temporary roads would be needed to access
timber and DFPZ treatment areas. An estimated 26 miles of existing road
would be reconstructed with 2 additional miles of road resurfacing. An
additional 26 miles of road, no longer in use or needed, would be
decommissioned or closed by various methods, such as removal of
culverts, ripping and seeding, recountouring, and installing barriers.
Use of herbicides to control the spread of noxious weeds is
proposed on 10 to 15 acres. Aquatic and riparian
[[Page 54708]]
restoration projects include removal of five fish barriers, 1,000 feet
of stream bank stabilization, and 15 acres of meadow restoration.
Underburning is proposed on 841 acres. An underburn is a prescribed
burn under an existing canopy of trees designed to reduce excessive
live and dead vegetation. Firelines would be constructed and burning
would be initiated based on prescribed burn plans and on ``burn days''
designated by the State Air Quality Control Board.
Purpose and Need
The purposes of the project are: (1) To reduce the wildfire threat
to communities located in the wildland-urban interface by creating a
strategic Defensible Fuel Profile Zone (DFPZ) that provides fire
suppression personnel control points for fireline construction and
access; (2) to create all-aged, multi-story, fire resilient forest
stands; promote ecological health; and increase the number of seedling
and sapling-sized stands to better match estimated pre-European
settlement conditions for the various seral (successional) stages. Fire
resilient species include ponderosa pine, Douglas-fir, black oak, and
sugar pine; (3) to contribute to the economic stability of rural
communities by providing an adequate timber supply; (4) to implement
restoration projects to promote healthy aquatic and riparian
ecosystems; and (5) To control the spread of non-native, invasive
plants within forest communities in order to maintain native plant
diversity, natural communities, and maintain the effectiveness of
DFPZs.
Preliminary Issues
The following preliminary issues have been identified for this
proposal: Use of herbicides for control of noxious weeds and DFPZ
maintenance, timber harvest within watersheds approaching or over the
threshold of concern, and DFPZ construction costs. Additional issues
may be identified during the scoping process.
Responsible Official
James M. Pe[ntilde]a, Forest Supervisor, P.O. Box 11500,
159Lawrence Street, Quincy, CA 95971, is the Responsible Official.
Nature of Decision To Be Made
The Responsible Official will decide whether to implement this
proposal, an alternative design that moves the area towards the desired
condition, or not to implement any project at this time.
Scoping Process
Public questions and comments regarding this proposal are an
integral part of this environmental analysis process. Comments will be
used to identify issues and develop alternatives to the proposed
action. To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering
issues and concerns on the proposed action, comments should be as
specific as possible.
Information about the proposed action will be mailed to adjacent
landowners, as well as to those people and organizations that have
indicated a specific interest in the project, to Native American
entities, and federal, state and local agencies. The public will be
notified of any meetings regarding this proposal by mailings and press
releases sent to the local newspaper and media. There are no meetings
planned at this time.
Public involvement was an integral part of the proposed action
development as well. Forest Service personnel began working with local
tribes, fire safe councils, Butte and Yuba County officials, State
Congressional aides, South Feather Water and Power, the Quincy Library
Group, and California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection in
2002-2003. The collaborators on the Slapjack Project, known
collectively as the Eastern Butte/Yuba Border group (EBYB), worked to
develop a series of fuel reduction treatments on National Forest System
lands that extend and connect with fuel treatments on private lands,
including those owned by industrial timber companies. In the years
since collaboration began, Forest Service personnel have continued to
meet with members of the Butte and Yuba Fire Safe Councils, local
residents, and industrial timberland owners to refine the Slapjack
project proposal.
Comment Requested
This notice of intent initiates the scoping process which guides
the development of the environmental impact statement. The public is
encouraged to take part in the process and is encouraged to visit with
Forest Service officials at any time during the analysis and prior to
the decision. The Forest Service will be seeking information, comments,
and assistance from Federal, State, and local agencies and other
individuals or organizations that may be interested in, or affected by,
the proposed vegetation management activities.
Early Notice of Importance of Public Participation in Subsequent
Environmental Review: A draft environmental impact statement will be
prepared for comment. 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
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. 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 fifty-five 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. 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, including the names and addresses of those who
comment, will be considered part of the public record on this proposal
and will be available for public inspection.
(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 1508.22; Forest Service Handbook
1909.15, Section 21)
[[Page 54709]]
Dated: September 2, 2005.
Robert G. MacWhorter,
Acting Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 05-17897 Filed 9-15-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M
