Caribou-Targhee National Forest, ID, WY and UT, Caribou Oil and Gas Leasing EIS, 78130-78132 [06-9906]
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78130
Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 249 / Thursday, December 28, 2006 / Notices
diseases or tiny animals. We believe that
the pest risk assessment provides a
thorough analysis of risks presented,
and that those risks are fully addressed
by the baling technology and other
safeguards that will be required.
One commenter requested
information on the companies that have
expressed interest in sending municipal
solid waste (MSW) from Hawaii to
Roosevelt Regional Landfill. As noted
on page 2 of the pest risk assessment,
Pacific Rim Environmental Resources
and Hawaii Waste Systems have
proposed moving baled MSW from
Hawaii to a landfill in Washington
State. Another commenter asked who
initiated the request for an
environmental assessment and if these
assessments are done routinely by
APHIS. For this particular action,
APHIS does routinely prepare
environmental assessments. As
explained in the ‘‘Purpose and Need’’
section of the environmental
assessment, APHIS is reviewing two
requests to move MSW from Honolulu,
HI, to the State of Washington under
compliance agreements. APHIS must
complete an environmental assessment
to evaluate the potential impact on the
human environment prior to the
issuance of these compliance
agreements. The purpose of this review
is to determine whether the transport of
Hawaiian MSW under compliance
agreements would result in a significant
impact on the human environment.
One commenter asked what measures
would be taken to ensure that
unacceptable waste would be segregated
from baled waste. APHIS recommends a
series of mitigations in the pest risk
assessment that would ensure that MSW
is separated from prohibited materials
and processed and shipped in a way
that would prevent the introduction and
dissemination of plant pests. Any
companies interested in processing and
shipping MSW from Hawaii to the
mainland would have to enter into a
compliance agreement with APHIS and
the compliance agreement would spell
out all required safeguards. If any
company failed to observe the
conditions of the compliance agreement,
that company would no longer be
permitted to process and ship MSW.
Finally, one commenter stated that
APHIS should not approve the
proposals to ship plastic-baled MSW
from Hawaii to the State of Washington.
The commenter stated that any
decisions regarding the disposition of a
community’s MSW should be left to the
local government. To clarify, the pest
risk assessment and the environmental
assessment were conducted in order to
determine if the movement of MSW
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20:03 Dec 27, 2006
Jkt 211001
from Hawaii to the mainland of the
United States would present any risk of
introduction and dissemination of plant
pests or animal diseases or if that action
would have any negative impacts on the
environments. APHIS is satisfied with
the conclusions of those assessments.
Additionally, APHIS will enter into
compliance agreements with companies
that wish to move MSW from Hawaii to
the mainland United States to ensure
that the mitigations and protocols
described in our assessments are being
followed. It is entirely up to the local
jurisdiction as to whether or not the
community will avail itself of this
potential disposal option for its MSW.
The site-specific pest risk assessment
and environmental assessment and
finding of no significant impact may be
viewed on the Regulations.gov Web
site.1 Copies of the pest risk assessment
and environmental assessment and
finding of no significant impact are also
available for public inspection at USDA,
room 1141, South Building, 14th Street
and Independence Avenue SW.,
Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. and
4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday,
except holidays. Persons wishing to
inspect copies are requested to call
ahead on (202) 690–2817 to facilitate
entry into the reading room. In addition,
copies may be obtained by writing to the
individual listed under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT.
The environmental assessment and
finding of no significant impact have
been prepared in accordance with: (1)
The National Environmental Policy Act
of 1969 (NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C.
4321 et seq.), (2) regulations of the
Council on Environmental Quality for
implementing the procedural provisions
of NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500–1508), (3)
USDA regulations implementing NEPA
(7 CFR part 1), and (4) APHIS’ NEPA
Implementing Procedures (7 CFR part
372).
Done in Washington, DC, this 21st day of
December 2006.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant
Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. E6–22267 Filed 12–27–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–34–P
1 Go to https://www.regulations.gov, click on the
‘‘Advanced Search’’ tab and select ‘‘Docket Search.’’
In the Docket ID field, enter APHIS–2006–0172,
click ‘‘Submit,’’ then click on the Docket ID link in
the search results page. The pest risk assessment
and the environmental assessment and finding of
no significant impact will appear in the resulting
list of documents.
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Caribou-Targhee National Forest, ID,
WY and UT, Caribou Oil and Gas
Leasing EIS
Forest Service, USDA and
Bureau of Land Management, USDI.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an
environmental impact statement.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The Caribou-Targhee National
Forest gives notice of the intent to
prepare an environmental impact
statement (EIS) to document the
analysis and disclose the anticipated
environmental and human effects of oil
and gas leasing on the Caribou
administrative unit of the Forest and the
Curlew National Grassland in southeast
Idaho, with minor amounts of land in
northern Utah and western Wyoming.
The Federal Onshore Oil and Gas
Leasing Reform Act of 1987 (FOOGLRA)
requires the Forest Service to evaluate
National Forest System (NFS) lands for
potential oil and gas leasing. As the
agency responsible for lease issuance
and administration, the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) will participate as a
cooperating agency.
DATES: Comments concerning the scope
of the analysis should be received
within 45 days from the date of this
notice to be most helpful. The draft
environmental impact statement is
expected by November, 2007 and 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 final
environmental impact statement is
expected in April, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to
Steve Robison, Oil and Gas Team
Leader, Caribou-Targhee National
Forest, 1405 Hollipark Drive, Idaho
Falls, ID 83401. Electronic comments
can be submitted in rich text format
(.rtf), or Word (.doc) to commentsintermtn-caribou-targhee@fs.fed.us.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Lynn Ballard, Public Affairs Officer,
Caribou-Targhee National Forest, 1405
Hollipark Drive, Idaho Falls, ID 83401;
phone (208) 557–5765. For technical
information contact: Steve Robison, Oil
and Gas Team Leader, (208) 557–5799.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Purpose and Need for Action
FOOGLRA requires the Forest Service
to evaluate National Forest System
(NFS) lands that are legally open to
leasing for potential oil and gas leasing
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Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 249 / Thursday, December 28, 2006 / Notices
sroberts on PROD1PC70 with NOTICES
and development, in accordance with
the National Environmental Policy Act
of 1969. FOOGLRA also establishes
Forest Service consent authority for
leasing prior to the BLM offering NFS
lands for lease. Leasing on NFS lands is
done under the authority of the Mineral
Leasing Act of 1920 (MLA), as amended,
and implementing regulations at 36 CFR
228, subpart E, and 43 CFR 3100. The
MLA provides that all public lands are
open to oil and gas leasing unless they
have been closed by a specific land
order. The Caribou administrative unit
portion of the Caribou-Targhee NF and
the Curlew National Grassland (herein
referred to as ‘‘the Caribou’’) do not
have Land and Resource Management
Plan direction or decisions that
determine which NFS lands are
administratively available for oil/gas
leasing or the conditions (stipulations)
necessary to lease those specific lands.
Since the FOOGLRA was signed into
law, there has been little industry
interest in oil and gas leasing on the
Caribou, and no leases have been issued
in the past 15 years. The BLM Idaho
State Office has received Expressions of
Interest for leasing portions of the
Caribou for oil/gas.
The intent of the applicable laws and
regulations (see summary) is to lease
appropriate NFS lands and provide a
reasonable opportunity to explore for,
discover, and produce economic oil and
gas reserves from available Federal
lands, while meeting the requirements
of environmental laws and protecting
surface resources and interests not
compatible with such activities.
Proposed Action
The Forest Service and BLM propose
to conduct the analysis and decide
which NFS lands on the Caribou will be
made available for oil and gas leasing
and under what terms and conditions
(stipulations) these specific lands may
be leased. As part of the analysis, the
Forest Service will identify those areas
that would be administratively available
for leasing subject to the terms and
conditions of the standard oil and gas
lease form, and subject to constraints
that would require the use of lease
stipulations such as limiting surface
use, timing restrictions, and/or
prohibiting surface occupancy in
accordance with the Caribou Land and
Resource Management Plan (Caribou
Plan, revised 2003) and the Curlew
National Grassland Land and Resource
Management Plan (Curlew Plan, 2002).
To comply with the 2001 Roadless
Area Conservation Rule, no road
construction or reconstruction would be
allowed in Inventoried Roadless Areas
(see attached Inventoried Roadless Area
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Jkt 211001
map for a delineation of the IRAs on the
Caribou). Leasing will be considered in
some Roadless areas with no surface
occupancy stipulations. The analysis
will also: (1) Identify alternatives to the
proposed action; (2) project the type/
amount of post-leasing activity that is
reasonably foreseeable; and (3) analyze
the reasonable foreseeable impacts of
projected post-leasing activity [36 CFR
228.102(c)].
Possible Alternatives
All alternatives studied in detail must
fall within the scope of the purpose and
need for action and will generally tier to
and comply with the Caribou and
Curlew Plans. Law requires the
evaluation of a ‘‘no action alternative’’.
Under the No Action/No Lease
alternative, no NFS lands on the
Caribou would be made available for
oil/gas leasing at this time.
The other identified preliminary
alternative would allow leasing on some
NFS lands consistent with the Caribou
and Curlew Plans. This alternative
would be similar to the proposed action
but would consider road construction or
reconstruction in some of the
inventoried roadless areas in the event
of a future change in inventoried
roadless area direction. Other
alternatives which would involve
making some lands unavailable for
leasing and other lands available for
leasing with lease stipulations for the
protection of surface resources and
other interests may be developed based
on public input.
Lead and Cooperating Agencies
The Forest Service is the Lead
Agency. The Bureau of Land
Management will participate as a
Cooperating Agency.
Responsible Official
Larry Timchak, Forest Supervisor,
Caribou -Targhee National Forest, 1405
Hollipark Drive, Idaho Falls, ID 83401.
Idaho State Director, Bureau of Land
Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way,
Boise, ID 83709.
Wyoming State Director, Bureau of
Land Management, P.O. Box 1828,
Cheyenne, WY 82003.
Utah State Director, Bureau of Land
Management, P.O. Box 45155, Salt Lake
City, UT 84101.
Nature of Decision To Be Made
The Forest Supervisor, CaribouTarghee National Forest, will decide
which lands on the Caribou will be
administratively available for oil and
gas leasing, along with the associated
conditions or constraints for the
protection of non-mineral resources and
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78131
interests [36 CFR 228.102(d)]. The
Forest Supervisor will also authorize the
BLM to offer specific lands for lease,
subject to Forest Service identified
stipulations that will be attached to the
lease [36 CFR 228.102(e)]. The Forest
Supervisor will amend, if necessary, the
Caribou and Curlew Land and Resource
Management Plans.
The BLM is responsible for issuing
and administering oil and gas leases
under the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920,
as amended, and Federal regulations at
43 CFR 3101.7. The BLM State Director
(Idaho, Utah, and/or Wyoming) will
decide whether or not to offer for lease
specific lands, in their respective states,
that have been authorized by the
Caribou-Targhee Forest Supervisor for
leasing with the Forest Service
designated stipulations.
Scoping Process
The first formal opportunity to
comment on the Caribou Oil and Gas
Leasing analysis project is during the
scoping process [40 CFR 1501.7] which
begins with the issuance of this Notice
of Intent.
Mail comments to: Steve Robison, Oil
and Gas Team Leader, 1405 Hollipark
Dr., Idaho Falls, ID 83401.
The Forest Service requests comments
on the nature and scope of the
environmental, social, and economic
issues, and possible alternatives related
to oil and gas leasing on the Caribou
administrative unit of the CaribouTarghee National Forest and the Curlew
National Grassland.
A series of public meetings are
scheduled to describe the proposal and
to provide an opportunity for public
input. Four scoping meetings are
planned as follows:
January 16: 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., Tribal
Business Center, Pima Dr., Fort Hall, ID.
January 16: 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Westside
Ranger District Office, 4350 Cliffs Dr.,
Pocatello, ID.
January 18: 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Soda
Springs Ranger District Office, 410 E.
Hooper Ave., Soda Springs, ID.
January 18: 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.,
Montpelier Ranger District Office, 322
N. 4th, Montpelier, ID.
Written comments will be accepted at
these meetings. The Forest Service will
work with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribal
government to address issues that could
significantly or uniquely affect them.
The project will be listed in the
Caribou-Targhee NF Quarterly Schedule
of Proposed Actions and a scoping letter
will be sent to local tribal interests,
interested agencies, organizations,
media-contacts and the Forest-wide
mailing list.
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78132
Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 249 / Thursday, December 28, 2006 / Notices
Preliminary Issues
Important goals for the project are to
meet the legal requirements for
evaluating National Forest System (NFS)
lands and make the required decisions.
Preliminary issues are anticipated to
involve potential effects to wildlife,
biological diversity (Management
Indicator Species), water, soil resources,
social and economic settings, cultural
and paleontological resources,
inventoried roadless area
characteristics, visual resources,
traditional cultural properties
(including plant and mineral gathering
areas and sacred sites), forest
transportation system, noxious weeds,
and air quality. Specific issues will be
developed through review of public
comments and internal review.
sroberts on PROD1PC70 with NOTICES
Comment Requested
This notice of intent initiates the
scoping process which guides the
development of the environmental
impact statement. Specific comments or
concerns are the most important types
of information needed for this EIS. Only
public comments which address
relevant issues and concerns will be
considered and formally addressed in
an appendix to the EIS.
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 45
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20:03 Dec 27, 2006
Jkt 211001
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)
Dated: December 20, 2006.
Lawrence A. Timchak,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 06–9906 Filed 12–27–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–11–P
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Kaibab National Forest; Arizona; Warm
Fire Recovery Project
Forest Service, USDA.
Notice of intent to prepare an
environmental impact statement.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
SUMMARY: This project would address
part of the overall restoration needs for
the approximately 40,000 acres that
burned in June through July 2006 in the
fire suppression area of the Warm Fire.
Specifically, this proposal includes
salvage of approximately 84.5 million
board feet (MMBF) (168,987 hundred
cubic feet) of fire killed timber on
approximately 9,990 acres and
reforestation through planting conifers
on approximately 14,690 acres, while
allowing approximately 4,050 acres to
naturally reforest with quaking aspen.
DATES: Comments concerning the scope
of the analysis must be received by
January 26, 2007. The draft environment
impact statement is expected May 2007
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Sfmt 4703
and the final environmental impact
statement is expected September 2007.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to
District Ranger, North Kaibab Ranger
District, Kaibab National Forest, P.O.
Box 248, 430 S. Main Street, Fredonia,
AZ 86022, or fax: 928–643–8105.
Comments may be submitted by e-mail
in word (.doc), rich text format (.rtf),
text (.txt), or hypertext markup language
(.html) to:
mailroom_r3_kaibab@fs.fed.us, please
include ‘‘Warm Fire, Attn: Scott
Clemans’’ in the subject line. Oral
comments may the provided to
Interdisciplinary Team Leader Lois
Pfeffer by telephone (559) 359–7023 or
(307) 754–8197.
Please call her to set up a time for
your oral comments. Comments may
also be hand delivered weekdays 8 a.m.
until 4:30 p.m. at the above address. To
be eligible for appeal, each individual or
representative from each organization
submitting comments must either sign
the comments or verify their identity
upon request.
For further information, mail
correspondence to Lois Pfeffer,
Environmental Coordinator, TEAMS
Planning, 145 East 2nd Street, Powell,
WY 82435, (550) 359–7023 or Scott
Clemans, Kaibab National Forest, North
Kaibab Ranger District, P.O. Box 248,
430 S. Main Street, Fredonia, AZ 86022
(928) 643–8172.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lois
Pfeffer or Scott Clemans (see ADDRESSES
above).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction: The Warm Fire was
started by lightning on June 8 and was
managed as a ‘‘wildland fire use’’ fire
for approximately 21⁄2 weeks. On June
25, fire management transitioned from a
wildland fire use to a suppression
strategy after winds pushed the fire
south outside the Maximum Manageable
Area, burning over 39,000 acres. On July
1, 2006 a Burned Area Emergency
Response (BAER) team wa assembled to
conduct a soil and hydrologic
assessment and initiate rehabilitation to
minimize the loss of soil productivity,
downstream water quality, and threats
to human life and property.
Rehabilitation of fire lines, repair of
storm damaged roads, and aerial seeding
of the high intensity burned areas
occurred under the BAER plan. On
August 1, 2006 an interdisciplinary
post-fire assessment team was
assembled to assess the status of the
resources, identify recovery needs, and
recommend a program of recovery work
(beyond BAER). The assessment team
identified the levels of tree mortality
across the wildfire area. The final
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 249 (Thursday, December 28, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 78130-78132]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-9906]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Caribou-Targhee National Forest, ID, WY and UT, Caribou Oil and
Gas Leasing EIS
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA and Bureau of Land Management, USDI.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Caribou-Targhee National Forest gives notice of the intent
to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) to document the
analysis and disclose the anticipated environmental and human effects
of oil and gas leasing on the Caribou administrative unit of the Forest
and the Curlew National Grassland in southeast Idaho, with minor
amounts of land in northern Utah and western Wyoming. The Federal
Onshore Oil and Gas Leasing Reform Act of 1987 (FOOGLRA) requires the
Forest Service to evaluate National Forest System (NFS) lands for
potential oil and gas leasing. As the agency responsible for lease
issuance and administration, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will
participate as a cooperating agency.
DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis should be received
within 45 days from the date of this notice to be most helpful. The
draft environmental impact statement is expected by November, 2007 and
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 final environmental
impact statement is expected in April, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Steve Robison, Oil and Gas Team
Leader, Caribou-Targhee National Forest, 1405 Hollipark Drive, Idaho
Falls, ID 83401. Electronic comments can be submitted in rich text
format (.rtf), or Word (.doc) to comments-intermtn-caribou-
targhee@fs.fed.us.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lynn Ballard, Public Affairs Officer,
Caribou-Targhee National Forest, 1405 Hollipark Drive, Idaho Falls, ID
83401; phone (208) 557-5765. For technical information contact: Steve
Robison, Oil and Gas Team Leader, (208) 557-5799.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Purpose and Need for Action
FOOGLRA requires the Forest Service to evaluate National Forest
System (NFS) lands that are legally open to leasing for potential oil
and gas leasing
[[Page 78131]]
and development, in accordance with the National Environmental Policy
Act of 1969. FOOGLRA also establishes Forest Service consent authority
for leasing prior to the BLM offering NFS lands for lease. Leasing on
NFS lands is done under the authority of the Mineral Leasing Act of
1920 (MLA), as amended, and implementing regulations at 36 CFR 228,
subpart E, and 43 CFR 3100. The MLA provides that all public lands are
open to oil and gas leasing unless they have been closed by a specific
land order. The Caribou administrative unit portion of the Caribou-
Targhee NF and the Curlew National Grassland (herein referred to as
``the Caribou'') do not have Land and Resource Management Plan
direction or decisions that determine which NFS lands are
administratively available for oil/gas leasing or the conditions
(stipulations) necessary to lease those specific lands. Since the
FOOGLRA was signed into law, there has been little industry interest in
oil and gas leasing on the Caribou, and no leases have been issued in
the past 15 years. The BLM Idaho State Office has received Expressions
of Interest for leasing portions of the Caribou for oil/gas.
The intent of the applicable laws and regulations (see summary) is
to lease appropriate NFS lands and provide a reasonable opportunity to
explore for, discover, and produce economic oil and gas reserves from
available Federal lands, while meeting the requirements of
environmental laws and protecting surface resources and interests not
compatible with such activities.
Proposed Action
The Forest Service and BLM propose to conduct the analysis and
decide which NFS lands on the Caribou will be made available for oil
and gas leasing and under what terms and conditions (stipulations)
these specific lands may be leased. As part of the analysis, the Forest
Service will identify those areas that would be administratively
available for leasing subject to the terms and conditions of the
standard oil and gas lease form, and subject to constraints that would
require the use of lease stipulations such as limiting surface use,
timing restrictions, and/or prohibiting surface occupancy in accordance
with the Caribou Land and Resource Management Plan (Caribou Plan,
revised 2003) and the Curlew National Grassland Land and Resource
Management Plan (Curlew Plan, 2002).
To comply with the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, no road
construction or reconstruction would be allowed in Inventoried Roadless
Areas (see attached Inventoried Roadless Area map for a delineation of
the IRAs on the Caribou). Leasing will be considered in some Roadless
areas with no surface occupancy stipulations. The analysis will also:
(1) Identify alternatives to the proposed action; (2) project the type/
amount of post-leasing activity that is reasonably foreseeable; and (3)
analyze the reasonable foreseeable impacts of projected post-leasing
activity [36 CFR 228.102(c)].
Possible Alternatives
All alternatives studied in detail must fall within the scope of
the purpose and need for action and will generally tier to and comply
with the Caribou and Curlew Plans. Law requires the evaluation of a
``no action alternative''. Under the No Action/No Lease alternative, no
NFS lands on the Caribou would be made available for oil/gas leasing at
this time.
The other identified preliminary alternative would allow leasing on
some NFS lands consistent with the Caribou and Curlew Plans. This
alternative would be similar to the proposed action but would consider
road construction or reconstruction in some of the inventoried roadless
areas in the event of a future change in inventoried roadless area
direction. Other alternatives which would involve making some lands
unavailable for leasing and other lands available for leasing with
lease stipulations for the protection of surface resources and other
interests may be developed based on public input.
Lead and Cooperating Agencies
The Forest Service is the Lead Agency. The Bureau of Land
Management will participate as a Cooperating Agency.
Responsible Official
Larry Timchak, Forest Supervisor, Caribou -Targhee National Forest,
1405 Hollipark Drive, Idaho Falls, ID 83401.
Idaho State Director, Bureau of Land Management, 1387 South Vinnell
Way, Boise, ID 83709.
Wyoming State Director, Bureau of Land Management, P.O. Box 1828,
Cheyenne, WY 82003.
Utah State Director, Bureau of Land Management, P.O. Box 45155,
Salt Lake City, UT 84101.
Nature of Decision To Be Made
The Forest Supervisor, Caribou-Targhee National Forest, will decide
which lands on the Caribou will be administratively available for oil
and gas leasing, along with the associated conditions or constraints
for the protection of non-mineral resources and interests [36 CFR
228.102(d)]. The Forest Supervisor will also authorize the BLM to offer
specific lands for lease, subject to Forest Service identified
stipulations that will be attached to the lease [36 CFR 228.102(e)].
The Forest Supervisor will amend, if necessary, the Caribou and Curlew
Land and Resource Management Plans.
The BLM is responsible for issuing and administering oil and gas
leases under the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as amended, and Federal
regulations at 43 CFR 3101.7. The BLM State Director (Idaho, Utah, and/
or Wyoming) will decide whether or not to offer for lease specific
lands, in their respective states, that have been authorized by the
Caribou-Targhee Forest Supervisor for leasing with the Forest Service
designated stipulations.
Scoping Process
The first formal opportunity to comment on the Caribou Oil and Gas
Leasing analysis project is during the scoping process [40 CFR 1501.7]
which begins with the issuance of this Notice of Intent.
Mail comments to: Steve Robison, Oil and Gas Team Leader, 1405
Hollipark Dr., Idaho Falls, ID 83401.
The Forest Service requests comments on the nature and scope of the
environmental, social, and economic issues, and possible alternatives
related to oil and gas leasing on the Caribou administrative unit of
the Caribou-Targhee National Forest and the Curlew National Grassland.
A series of public meetings are scheduled to describe the proposal
and to provide an opportunity for public input. Four scoping meetings
are planned as follows:
January 16: 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., Tribal Business Center, Pima Dr.,
Fort Hall, ID.
January 16: 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Westside Ranger District Office, 4350
Cliffs Dr., Pocatello, ID.
January 18: 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Soda Springs Ranger District Office,
410 E. Hooper Ave., Soda Springs, ID.
January 18: 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Montpelier Ranger District Office,
322 N. 4th, Montpelier, ID.
Written comments will be accepted at these meetings. The Forest
Service will work with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribal government to
address issues that could significantly or uniquely affect them.
The project will be listed in the Caribou-Targhee NF Quarterly
Schedule of Proposed Actions and a scoping letter will be sent to local
tribal interests, interested agencies, organizations, media-contacts
and the Forest-wide mailing list.
[[Page 78132]]
Preliminary Issues
Important goals for the project are to meet the legal requirements
for evaluating National Forest System (NFS) lands and make the required
decisions. Preliminary issues are anticipated to involve potential
effects to wildlife, biological diversity (Management Indicator
Species), water, soil resources, social and economic settings, cultural
and paleontological resources, inventoried roadless area
characteristics, visual resources, traditional cultural properties
(including plant and mineral gathering areas and sacred sites), forest
transportation system, noxious weeds, and air quality. Specific issues
will be developed through review of public comments and internal
review.
Comment Requested
This notice of intent initiates the scoping process which guides
the development of the environmental impact statement. Specific
comments or concerns are the most important types of information needed
for this EIS. Only public comments which address relevant issues and
concerns will be considered and formally addressed in an appendix to
the EIS.
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 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 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)
Dated: December 20, 2006.
Lawrence A. Timchak,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 06-9906 Filed 12-27-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-P
