Spruce Gulch Bark Beetle and Fuels Reduction Project, 3232-3234 [08-113]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
• Forest Service

[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 12 (Thursday, January 17, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3232-3234]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 08-113]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Spruce Gulch Bark Beetle and Fuels Reduction Project

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA--Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests.

ACTION:  Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act, 
notice is hereby given that the Forest Service, Medicine Bow-Routt 
National Forests, will prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement 
to disclose the environmental consequences of the proposed Spruce Gulch 
Bark Beetle and Fuels Reduction project (Spruce Gulch). The Spruce 
Gulch analysis area encompasses approximately 32,000 acres of National 
Forest System (NFS) land, 390 acres of interspersed private land, and 
150 acres of State of Wyoming land. The majority of the analysis area 
is situated within the Ecological Restoration--Forest Products 
Management Area (MA 5.15). MA 5.15 is managed to maintain or restore 
healthy ecological conditions through a variety of management 
activities, including timber harvest, while providing a mix of 
ecological and human needs. The remaining area is situated within a 
Wildland--Residential Interface Management Area (MA 7.1). National 
Forest System (NFS) lands adjacent to the residential interface areas 
are managed to minimize risks of catastrophic fires and insect and 
disease epidemics.
    Mountain pine beetles (Dendroctonus ponderosae) are at epidemic 
levels in northern Colorado and southern Wyoming and are causing 
significant mortality of lodgepole pine trees. In response to this 
situation, a Mountain Pine Beetle Epidemic Declaration was issued by 
the Rocky Mountain Regional Office on June 25, 2007. The declaration 
was based on analysis of aerial survey data and ground survey data sets 
of forests containing lodgepole pine at risk for mountain pine beetle 
infestation. The mountain pine beetle epidemic declaration encompasses 
the Spruce Gulch analysis area in southern Wyoming. Proposed treatments 
associated with the Spruce Gulch project will focus on salvaging dead 
and dying timber to promote regeneration of future lodgepole pine 
stands and reducing hazardous fuel concentrations adjacent to private 
lands and egress routes.
    The Forest Supervisor of the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests 
has

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determined that the Spruce Gulch project is authorized under sections 
102(a)(1) (Federal land in wildland-urban interface areas) and 
102(a)(4) (insect and disease epidemics) of the Healthy Forests 
Restoration Act (HFRA) of 2003. HFRA provides for expedited 
environmental analysis and treatments of lands that are at risk of 
wildland fire, have experienced windthrow or blowdown or are at risk of 
insect and disease epidemics. Accordingly, the environmental analysis 
associated with the Spruce Gulch project will proceed according to 
section 104 of the HFRA.
    To move toward the desired future condition, as described in the 
Medicine Bow Revised Land and Resource Management Plan (Revised Forest 
Plan 2003), and meet the purpose and need of the project proposal, 
proposed silvicultural treatments include: (1) Clearcutting; (2) 
commercial thinning; (3) shelterwood removal; (4) shelterwood 
preparatory cut; (5) shelterwood seed cut; (6) group selection; (7) 
individual tree selection; (8) sanitation/salvage; and (9) salvage 
treatments. Transportation activities associated with the project 
proposal consist of road construction and road reconstruction.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received 
by February 15, 2008. The Draft Environmental Impact Statement is 
expected to be available for public review in April 2008, the Final 
Environmental Impact Statement is expected to be available in June 
2008, and the Record of Decision is expected to be released in 
September 2008.

ADDRESSES: Submit written, oral, or E-mail comments by: (1) Postal 
service-Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests, ATTN: Melissa Martin, 
Project Coordinator, 2468 Jackson Street, Laramie, WY 82070; (2) 
telephone-(307) 745-2371; (3) E-mail-mmmartin@fs.fed.us.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Charles Cobb at (307) 245-2338.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Purpose and Need for Action

    The purpose of the Spruce Gulch project is to reduce current 
mountain pine beetle populations in forested stands dominated by 
lodgepole pine trees, decrease the risk and hazard of catastrophic 
wildfire in the proximity of private lands and homes, and to reduce the 
susceptibility of vegetation to catastrophic fire and further mountain 
pine beetle attacks.
    The project is needed to:
     Reduce the threat of future beetle infestations in stands 
that have a moderate to high beetle risk;
     Reduce the risk of high intensity/high severity wildfires 
within treatment areas by reducing hazardous fuel loadings associated 
with treatments and beetle killed trees;
     Reduce the effects of tree mortality on the overall 
health, scenic quality, and condition of forested areas; and
     Salvage forest products from forested lands classified as 
being suitable to keep them in production and positively contributing 
to the Forest's Allowable Sale Quantity.

Proposed Action

    Under the Proposed Action, the Laramie Ranger District of the 
Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests will evaluate a variety of bark 
beetle related salvage, suppression, and prevention silvicultural 
treatments and hazardous fuels abatement treatments on approximately 
4,500 acres. Current estimates identify 1,859 acres of clearcutting, 
146 acres of commercial thinning, 38 acres of overstory removal, and 
2,463 acres of adaptive management prescriptions. Adaptive management 
prescriptions including salvage, sanitation/salvage, shelterwood, group 
selection, individual tree selection, commercial thinning, and 
overstory removal. Adaptive management strategies are proposed on these 
acres because it would be difficult, at this point in time, to 
determine the exact location, timing, treatment types, and specific 
amounts of treatment type that would best address the rapidly spreading 
mountain pine beetle epidemic. The treatments would be located 
primarily within MAs 5.15 and 7.1, with a small amount of treatments 
within MA 5.13--Forest Products.
    Approximately 1,041 of the 4,500 acres identified above fall within 
MA 7.1--Residential/Forest Interface; these acres would be managed 
using a combination of silvicultural treatments to reduce hazardous 
fuels. Management activities would generally occur less than one-half 
mile, or as identified within specific community wildfire protection 
plans, from the identified communities and would be subordinate to more 
restrictive management areas. Appropriate treatment boundaries would be 
based on site-specific conditions such as topography, vegetation 
conditions, and fuel loadings.
    Approximately 0.3 miles of specified road construction, 2.7 miles 
of temporary road construction, and 8.8 miles of road reconstruction 
could be required for project implementation. The final assessment of 
road needs has not been determined, and could be more or less. To 
accommodate the amount of harvest and road construction, the proposal 
may include some soil and water projects to mitigate road related 
problems.

    Note: Forest-wide Direction contained in the Medicine Bow Land 
and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan 2003) generally limits the 
size of openings created by even-aged management (e.g. clearcuts) to 
40 acres (Forest Plan page 1-35). Exceptions are granted, however, 
in areas that have experienced natural catastrophic conditions such 
as fire, insect or disease attacks, or windstorms. The Spruce Gulch 
Proposed Action currently proposes a clearcut prescription on 49 
units (totaling 1,859 acres), 22 of which exceed the 40 acre maximum 
size limitation. The largest proposed clearcut unit is 138 acres, 
while the majority of the other units are between 41 and 80 acres. 
These larger clearcut units primarily fall within MA 5.15 
(Ecological Restoration) which allows created openings as large as 
250 acres (Forest Plan page 2-63, Vegetation Guideline 2)

    Collaboration Process: As required by Title I, section 104 of the 
HFRA, the Forest Service engaged in a collaborative process with local 
stakeholders prior to developing the Proposed Action described above. 
Members of the collaborative group included, but were not limited to, 
private landowners within or adjacent to the analysis area boundary, 
industry representatives, State and local government officials, and 
members of public interest groups. The collaborators participated in 
three meetings hosted by the Forest Service during the months of 
November and December of 2007, and contributions from the group were 
considered and incorporated in to the final design of the Proposed 
Action.

Responsible Official

    The responsible official for the Spruce Gulch Bark Beetle and Fuels 
Reduction project is the Laramie District Ranger of the Medicine Bow-
Routt National Forests.

Nature of Decision To Be Made

    The Spruce Gulch Bark Beetle and Fuels Reduction Environmental 
Impact Statement will evaluate site-specific management proposals, 
consider alternatives to the Proposed Action, and analyze the effects 
of the activities proposed in the alternatives. It will form the basis 
for the Responsible Official to determine: (1) Whether or not the 
Proposed Action and alternatives are responsive to the issues, are 
consistent with Forest Plan direction, meet the purpose and need, and 
are consistent with other related laws and regulations directing 
National Forest Management

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activities; (2) whether or not the information in the analysis is 
sufficient to implement proposed activities; and (3) which actions, if 
any, to approve.

Preliminary Issues

    The following potential issues and concerns were identified via 
internal scoping and collaboration efforts: (1) Beetle spread from NFS 
lands to adjacent private lands; (2) cumulative impacts of past and 
proposed treatments; (3) intensity of vegetative treatments and slash 
disposal adjacent to wildland-urban interface areas; (4) ingress/egress 
for forest users and property owners; and (5) management of mapped and 
inventoried old growth stands.

Comment Requested

    This notice of intent initiates the scoping process that guides the 
development of the environmental impact statement. Comments that are 
site-specific in nature are most helpful to resource professionals when 
trying to narrow and address the public's issue and concerns. Comments 
on the Spruce Gulch proposal will be accepted until February 15, 2008 
as identified previously in this notice of intent. Comments will be 
reviewed and issues will be identified. Issues that cannot be resolved 
by design criteria or minor changes to the Proposed Action may generate 
alternatives to the Proposed Action. This process is driven by comments 
received from the public, other agencies, and internal Forest Service 
concerns. To assist in commenting, a scoping letter providing more 
detail on the project proposal has been prepared and is available to 
interested parties. Contact Melissa Martin, Project Coordinator, at the 
address listed in this notice of intent if you would like to receive a 
copy.

Release of Names

    Comments received in response to this solicitation, including names 
and addresses of those who commented, 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 object to the subsequent decision under 36 CFR Part 218. 
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 ten 
(10) days.

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 of the Environmental Protection Agency 
publishes the notice of availability in the Federal Register.
    The Forest Service believes, at this early stage, that 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 during 
the draft environmental impact statement stage, but 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 (9\th\ 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 related to 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 document. Comments may also address the adequacy of the draft 
environmental impact statement or the merits of the alternatives 
displayed in the document. Reviewers should refer to the Council on 
Environmental Quality Regulations at 40 CFR 1503.3 for implementing the 
procedural provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act for 
addressing these points.

    Dated: January 9, 2008.
Thomas A. Florich,
Acting Laramie District Ranger.
[FR Doc. 08-113 Filed 1-16-08; 8:45 am]
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