Flathead National Forest-Swan Lake Ranger District, Montana; Wild Cramer Forest Health and Fuels Reduction Project, 65608-65609 [2010-26998]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
• Forest Service

[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 206 (Tuesday, October 26, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65608-65609]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-26998]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Flathead National Forest--Swan Lake Ranger District, Montana; 
Wild Cramer Forest Health and Fuels Reduction Project

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, will prepare an 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Wild Cramer Forest Health 
and Fuels Reduction Project to harvest timber, reduce hazardous forest 
fuels, prescribe burn, and reconstruct and construct permanent roads 
within the project area. The project area is approximately 10 miles 
southwest of Kalispell, Flathead County, Montana. The project area 
consists of a total of 30,727 acres, encompasses the Blacktail Mountain 
Ski Area and contains the following drainages: Wild Bill, Truman, 
Emmons, Patrick, Cramer, Bierney, and Stoner Creeks. The location of 
the project area is Township 26 and 27 North, and Range 21, 21\1/2\, 
and 22 West.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received 
by December 1, 2010. The draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) is 
expected in September 2011. No date has yet been determined for filing 
the final environmental impact statement (FEIS).

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Wild Cramer Project, Swan Lake 
District Ranger, 200 Ranger Station Road, Bigfork, MT 59911. Comments 
may also be sent via e-mail to comments-northern-flathead-swan-lake@fs.fed.us with ``Wild Cramer Project'' in the subject line and 
must be submitted in MSWord (*.doc) or rich text format (*.rtf), or via 
facsimile to (406) 387-3889.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michele Draggoo, Planning Team Leader, 
Hungry Horse/Glacier View Ranger District, 10 Hungry Horse Drive, P.O. 
Box 190340, Montana 59919, e-mail mdraggoo@fs.fed.us, or phone (406) 
387-3827. The project description can be accessed on the Web at: https://www.fs.fed.us/r1/flathead/nepa/nepa.
    Individuals who use telecommunication devices for the deaf (TDD) 
may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 
between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern Time, Monday through Friday.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Purpose and Need for Action

    The purpose and need for the Wild Cramer Forest Health and Fuels 
Reduction Project is to: (1) Improve and/or maintain the general 
health, resiliency, and sustainability of forested stands within the 
project area; (2) reduce the risk of insect epidemics and severe 
disease infestations within the project area; (3) reduce forest fuels 
build-up on National Forest System lands adjacent to public and private 
lands within the project area; (4) provide a safer environment for the 
public and firefighters should a wildfire occur within the area; (5) 
increase the probability of stopping wildfires on National Forest 
System lands before they burn onto private lands; (6) provide forest 
products to the local timber industry, contributing to short-term 
timber supply and providing for long-term sustainability of timber on 
National Forest System lands; and (7) address forest health issues 
within the Blacktail Mountain Ski Area permit boundary and provide more 
desirable forest vegetative conditions for existing and future 
recreational skiing experiences.

Proposed Action

    The Forest Service proposes to harvest timber through application 
of a variety of harvest methods, including regeneration harvest 
(clearcut with reserves, seed tree with reserves, and shelterwood with 
reserves) on 3,489 acres and intermediate harvest (commercial and non-
commercial thin and sanitation) on 1,511 acres for a total commercial 
harvest on approximately 5,000 acres of forestland. In addition, an 
estimated 3,700 acres of sapling thinning and 362 acres of prescribed 
ecosystem burning are proposed. Use of existing and construction of 
temporary and permanent (specified) roads would be needed to access 
timber harvest areas. An estimated 13 miles of specified road and 14 
miles of temporary road would be constructed, some of which will be on 
existing, historic templates. An additional 166 miles of existing 
National Forest System roads would receive either road reconstruction 
or pre-haul maintenance. Best Management Practices would be applied to 
all temporary roads constructed and roads temporarily opened, as well 
as all system roads used in association with this project for access 
and product removal. Planting conifer seedlings would also be included 
in this project.

Possible Alternatives

    Alternative A is the No-Action Alternative in which none of the 
proposed activities would be implemented. Alternative B, the Proposed 
Action described above, was developed by the Interdisciplinary Team to 
respond to the purpose and need for action and to comply with the 
Flathead Forest Plan. At least one additional action alternative will 
be developed which will examine varying levels and locations for the 
proposed activities to achieve the proposal's purposes, as well as to 
respond to the issues and other resource values. All proposed 
activities are outside the boundaries of any roadless area or any areas 
considered for inclusion to the National Wilderness System as 
recommended by the Flathead National Forest Plan or by any past or 
present legislative wilderness proposals.

Responsible Official

    The Responsible Official is Chip Weber, Forest Supervisor, Flathead 
National Forest, 650 Wolfpack Way, 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.

Nature of the Decision To Be Made

    The DEIS for the Wild Cramer Forest Health and Fuels Reduction 
Project will evaluate site-specific issues, consider management 
alternatives, and analyze the potential effects of the proposed action 
and alternatives. The scope of the project is limited to decisions 
concerning activities within the project area that meet the Purpose and 
Need, as well as desired conditions. The DEIS will provide the 
Responsible Official with the information needed to decide which 
actions, if any, to approve. This EIS will tier to the Flathead 
National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan and EIS of January 
1986, and its subsequent amendments, which provide overall guidance for 
land management activities on the Flathead National Forest.

Scoping Process

    This notice of intent initiates the scoping process, which guides 
the development of the environmental impact statement. Public 
participation will be solicited by notifying in person

[[Page 65609]]

and/or by mail known interested and affected publics. Notification of 
the proposed Wild Cramer Project and request for comments will be 
distributed to landowners who have property within a one mile radius of 
the project boundary (approximately 500 entities), as well as other 
interested parties. A field trip is being offered as part of the 
scoping process. News releases will be used to give the general public 
notice.
    It is important that reviewers provide their comments at such times 
and in such manner that they are useful to the agency's preparation of 
the environmental impact statement. Therefore, comments should be 
provided prior to the close of the comment period and should clearly 
articulate the reviewer's concerns and contentions.
    Comments received in response to this solicitation, including names 
and addresses of those who comment, will be part of the public record 
for this proposed action. Comments submitted anonymously will be 
accepted and considered, however.

    Dated: September 20, 2010.
Chip Weber,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 2010-26998 Filed 10-25-10; 8:45 am]
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