Department of Agriculture June 10, 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This notice suspends indefinitely the effective date for the proposed new Privacy Act system of records entitled ``National Animal Identification System (NAIS), USDA/APHIS-16,'' published at 73 FR 23412 on April 30, 2008.

The Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, will prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on a integrated restoration proposal to restore terrestrial and aquatic conditions by improving the health, vigor and resilience of forest stands of infected, dead and high risk trees; restoration and maintenance of grass and shrub communities through prescribed burning; the restoration of aspen age classes and diversity; improving recreation opportunities and grazing; capturing the economic value of the dead and dying mountain pine beetle infested and high risk trees; understory thinning, followed with prescribed burning, on small understory conifer trees; enhancing water quality and quantity and maintaining and restoring conditions for native fish populations. The integrated restoration EIS will also improve public safety and infrastructure by reconstructing, relocating, maintaining and improving signing, design and linkage of forest trails, road densities and travel management. The EIS will address the obliteration of roads as well as provide mitigation measures to avoid introducing and spreading invasive vegetation. The proposed action will occur on a project area of approximately 39,000 acres of National Forest System land. The Forest Service will be using the Healthy Forest Restoration Act (HFRA). The East Deer Lodge Valley Landscape Restoration Project developed in response to the Healthy Forest Restoration Act (HFRA) of 2003 (PL 108-148). Title 1 of HFRA contains provisions to expedite hazardous fuel reduction and forest restoration projects on certain National Forest System lands at risk from wildland fire or are currently experiencing (or show imminent risk to) insect and disease epidemics (HFRA 2003, p. 15). Section 1 02(a)(4) of the HFRA authorizes expedited vegetation management projects where conditions such as the existence of an insect or disease epidemic ``* * * (poses) a significant threat to an ecosystem component, or forest or rangeland resource on the Federal land or adjacent non-Federal land.'' (Ibid. p. 20). Title 1 of HFRA encourages federal agencies to involve state and local governments and citizens when developing plans and projects for vegetation treatment on federal and adjacent non-federal lands (Ibid., p. 7). A stewardship contract will be let upon reaching the project decision and implementation. The Record of Decision will disclose whether and where the Forest Supervisor decides to provide integrated restoration proposals for both the terrestrial and aquatic environments.