Emigrant Wilderness Management Direction, Stanislaus National Forest, Tuolumne County, California

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

Emigrant Wilderness Management Direction, Stanislaus National

Forest, Tuolumne County, California

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice; intent to prepare environmental impact statement (EIS).

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SUMMARY: The Forest Service will prepare an EIS for a proposal to

revise current management direction for the 113,000-acre Emigrant

Wilderness on the Summit Ranger District, Stanislaus National Forest,

Tuolumne County, California

DATES: To be most helpful in the preparation of the Draft EIS, comments

should be received in writing by April 1, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments and suggestions to Karen Caldwell,

District Ranger, Summit Ranger District, #1 Pinecrest Lake Road,

Pinecrest, CA, 95364, (209) 965-3434.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Cindy Diaz, Team Leader, (209) 965-3434.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This EIS will evaluate alternatives,

including standards and guidelines to assure an enduring resource of

Wilderness as described in the 1964 Wilderness Act (U.S.C. 16 1131-

1136). The resulting decision will be utilized to amend the 1991

Stanislaus National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (LRMP) for

Management Area 1, Wilderness. This EIS will include all areas within

the Emigrant Wilderness boundary and will not consider Wilderness

additions.

Preliminary scoping, which was initiated with notification in the

Stanislaus National Forest quarterly NEPA summary in spring of 1993,

press releases and direct mailings during August of 1993 and a public

meeting October 2 of 1993, has resulted in the identification of nine

key issues: Ecosystems, Heritage Resources, Fisheries, Economic and

Regional Considerations, Social, Range, Wilderness Opportunities,

Recreation, and Access.

The Forest Service will be seeking information, comments, and

assistance from Federal, State, and local agencies and other

individuals or organizations who may be interested in or affected by

the proposed action. Project mailing list participants from the

preliminary scoping efforts receive periodic updates on the planning

process along with notifications of public meetings.

Glenn Gottschall, acting Stanislaus National Forest Supervisor, is

the responsible official, 19777 Greenley Road, Sonora, CA, 95370, (209)

532-3671.

The draft EIS is expected to be filed with the Environmental

Protection Agency (EPA) and to be available for public review by

October of 1995.

The comment period on the draft environmental impact statement will

be 45 days from the date the Environmental Protection Agency's Notice

of availability appears in the Federal Register. It is very important

that those interested in this proposed action participate at that time.

To be the most helpful, comments on the draft environmental impact

statement should be as specific as possible and may address the

adequacy of the statement or the merits of the alternatives discussed

(see The Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for implementing

the procedural provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act at

40 CFR 1503.3).

In addition, Federal court decisions have established that

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 reviewers' position and

contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519,

553 (1978). Environmental objections that could have been raised at the

draft stage may be waived if not raised until after completion of the

final environmental impact statement. City of Angoon v. Hodel, (9th

Circuit, 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490 F. Supp.

1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980). The reason for this is to ensure 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.

Dated: November 8, 1994.

Glenn Gottschall,

Acting Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 94-29138 Filed 11-25-94; 8:45 am]

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