Deadman Creek Timber Sales, Colville National Forest, Ferry County, WA

SUMMARY: The Forest Service, USDA, will prepare an environmental impact

statement (EIS) on a proposal to harvest and regenerate timber for

twenty million board feet on one or more timber sales and to construct

and reconstruct roads in the Deadman Creek area. The Proposed Action

will be in compliance with the 1988 Colville National Forest Land and

Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan) as amended, which provides the

overall guidance for management of this area. The Proposed Action is

within portions of the Deadman Creek watershed on the Kettle Falls

Ranger District and scheduled for implementation in fiscal year 1999.

The Colville National Forest invites written comments and suggestions

on the scope of the analysis. The agency will give notice of the full

environmental analysis and decision making process so interested and

affected people may be able to participate and contribute in the final

decision.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis should be received

in writing by December 15, 1996.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments and suggestions concerning the

management of this area to Meredith Webster, District Ranger, 255 West

11th, Kettle Falls, Washington 99141.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Questions about the Proposed Action and EIS should be directed to

Meredith Webster, District Ranger or to Mike Porter, Planner, 255 West

11th, Kettle Falls, Washington 99141 (phone: 509-738-6111).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Proposed Action includes harvesting

timber and constructing roads through one or more timber sales.

The timber sales would be located approximately seven miles north

of Washington State Highway 20 and nine miles west of Washington State

Highway 395. The proposed sales would harvest approximately twenty

million board feet on about 4000 acres through commercial thinning,

individual tree selection, partial overstory removal and shelterwood

harvest methods. Twenty-eight (28) miles of new road would be

constructed.

The Deadman Creek timber sales are proposed within the Deadman

Creek watershed on the Kettle Falls Ranger District. This analysis will

evaluate a range of alternatives for implementation of the timber

sales. The area being analyzed is approximately 40,800 acres. The

Proposed Action includes portions of the Twin Sister Inventoried

Roadless Area and the Hoodoo Inventoried Roadless Area which were

considered but not selected for Wilderness designation.

The Draft EIS will be tiered to the Forest Plan. The Forest Plan's

Management Area direction for this analysis area is approximately 51

percent Wood/Forage Emphasis (Management Area 7), 10 percent Semi-

Primitive Non-Motorized Recreation (Management Area 11), 8 percent

Scenic/Timber (Management Area 5), and lesser amounts of Winter Range

(Management Area 8), Semi-Primitive Motorized Recreation (Management

Area 10), Old Growth Dependent Species Habitat (Management Area 1),

Recreation (Management Area 3A), and Scenic/Winter Range (Management

Area 6). There is also 11 percent in other ownership within the

analysis area.

No harvest and no road construction will be proposed within the

Semi-Primitive Motorized Recreation areas or the Semi-Primitive, Non-

Motorized Recreation areas. The other ownership areas are included only

for analysis of effects.

Preliminary issues identified include:

1. Timber harvest and road construction within Forest Plan

Inventoried Roadless areas and other unroaded areas greater than 1000

acres;

2. Creation of Lynx foraging habitat may conflict with Historic

Range of Variability direction found in Eastside Screens Forest Plan

amendment;

3. Forest Health is a concern due to overstocked conditions which

increase the possibility of insect and disease problems;

4. The projects must be compatible with existing recreational uses;

and

5. State Water Quality Standards must be met in Deadman Creek, as

well as other waters in and downstream from the planning area.

A range of alternatives will be considered, including a no-action

alternative. Based on issues identified to date, alternatives to be

considered include: (1) the number, sizes, and locations of areas

considered for treatment; (2) the amount of road constructed for

access; (3) the type of harvest and post-harvest treatments prescribed;

and (4) the number, types, and locations of other integrated resource

projects.

Initial scoping began in May, 1996. The scoping process will

include the following: identify and clarify issues; identify key issues

to be analyzed in depth; explore alternatives based on themes which

will be derived from issues recognized during scoping activities; and

identify potential environmental effects of the Proposed Action and

alternatives.

An informal public meeting is planned to be held at the Kettle

Falls Ranger District office during November, 1996. The date, time, and

location of this meeting will be announced at a later date. The Forest

Service is seeking information, comments, and assistance from other

agencies, organizations, Indian Tribes, and individuals who may be

interested in or affected by the Proposed Action. This input will be

used in preparation of the draft EIS. Your comments are appreciated

throughout the analysis process.

The draft EIS is to be filed with the Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA) and to be available for public review by April, 1997. At

that time, copies of the draft EIS will be distributed to interested

and affected agencies, organizations, Indian Tribes, and members of the

public for their review and comment. The EPA will publish a Notice of

Availability of the draft EIS in the Federal Register. The comment

period on the draft EIS will be 45 days from the date the EPA notice

appears in the Federal Register . It is important that those interested

in the management of the Colville National Forest participate at that

time.

[[Page 58030]]

The Forest Service believes it is important to give reviewers

notice at this early stage of several court rulings related to public

participation in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of

draft EIS 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 EIS stage but that are not raised

until after completion of the final EIS 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 EIS.

To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues

and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the draft EIS should

be as specific as possible. It is also helpful if comments refer to

specific pages or chapters of the draft EIS. Comments may also address

the adequacy of the draft EIS 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.

The final EIS is scheduled to be available by September, 1997. In

the final EIS, the Forest Service is required to respond to substantive

comments received during the comment period for the draft EIS. The

responsible official is Colville National Forest Supervisor, Edward L.

Schultz. The responsible official will decide which, if any, of the

alternatives will be implemented. The decision and the rationale for

the decision will be documented in the Record of Decision, which will

be subject to Forest Service Appeal Regulations (36 CFR Part 215).

Dated: October 25, 1996.

Edward L. Schultz,

Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 96-28895 Filed 11-8-96; 8:45 am]

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