Bull Lake Estates Access; Kootenai National Forest, Lincoln County, Montana

SUMMARY: A Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact

Statement for the Bull Lake Easement was published in the Federal

Register (60 FR 6692) on February 3, 1995. The project analysis was

deferred shortly thereafter pending further information on the proposed

action. This notice is a revision of the original notice of intent as

follows: The proposed action would be to grant an initial easement to

the landowner and reconstruct the road to a width of 24 feet. The DEIS

is expected to be filed with the EPA and available for public review in

the spring of 1997.

The EIS will tier to the Kootenai National Forest Land and Resource

Management Plan and Final EIS of September 1987, which provides overall

guidance for forest management of the area.

DATES: Written comments and suggestions should be received on or before

January 31, 1997.

ADDRESSES: The Responsible Official is Robert L. Schrenk, Forest

Supervisor, Kootenai National Forest. Written comments and suggestions

concerning the scope of the analysis should be sent to Michael L.

Balboni, District Ranger, Three Rivers Ranger District, 1437 N. Hwy 2,

Troy, Montana 59935.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Contact Mark Natale, Inderdisciplinary Team Leader, Three Rivers Ranger

District, 1437 N. Hwy 2, Troy, MT 59935. Phone: (406) 295-4693.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The private land lies on the west side of

Bull Lake and vehicle access is via Forest Service road #398 and #8019.

A portion of road #8019 is currently closed yearlong to motorized use.

The decision area is located within the grizzly bear recovery area

within the Cabinet Yaak Ecosystem.

Propposed Action: The Kootenai National Forest is proposing to

grant an easement on approximately 1.0 mile of road #398 and 2.0 miles

of road #8019 to access a subdivision on private land that has received

conditional approval from Lincoln County, Mt. If approved, the road

would then be reconstructed to meet current road standards. The roads

would be upgraded where needed to provide a 24 ft. driving surface.

The Kootenai Forest Plan provides guidance for management

activities within the potentially affected area through its goals,

objectives, standards and guidelines, and management area direction.

The area of the proposed easement would occur within Management Areas 6

and 11. Road reconstruction would occur in these two management areas.

Below is a brief description of the applicable management direction.

Management Area 6--These are recreational areas (campgrounds, boat

ramps, picnic areas, etc.). There is no restriction on easements within

this management area.

Management Area 11--These are areas of big game winter range that

allow for easement while including provisions for scheduling to prevent

conflicts during periods of wildlife use.

The EIS will analyze the direct, indirect, and cumulative

environmental effects of the alternatives. Past, present, and projected

activities on both private and National Forest lands will be

considered. The EIS will disclose the analysis of site-specific

mitigation measures and their effectiveness.

Preliminary Issues: Several preliminary issues of concern have been

identified by the Forest Service. These issues are briefly described

below:

How would the proposed action affect the water quality in

Bull Lake?

How would the proposed action affect threatened,

endangered and sensitive species in the area?

How would the proposed action affect big game winter range

use?

How would the proposed action affect dispersed recreation

use including effects on cultural resource sites?

Other issues commonly associated with such activities include:

effects on soils, old growth and visual resources. This list may be

verified, expanded, or modified based on public scoping for this

proposal.

Decisions To Be Made: The Kootenai Forest Supervisor will decide

the following:

Whether or not to grant the easement and allow road

reconstruction to provide for access to the private land?

What mitigation measures would be required for protection

of National Forest resources?

If Forest Plan exception or amendments are necessary to

proceed with the proposed action within the decision area?

Public Involvement and Scoping: Public participation is an

important part of the analysis process, commencing with the initial

scoping process (40 CFR 1501.7). Scoping will take place in December

1996 and January 1997. An Open House will be scheduled in January 1997

in Troy, MT. The public is encouraged to take part in the process. 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. This input will be used in preparation of the draft and final

EIS.

The scoping process will include:

Identifying potential issues.

Identifying major issues to be analyzed in depth.

Identify alternatives to the proposed action.

Exploring additional alternatives which will be derived

from issues recognized during scoping activities.

Identifying potential environmental effects of this

project and alternatives (i.e. direct, indirect, and cumulative effects

and connected actions).

The analysis will consider a range of alternatives, including the

proposed action, no action, and other reasonable action alternatives.

Estimated Dates for Filing: The draft Bull Lake Estates Access EIS

is expected to be field with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

and to be available for public review by April 1997. At that time EPA

will publish a

[[Page 66252]]

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

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

publishes the Notice of Availability in the Federal Register. It is

very important that those interested in the management of this area

participate at that time.

The final EIS is scheduled to be completed by July, 1997. In the

final EIS, the Forest Service is required to respond to comments and

responses received during the comment period that pertain to the

environmental consequences discussed in the draft EIS and applicable

laws, regulations, and regulations, and policies considered in making a

decision regarding the proposal.

Reviewer's Obligations: The Forest Service believes, at this early

stage, 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 at the draft environmental impact statement stage 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 for the Forest

Service at a time when it can meaningfully consider and respond to them

in the final EIS.

To be most helpful, comments on he draft EIS should be as specific

as possible and may address the adequacy of the statement or the merit

of the alternatives discussed. 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.

Responsible Official: Robert L. Schrenk, Forest Supervisor,

Kootenai National Forest, 506 US Highway 2 West, Libby, MT 59923 is the

Responsible Official. As the Responsible Official I will decide if the

proposed project will be implemented. I will document the decision and

reasons for the decision in the Record of Decision. That decision will

be subject to Forest Service Appeal Regulations.

Dated: December 5, 1996.

Robert L. Schrenk,

Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 96-31915 Filed 12-16-96; 8:45 am]

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