Clearwater National Forest, Idaho County, Idaho Spruce Moose and Moose Lake Right-of-way

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

Clearwater National Forest, Idaho County, Idaho Spruce Moose and

Moose Lake Right-of-way

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: On October 30, 1995, the Powell Ranger District, Clearwater

National Forest, began public scoping for the Spruce Moose project, a

proposed salvage timber sale and private land access request. During

1996, the environmental effects of the proposed action were analyzed.

During the course of this analysis, it was determined that potential

effects on steelhead trout (proposed for listing under the Endangered

Species Act), Bull

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Trout (listing under ESA is warranted, but precluded), spring chinook

and westslope cutthroat trout (both Sensitive Species) may be

significant enough to require an Environmental Impact Statement.

During the summer of 1996, additional field information was

gathered and used to update the proposed action as follows.

The Clearwater National Forest is planning to prepare an

environmental impact statement (EIS) to disclose the environmental

effects of a proposal to harvest 2.4 million board feet of timber,

construct 4.1 miles of new forest roads, and reconstruct 0.4 miles of

existing forest road. Included in the proposed road construction is a

request from Plum Creek Timber Company for easements across one mile of

National Forest System Land to access privately owned timberland. A

joint sediment reduction plan to repair existing sediment sources on

existing roads is also included in the proposal.

The Spruce Moose Planning Area is located northeast of the Powell

Ranger Station, Powell Ranger District, Clearwater National Forest,

Idaho County, Idaho. Proposed activities are located in the Spruce

Creek drainage. The proposal's actions are being considered together

because they represent either connected or cumulative actions as

defined by the Council on Environmental Quality (40 CFR 1508.25).

The purposes of the project are (1) to design and implement

vegetation treatments using ecosystem management principles within the

forest stands that are at high risk of change in the next decade, (2)

to design and implement a cost share road system with Plum Creek Timber

Company to provide a single road system that serves both landowners,

and (3) to restore and maintain aquatic ecosystem structure and

function to provide historic habitat conditions for aquatic species.

This project level EIS will tier to the Clearwater National Forest

Land and Resources Management Plan (Forest Plan) and Final EIS

(September, 1987), which provides overall guidance of all land

management activities on the Clearwater National Forest.

Analysis will be conducted in compliance with the Clearwater Forest

Plan lawsuit settlement agreement between the Forest Service and the

Sierra Club, et al (signed September 13, 1993).

DATES: Comments in response to this Notice of Intent concerning the

scope of the analysis should be received in writing on or before March

3, 1997 to receive timely consideration in the preparation of the Draft

EIS. The Draft EIS will be filed with the Environmental Protection

Agency in March, 1997. The Final EIS and the Record of Decision are

expected to be issued in December, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments and suggestions on the proposed action

or requests for a map of the proposed action or to be placed on the

project mailing list to Margaret Gorski, District Ranger, Powell Ranger

District, Clearwater National Forest, Lolo, Montana 59847.

RESPONSIBLE OFFICIAL: The Forest Supervisor, Clearwater National

Forest, will be the responsible official and decide on the harvest and

road construction alternatives and whether to issue access easements to

Plum Creek Timber Company.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

District Ranger, Powell Ranger District, Clearwater National Forest,

(208) 942-3113.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Plum Creek Timber Company (PCTC) requested

right-of-way access across National Forest System land in Sections 20

and 30, T38N, R17E, Boise Meridian. The purpose of this request was for

Plum Creek Timber Company to access the private land in Sections 19 and

29 for their use and enjoyment.

Access to non-Federal inholdings in governed by Section 1323(a) of

the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA).

Implementing direction for this authority is found in regulation at 36

CFR 251.110.

The Forest Service and Plum Creek Timber Company are cooperators in

a jointly constructed and maintained road system on the Powell Ranger

District. The purpose of this joint road system is to serve the access

needs of both cooperators with a single network of permanent roads

within the checkerboard land ownership portion of the Powell Ranger

District.

In 1995, the Powell District conducted an Integrated Resource

Analysis for a portion of the Spruce Creek watershed and proposed

management actions which were linked to Plum Creek Timber Company's

proposed road and request for access. This was documented in an

Integrated Resource Assessment and Position Statement.

On October 10, 1995, Plum Creek Timber Company updated its request

for access to include an easement across 200 feet of section 26, T38N,

R16E to access private land in Section 25. This new request was

included in the proposed action to properly assess the cumulative

effects of road construction and timber harvest on National Forest

resources.

Preliminary issues include the effects on timber growth and yield,

effects on old growth and snag habitat, effects on elk habitat

security, and effects on water quality and fish habitat. These issues

will be refined and developed in detail as scoping proceeds. Comments

on the issues and suggestions for additional issues are welcome in

response to this Notice of Intent.

Preliminary scoping and public involvement began on October 30,

1995, when an Integrated Resource Analysis and Position Statement was

mailed to about 100 individuals asking for comment. The

interdisciplinary team worked with the comments from this early scoping

effort to identify preliminary issues and to refine the proposed

action.

The interdisciplinary team will be working to develop a range of

alternatives to the proposed action and to assess the environmental

effects of the alternatives. One of the alternatives will be the ``No

Action'' alternative. Other alternatives will examine varying levels

and locations for the proposed activities to achieve the proposal's

purposes, as well as to respond to the environmental issues and other

resource values. Comments concerning the range of alternatives or

possible environmental effects would be useful to the team in

completing their analysis.

It is anticipated that the environmental analysis and preparation

of the draft and final environmental impact statements will take about

one year. The draft environmental impact statement can be expected in

March, 1997 and a final environmental impact statement can be expected

in December, 1997.

A 45 day comment period will be provided for the public to make

comments on the draft environmental impact statement. This comment

period will be in addition to scoping and will begin when the

Environmental Protection Agency's Notice of Availability of the Draft

EIS appears in the Federal Register. A Record of Decision will be

prepared and filed with the final environmental impact statement. A

forty-five day appeal period will be applicable.

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. To be most helpful,

comments on the draft environmental impact statement should be as

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

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the merits of the alternatives discussed (see 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 US 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.

I am the responsible official for this environmental impact

statement. My address is Clearwater National Forest, 12730 Highway

12, Orofino, ID 83544.

Dated: December 31, 1997.

James L. Caswell,

Forest Supervisor, Clearwater National Forest.

[FR Doc. 97-1186 Filed 1-16-97; 8:45 am]

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