Coeur d'Alene Beetle Project, Coeur d'Alene River Ranger District, Idaho Panhandle National Forests, Kootenai and Shoshone Counties Idaho

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

Coeur d'Alene Beetle Project, Coeur d'Alene River Ranger

District, Idaho Panhandle National Forests, Kootenai and Shoshone

Counties Idaho

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

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

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SUMMARY: The USDA Forest Service will prepare an environmental impact

statement (EIS) to disclose the potential environmental effects of

proposed activities in forest stands infested with Douglas-fir bark

beetle. Activities include reducing fuels in urban interface areas,

restoring historic vegetation patterns in areas of significant

mortality, and accomplishing other ecosystem restoration opportunities

to benefit aquatic, watershed and wildlife habitat areas in the western

and central portions of the Coeur d'Alene River Ranger District.

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

December 17, 1998. The draft environmental impact statement is expected

to be filed with the

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Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and available for public review

in January, 1999. A Final Environmental Impact Statement will be

published no sooner than February 16, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments and suggestions on the proposal or

requests to be placed on the project mailing list to Susan Jeheber-

Mathews, Coeur d'Alene River Ranger District, 2502 East Sherman Ave.,

Coeur d'Alene ID 83814-5899.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Sherri Lionberger at Coeur d'Alene River Ranger District, 2502 East

Sherman Ave., Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814-5899 (208) 664-2318.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Snow, ice and wind during the winter of

1996-97 damaged trees on the Idaho Panhandle National Forests (IPNF).

These events created a tremendous amount of forest debris on the ground

in many areas including tops, limbs, and standing dead and down trees.

Douglas-fir bark beetle populations increased after breeding in the

winter storm damaged and weakened trees. Standing trees were attacked

in the spring and summer of 1998. Aerial detection surveys conducted in

1998 showed extensive numbers of dead, mature Douglas-fir trees on

national forest system, state, and private lands, especially in areas

of past ice and winter storm damage.

Since the bark beetle outbreak is so widespread, we recognize there

is not much we can do to control or stop it. There is, however, an

opportunity to care for the lands affected by the beetle by focusing on

restoration of the ecosystems where the beetle is causing significant

amounts of the Douglas-fir trees to die.

With the amount of downed fuels and high level of public use in

certain areas, the risk of severe fires is much higher. Fires igniting

in these areas will be more difficult to control and the increased fuel

loading is likely to result in more intense fires. Highly used

recreation areas and areas adjacent to private land are particularly

vulnerable because the potential for ignition is greater. In areas

where urban or private values are at risk due to fuel accumulations

related to the Douglas-fir beetle outbreak, fuels would be treated by

timber harvest, burning and/or piling so as to reduce the risk of

losing these values to wildfire.

In many of the beetle-attacked stands, there is almost twice as

much Douglas-fir on the landscape than what was historically present,

and a significant decrease of seral species such as ponderosa pine,

white pine and larch, which are more resistant to insects and some

diseases. In these areas, the intent would be to restore stand

composition and structure to more closely resemble historic vegetation

conditions. Regeneration harvest activities would be proposed in stands

of at least five acres in size where greater than 50% of the stand

within the area is projected to die from the current Douglas-fir beetle

outbreak. Activities include harvest, site preparation and or fuels

hazard reduction with fire or by mechanical methods and tree planting.

In stands affected by Douglas-fir beetle that do not meet criteria

for urban interface or vegetation restoration, selective harvest

treatment activities would be proposed in stands where less than 50% of

the stand within the area is projected to die from the current Douglas-

fir beetle outbreak and also in areas of special management need or

where public safety issues are a concern. Activities include harvest

and fuel hazard reduction by fire or mechanical methods.

Aquatic, watershed and wildlife restoration activities would

include closing or obliterating roads for watershed health and wildlife

security and modifying, by reconstruction, other road elements that

pose risks to watersheds. These activities may not be associated with

timber sales. Where activities are associated with timber sales and

along haul routes, watershed restoration would be achieved when

practical.

Prescribed fire used to reduce fuel hazard and to prepare sites for

regeneration would not be limited only to timber harvest areas but may

also be used where harvest is not practical.

Pest management techniques, including application of pheromones to

protect high valued stands, would be used in those areas where such

treatment would likely be effective.

As part of the proposed action, timber harvest will not occur in

(1) Allocated old-growth that maintains old-growth characteristics, (2)

Riparian Habitat Conservation Areas, (3) Inventoried Roadless Areas,

(4) stands where a minimum number of snags can not be maintained, (5)

areas of known populations of sensitive plant species, (6) areas where

they result in a likely to adversely affect determination for

Threatened or Endangered Species, (7) areas where harvest can affect

sphagnum peatlands, and (8) proposed or designated Research Natural

Areas. In addition, no permanent roads will be constructed as part of

the Proposed Action. Temporary roads may be a part of the proposed

action.

Preliminary issues identified are loss of road access, risk of fire

in untreated areas, loss of timber value, effects on plants, wildlife

and fish, and amount of ecosystem restoration accomplished.

The Forest Service will consider a range of alternatives. One of

these will be the ``no action'' alternative, under which there would be

no change from current management of the Forest. Additional

alternatives will represent a range of strategies to accomplish the

goals of this project. The Idaho Panhandle National Forests Land and

Resource Management Plan provides guidance for management objectives

within the potentially affected area through its goals, objectives,

standards and guidelines, and management area direction. Inland Native

Fish Strategy guidelines (USDA Forest Service, 1995) supersede Forest

Plan guidelines established for riparian areas.

Public participation will begin with the publication of this

notice. Comments provided by the public and other agencies will be used

to develop alternative strategies to address damage to timber as a

result of beetle infestations in the Idaho Panhandle National Forests.

The public is encouraged to visit with Forest Service officials during

the analysis and prior to the decision. The Forest Service is also

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 actions.

The draft environmental impact statement is expected to be filed

with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and available for public

review in January, 1999. At that time, the EPA will publish a Notice of

Availability of the draft environmental impact statement in the Federal

Register. The comment period on the draft environmental impact

statement will be 45 days from the date the EPA publishes the Notice of

Availability in the Federal Register. A final environmental impact

statement will be published after all comments are reviewed and

responded to. One Record of Decision will be published at that time.

The comment period on the draft environmental impact statement will

be 45 days from the date the Environmental Protection Agency publishes

the Notice of Availability in the Federal Register.

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

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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 but

that are not raised until after completion of the final environmental

statement 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 environmental impact statement.

To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues

and concerns regarding the proposed action, comments on the draft

environmental impact statement should be as specific as possible. It is

also helpful if comments refer to specific pages or chapters of the

draft environmental impact statement. Comments may also address the

adequacy of the draft environmental impact statement 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.

Comments received in response to this solicitation, including names

and addresses of those who comment, will be considered part of the

public record on this proposed action and will be available for public

inspection. Comments submitted anonymously will be accepted and

considered; however, those who submit anonymous comments may not have

standing to appeal the subsequent decision under 36 CFR part 215.

Additionally, pursuant to 7 CFR 1.27(d), any person may request the

agency to withhold a submission from the public record by showing how

the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) permits such confidentiality.

Persons requesting such confidentiality should be aware that, under the

FOIA, confidentiality may be granted in only very limited

circumstances, such as to protect trade secrets. The Forest Service

will inform the requester of the agency's decision regarding the

request for confidentiality, and where the request is denied, the

agency will return the submission and notify the requester that the

comments may be resubmitted with or without name and address within a

specified number of days.

I am the responsible official for this environmental impact

statement and will decide which projects will be implemented. My

address is Coeur d'Alene River Ranger District, 2502 East Sherman Ave.,

Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814-5899.

Dated: November 9, 1998.

Susan Jeheber-Matthews,

District Ranger.

[FR Doc. 98-30657 Filed 11-16-98; 8:45 am]

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