Whiskey Campo Resource Management Project, Boise National Forest, Elmore County, ID

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

Whiskey Campo Resource Management Project, Boise National Forest,

Elmore County, ID

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Revised Notice of Intent to Prepare Environmental Impact

Statement.

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SUMMARY: The proposed action for the Whiskey Campo Resource Management

Project has changed. (The original notice of intent appeared in the

Federal Register on January 5, 1998, pp. 200-201.) The fish passage

improvement activities in the original Whiskey Campo proposed action

are being implemented under Trinity Fish Passage Restoration Project

Decision Memo signed July 22, 1999. The Mountain Home Ranger District

of the Boise

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National Forest will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS)

for the remaining portions of the resource management project in the

Whiskey Campo project area, located approximately 5 miles west of

Featherville, Idaho, in the middle to upper elevation of the Trinity

Creek watershed. The project area encompasses about 12,870 acres of

National Forest System land. Approximately 5,500 acres of the project

area are located within the Whiskey Jack Inventoried Roadless Area

(RARE No. 02009), and about 900 acres of the project area are located

within the Rainbow Inventoried Roadless Area (RARE No. 02008). Access

is by Forest Development Road (FDR) 172. The project area is located

about 130 road miles east of Boise, Idaho.

The agency invites written comments and suggestions on the scope of

the analysis. The agency also hereby gives notice of the environmental

analysis and decisionmaking process that will occur on the proposal so

that interested and affected people are aware of how they may

participate and contribute to the final decision.

Proposed Action

The proposed action is nearly the same as that published in the

Federal Register January 5, 1998. It does not contain the fish passage

restoration activities, which are being implemented under the Trinity

Fish Passage Restoration Project Decision Memo. The proposed action

also has more specific activity-related numbers than the original.

Timber Stand Management Activities--Approximately 1,890 acres of

forested land would be commercially thinned and underburned with low

severity prescribed fire. Some salvage harvest of large diameter,

beetle-infested Douglas-fir would occur in these stands. On

approximately 4,580 acres of forested land, bark beetle infested and

severely dwarf mistletoe infected trees would be salvage harvested.

Helicopter yarding would be done on approximately 5,910 acres.

Skyline yarding would be done on approximately 180 acres. A combination

of tractor and off-road jammer (excavator) yarding would be done on

approximately 780 acres. Approximately 2 miles of road would be

constructed to access timber stands proposed for treatment. The newly

constructed roads would be closed to all motorized use and revegetated

following the project. One small culvert on FDR 172N would be replaced.

Three helicopter landings would be constructed and revegetated. Ten

existing helicopter landings would be used and revegetated.

Aspen Stand Rejuvenation--On approximately 400 acres of aspen

stands dispersed throughout the project area, prescribed fire and/or

harvest of invading conifer trees would be used to rejuvenate decadent

stands or maintain vigorous, young stands. These activities would

promote regeneration of aspen suckers and saplings and prevent

conversion to conifer stands.

Elk Habitat Improvement--Approximately 3.5 miles of road in the

Spring Creek drainage would be decommissioned (closed and removed from

the transportation system for future use). Approximately 5.4 miles of

road in the Spring Creek drainage would be modified from seasoned to

year-long closure. Such closures would bring the elk habitat

effectiveness of the Spring Creek drainage into compliance with the

Forest Plan.

Fish Habitat Improvements--Approximately 13.7 miles of FDR 172

would be graveled. Graveling of the road surface would help retain the

fine sediment particles on the road surface.

Travel Safety Modifications to FDR 172--Approximately 25 ``blind''

curves and narrow road sections would be modified to improve sight

distance and provide sufficient safe passing opportunities.

Preliminary Issues

Two preliminary issues have been identified.

Timber harvest would develop a portion of the Rainbow and Whiskey

Jack Inventoried Roadless Areas (IRA's), changing the wilderness

attributes on those portions. The developed portion would not be given

future consideration for wilderness designation under current Forest

Service guidelines.

Constructing roads in inventoried roadless areas is of great

concern to some publics. This is based on landscape and/or watershed

level concerns of an irreversible or irretrievable nature associated

with wildlife refugia, watershed stability, recreational opportunity,

and overall ecological concerns that are partially addressed by other

issues and effects but not in total. These landscape and watershed

level concerns are the impetus behind the Forest Service temporary

suspension of roadbuilding in inventoried roadless areas.

Possible Alternatives to the Proposed Action

Three alternatives to the proposed action have been identified. One

alternative is the no action alternatives. The issue regarding timber

harvest developing inventoried roadless areas generated an alternative

that includes the proposed action's activities except that no

activities would occur in the inventoried roadless areas except for

prescribed fire in the Whiskey Jack Inventoried Roadless Areas. The

issue regarding road construction in inventoried roadless areas

generated an alternative that includes the proposed action's activities

except that no new road construction or ground-based logging systems

would be used in the Whiskey Jack or Rainbow Inventoried Roadless

Areas.

Decisions To Be Made

The Boise National Forest Supervisor will decide the following: (1)

Whether to conduct timber management and harvest activities now or to

defer them until a later time; (2) if now, which acres to treat and

which logging systems to use; (3) what, if any, acres to treat with

prescribed fire; (4) what, if any, road graveling to do; (5) what, if

any, road obliteration and/or road closure to do; and (6) what, if any,

road reconstruction or construction to do.

Schedule

Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), September 1999. Final,

January 2000.

Public Involvement

Scoping was initiated in January 1998 with a Notice of Intent in

the Federal Register, a legal notice in The Idaho Statesman, and a

letter to individuals, groups, and agencies who have expressed an

interest in this type of project. Comments were used to determine

relevant issues and analysis needs. The same individuals, groups, and

agencies were notified about the decision to revise the Whiskey Campo

proposed action, and they received a copy of the Trinity Fish Passage

Restoration Project Decision Memo.

Comments

Written comments concerning the revised project and analysis are

encouraged and should be postmarked within 30 days following

publication of this announcement in the Federal Register. Comments

received in response to this notice will be released in their entirety

if requested pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act. Mail comments

to Jane Beaulieu, District Planner, Mountain Home Ranger District, 2180

American Legion Boulevard, Mountain Home, ID 83647. For further

information, contact Frank Marsh, Project Leader, at 208-587-7961.

The comment period on the DEIS will be 45 days from the date the

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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

DEIS's 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 DEIS stage but are not raised until after

completion of the final environmental impact statement may be waived or

dismissed by the courts. City of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F.2d 1016, 1002

(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 on the proposed action, comments on the DEIS should be as

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

pages or chapters of the draft statement. Comments may also address the

adequacy of the DEIS 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 on the DEIS will be released

in their entirety if requested pursuant to the Freedom of Information

Act.

Responsible Official

David D. Rittenhouse, Forest Supervisor, Boise National Forest,

1249 South Vinnell Way, Suite 200, Boise, ID 83709.

Dated: August 12, 1999.

David D. Rittenhouse,

Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 99-21675 Filed 8-24-99; 8:45 am]

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