West Mountain North Project, Boise National Forest, Idaho

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

West Mountain North Project, Boise National Forest, Idaho

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare Environmental Impact Statement.

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SUMMARY: The Cascade Range District of the Boise National Forest will

prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for an integrated

resource management project in the North Fork of the Payette River. The

entire project area is within watersheds that drain directly into

Cascade Reservoir or into the North Fork Payette River above Cascade

Reservoir. The project area is located 12 miles northwest of Cascade,

Idaho, and about 100 miles north of Boise, Idaho.

The agency invites written comments and suggestions on the scope of

the analysis. The agency also hereby gives notice of environmental

analysis decisionmaking process that will occur on the proposal so

interested and affected people are aware of how they may participate

and contribute to the final decision. At this time, no public meetings

to discuss the project are planned.

Proposed Action: Four primary objectives have been identified to

the project: (1) reduce current and future stand susceptibility to

western spruce budworm; (2) improve long-term stand growth to or near

levels indicative of healthy, sustainable forests; (3) implement the

Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Plan by reducing by 30 percent the

total phosphorus delivery from existing sources within the project

area, and resulting in an no net increase of total phosphorus from

proposed activities; and; (4) contribute to the local economy through

the supply of forest

[[Page 60159]]

products and associated employment opportunities.

The proposed action would treat a total of 1,659 acres in the

10,048-acre project area. The project area itself encompasses all of

the 2,800-acre Poison Creek Management Area 52A, and a portion of the

19,069-acre West Mountain North Management Area 52. An estimated 12.0

MMBF of timber would be harvested using ground-based (827 acres),

skyline (319 acres), and helicopter (513 acres) yarding systems. The

proposed action would employ variety of silvicutural prescriptions

including commercial thin (148 acres), improvement cut (512 acres),

sanitation/salvage (340 acres), individual tree selection (18 acres),

seed cut shelterwood (224 acres), and final removal shelterwood (417

acres). The existing transportation system would be improved to

facilitate long haul and reduce sedimentation with individual sections

of 17.9 miles of road being reconstructed. An estimated 0.8 mile of

specified road and 0.4 mile of temporary road would be constructed to

facilitate harvest. In addition, 4.9 miles of road not needed for the

long-term management of the area would be decommissioned, and, 1.8

miles closed year-round and 1.1 miles closed seasonally (September 15

to June 1) to motorized use with the exception of snowmobiles and

administrative use.

Management direction in the Boise National Forest Land and Resource

Management Plan (LRMP) of the 2,800-acre Poison Creek Management Area

(MA) 52A was developed in anticipation of the proposed ValBois Resort.

The VlBois project, which was still in its conceptual stage when the

LRMP was published in 1990, included numerous developments associated

with skiing on Forest Service administered lands with in MA 52A. Due to

a number of circumstances, the ValBois project is no longer being

considered. Although a similar proposal, WestRock, is currently under

consideration on adjacent private and State-owned lands, WestRock

officials have stated they have no intention of requesting a permit to

operate on Forest Service administered lands. Nonetheless, the LRMP

direction for MA 52A still reflects ValBois as a potential activity and

would require amending prior to implementation of the proposed action.

Given the ongoing LRMP revision and the anticipated timeframes of the

effort, proposed amendments would be specific to the West Mountain

North Project. Future management of the area would be deferred to that

prescribed in the revised LRMP. The following LRMP amendments are

included as a part of the proposed action:

Amend the Visual Quality Objectives on page IV-438 of the LRMP to

foreground retention and middleground partial retention for the West

Mountain Cascade Reservoir Road No. 422, and, middleground partial

retention for the Cascade Reservoir Area. Visual Quality Objectives

specific to Proposed Developments associated with the ValBois Resort

would not apply to this project.

Amend the standard on page IV-439 of the LRMP that limits timber

harvesting to allow management activities, including timber harvest,

proposed with the West Mountain North Project.

Preliminary Issues: Preliminary concerns with the proposed action

include: (1) impacts on phosphorus delivery to Cascade Reservoir; (2)

economic returns of the project given projected implementation costs

and revenues; (3) impacts on the visual quality of the area as seen

from sensitive viewpoints, and (4) potential impacts on boreal owl.

Possible Alternative to the Proposed Action: Two alternatives to

the proposed action have been discussed thus far: (1) a no action

alternative, and, (2) an alternative that would increase the number of

acres treated. Other alternatives may be developed as issues are

identified and information received.

Decision to be Made: The Boise National Forest Supervisor will

decide the following: Should roads be built and timber harvested within

the West Mountain North Project Area at this time, and if so, where

within the project area, and how many miles of road should be built;

and which stands should be treated and what silvicultural systems

should be use? What mitigation/watershed enhancement measures should be

applied to the project? Should the decommissioning of portions of roads

Nos. 186H1, 186C, 186A3, and other existing roads be implemented at

this time? Should the LRMP be amended to allow proposed activities in

MA 52A?

DATES: Written comments concerning the proposed project and analysis

are encouraged and should be postmarked on or before December 6, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to Keith Dimmett, Cascade

Ranger District, P.O. Box 696, Cascade, ID 83611. Comments received in

response to this request will be available for public inspection and

will be released in their entirety if requested pursuant to the Freedom

of Information Act.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Further information can be obtained

from Keith Dimmett at the address mentioned above or by calling 208-

382-7433.

SCHEDULE: Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), February 2000.

Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), May 2000.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The NFMA planning for this project was

initiated in the fall of 1997 with the Cascade Reservoir Ecosystem

Analysis at the Watershed Scale. In addition to public announcements in

The Idaho Statesman (May 14, 1998) and The Long Valley Advocate (May

13, 1998), a scoping package describing a similar proposed action was

mailed to 50 individuals and/or groups. A predecisional environmental

assessment (EA) was distributed for a 30-day comment period in November

1998. Five letters were received commenting on the EA. A Decision

Notice and Finding of No Significant Impacts was distributed in

February 1999. The Forest Supervisor withdrew that decision in April

1999 citing recent judicial interpretations of NEPA at the rationale

for preparation of a DEIS.

A large portion of an unroaded area, roughly 5,300 acres in size,

occurs within the southern portion of the West Mountain North Project

Area. Although this area was not identified in the roadless inventory

completed in preparation of the LRMP in 1990, it was identified in

September 1999 during the ongoing LRMP revision effort. While the

proposed action does not include any management activities within this

unroaded area, other alternatives developed over the course of this

analysis may include timber harvest activities within this area.

The comment period on the DEIS 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 relates to public

participation in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of

the DEIS 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 FEIS may be waived or dismissed by the courts. City

of Angoon v. Hodel, 803

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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 DEIS 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 FEIS.

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. 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: David D. Rittenhouse, Forest Supervisor,

Boise National Forest, 1249 South Vinnell Way, Suite 200, Boise, ID

83709.

Dated: October 28, 1999.

W. Wayne Patton,

Range, Watershed, Air, Minerals, Wildlife, and Fisheries Officer.

[FR Doc. 99-28846 Filed 11-3-99; 8:45 am]

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