Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 191 / Monday, October 4, 2004 / Notices 59183

approximately 11 to 12 days and older 

larvae spin a loose web of silk on leaves 

of the weed and pupate. Research 

suggests that the moth is host specific to 

only a few Lygodium species. 

Alternatives to issuing the permit were 

also examined in the environmental 

assessment, and included no action, 

herbicides, mechanical control, and 

flooding. 

We solicited comments on the 

environmental assessment for 30 days 

ending on August 2, 2004. We received 

five comments by that date. Four of the 

commenters supported the 

recommendations of the environmental 

assessment. The fifth commenter 

objected to APHIS’ performance and 

programs in general, but did not address 

the environmental assessment. 

Therefore, we are making no changes to 

the environmental assessment in 

response to this comment. 

The environmental assessment and 

finding of no significant impact may be 

viewed on the Internet at http://

www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/. In the 

middle of that page, click on 

‘‘Document/Forms Retrieval System.’’

At the next screen, click on the triangle 

beside ‘‘Permits—Environmental 

Assessments.’’ A list of documents will 

appear; the environmental assessment 

and finding of no significant impact for 

Old World climbing fern are document 

number 0038. You may request paper 

copies of the environmental assessment 

and finding of no significant impact by 

calling or writing to the person listed 

under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT. Please refer to the title of the 

environmental assessment and finding 

of no significant impact when 

requesting copies. The environmental 

assessment and finding of no significant 

impact are also available for review in 

our reading room (information on the 

location and hours of the reading room 

is listed under the heading ADDRESSES at 

the beginning of this notice). 

The environmental assessment and 

finding of no significant impact have 

been prepared in accordance with: (1) 

The National Environmental Policy Act 

of 1969 (NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 

4321 et seq.), (2) regulations of the 

Council on Environmental Quality for 

implementing the procedural provisions 

of NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500–1508), (3) 

USDA regulations implementing NEPA 

(7 CFR part 1), and (4) APHIS’ NEPA 

Implementing Procedures (7 CFR part 

372).

Done in Washington, DC, this 28th day of 

September 2004 . 

Elizabeth E. Gaston, 

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. E4–2472 Filed 10–1–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service 

Payette National Forest, ID; Revision of 

Travel Plan

AGENCY: USDA, Forest Service.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an 

environmental impact statement. 

SUMMARY: The Forest Service gives 

notice of the intent to prepare an 

environmental impact statement (EIS) to 

revise the Payette National Forest Travel 

Plan. The proposed action would 

designate a site-specific transportation 

system and prohibit indiscriminant 

cross-country traffic. The EIS will 

analyze the effects of the proposed 

action and alternatives. The Payette 

National Forest invites written 

comments and suggestions on the scope 

of analysis and the issues to address. 

The agency gives notice of the National 

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) 

analysis and decision-making process 

on the proposal so interested and 

affected members of the public may 

participate and contribute to the final 

decision.

DATES: Comments need to be received in 

writing by December 7, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to: 

Travel Plan Revision, Forest 

Supervisor’s Office, Payette National 

Forest, P.O. Box 1026, McCall, ID 83638, 

fax (208) 634–0744.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Questions about the proposed project 

and scope of analysis should be directed 

to Ana Egnew, Land Management 

Planner, Payette National Forest, P.O. 

Box 1026, McCall, ID 83638, or by 

phone to (208) 634–0624.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Purpose and Need 

The need for revision of the Travel 

Plan was identified in the 2003 Payette 

National Forest Land and Resource Plan 

(Forest Plan) (p. III–63), and in the 

Forest Service proposed rule (for Travel 

Management (July 15, 2004); 

specifically, to establish a system of 

roads and trails and areas designated for 

motor vehicle use and to prohibit the 

use of motor vehicles off the designated 

system. The purpose of the revision is 

to (1) meet Forest Plan and national 

direction, (2) designate a reasonable 

system of roads, trails, and over-snow 

use areas, (3) balance management 

considerations with recreation 

demands, (4) reduce impacts to Forest 

resources, and (5) reduce recreation user 

conflicts. The analysis will be 

conducted across the 13 Management 

Areas that comprise the 1,583,681 acres 

of the Payette National Forest outside 

designated Wilderness. 

The Proposed Action 

The proposed action would revise the 

current Travel Plan by designating a 

site-specific transportation system for 

snow-free and over-snow travel. 

Motorized snow-free travel off the 

transportation system would be 

prohibited on 1,583,681 acres (an 

increase of 544,863 acres). 

The transportation system for snowfree travel would include: 

• 1,505 miles of open roads 

(reduction of 14 miles) 

• 612 miles of seasonally open roads 

(reduction of 28 miles) 

• 76 miles of trail open to All-Terrain 

Vehicles (ATVs) (increase of 22 miles)

• 546 miles of trail open to 2-wheel 

motorized use (reduction of 98 miles) 

• 621 miles of trail open to nonmotorized travel (increase of 87 miles) 

• 2.7 miles of undetermined road 

added to the system. 

The transportation system for oversnow travel would include: 

• 183 miles of open road (unchanged) 

• 1,106,480 acres open to motorized 

activities (reduction of 17,400 acres) 

• 477,801 acres reserved for nonmotorized over-snow activities 

Responsible Official 

The responsible official is the Forest 

Supervisor of the Payette National 

Forest. 

Decision To Be Made 

The decision to be made is: whether 

to adopt the proposed revision to the 

Travel Plan, in whole, or in part, or to 

adopt another alternative, and with 

what mitigation measures and 

management requirements. 

Issues 

Preliminary issues identified by the 

Forest Service interdisciplinary team 

include effects to: water quality and 

wetlands; threatened, endangered, 

sensitive, and management indicator 

fish species and habitat; threatened, 

endangered, sensitive, and management 

indicator wildlife species and habitat; 

rare plants; and recreation 

opportunities. 

59184 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 191 / Monday, October 4, 2004 / Notices 

Range of Alternatives 

A range of reasonable alternatives will 

be considered. The no-action alternative 

will serve as a baseline for comparison 

of alternatives. The proposed action will 

be considered along with additional 

alternatives developed that meet the 

purpose and need and address 

significant issues identified during 

scoping. Alternatives may allow 

different locations, types, and seasons of 

travel activities. 

Public Participation 

Public participation will be important 

at several points during the analysis. 

This notice of intent initiates the 

scoping process. The scoping process 

will identify issues to be analyzed in 

detail and lead to the development of 

alternatives to the proposal. 

The Forest Service is seeking 

information and comments from other 

Federal, State, and local agencies; Tribal 

governments; organizations; and 

individuals who may be interested in or 

affected by the proposed action. 

Comments received in response to this 

notice, including the names and 

addresses of those who comment, will 

be part of the project record and 

available for public review. 

Public meetings are scheduled during 

the 60-day scoping period and following 

issuance of the draft EIS. The public 

scoping meetings are: September 30, in 

Riggins, Salmon River High School; 

October 6 in Weiser, Vendome 

Conference Center; October 12 in 

McCall, Forest Supervisor’s Office; 

October 14 in Council, Adams County 

Fairground Exhibit Hall; and October 21 

in New Meadows, New Meadows 

Ranger District Office. All meetings are 

4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. 

The second major opportunity for 

public input is with the draft EIS. The 

draft EIS will be filed with the 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

and is anticipated to be available for 

public review during the summer of 

2005. The comment period on the draft 

EIS will be 60 days. It is important that 

those interested in travel management 

on the Payette National Forest 

participate at that time.

The Forest Service believes it is 

important to give reviewers notice of 

several court rulings related to public 

participation in the environmental 

review process. First, reviewers of draft 

EISs 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 EIS stage, but that are 

not raised until completion of the final 

EIS, 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 

important that those interested in this 

proposed action participate by the close 

of the 60-day comment period so 

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 EIS. 

To assist the Forest Service in 

identifying and considering issues 

raised by the proposed action, 

comments on the draft EIS should be as 

specific as possible. It is also helpful if 

comments refer to specific pages or 

chapters of the draft EIS. Comments 

may also address the adequacy of the 

draft EIS 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 40 

CFR 1503.3 in addressing these points.) 

After the 60-day comment period 

ends on the draft EIS, the Forest Service 

will analyze comments received and 

address them in the final EIS. The final 

EIS is scheduled to be released in 

December 2005. In the final EIS, the 

Forest Service will respond to 

substantive comments received during 

the comment period. The Responsible 

Official (Forest Supervisor, Payette 

National Forest) will document the 

decision and rationale in a Record of 

Decision (ROD). The decision will be 

subject to review under Forest Service 

appeal regulations at 36 CFR part 215.

Dated: September 24, 2004. 

Mark J. Madrid, 

Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 04–22190 Filed 10–1–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11—M

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service 

Meeting of the Land Between the 

Lakes Advisory Board

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of meeting.

SUMMARY: The Land Between the Lakes 

Advisory Board will hold a meeting on 

Thursday, October 28, 2004. Notice of 

this meeting is given under the Federal 

Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C. App. 

2. 

The meeting agenda includes the 

following: 

(1) Welcome/Introductions/Agenda; 

(2) Advisory Board Membership; 

(3) Land and Resource Management 

Plan Update; 

(4) Conservation Education; 

(5) Four Threats; 

(6) Tour of Turkey Bay; 

(7) Board Discussion of Comments 

Received; 

(8) LBL Updates. 

The meeting is open to the public. 

Written comments are invited and may 

be mailed to: William P. Lisowsky, Area 

Supervisor, Land Between The Lakes, 

100 Van Morgan Drive, Golden Pond, 

Kentucky 42211. Written comments 

must be received at Land Between The 

Lakes by October 20, 2004, in order for 

copies to be provided to the members at 

the meeting. Board members will review 

written comments received, and at their 

request, oral clarification may be 

requested at a future meeting.

DATES: The meeting will be held on 

Thursday, October 28, 2004, 8:30 a.m. to 

3:15 p.m., c.s.t.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at 

the USDA Forest Service Administrative 

Building, Land Between the Lakes, and 

will be open to the public.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Sharon Byers, Advisory Board Liaison, 

Land Between the Lakes, 100 Van 

Morgan Drive, Golden Pond, Kentucky 

42211, (270) 924–2002.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: None.

Dated: September 24, 2004. 

William P. Lisowsky, 

Area Supervisor, Land Between the Lakes.

[FR Doc. 04–22256 Filed 10–1–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service 

Notice of Southwest Idaho Resource 

Advisory Committee Meeting

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of meeting.

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the authorities in 

the Federal Advisory Committee Act 

(Public Law 92–463) and under the 

Secure Rural Schools and Community 

Self-Determination Act of 2000 (Public 

Law 106–393), the Boise and Payette 

National Forests’ Southwest Idaho 

Resource Advisory Committee will 

conduct a business meeting, which is 

open to the public.

DATES: Wednesday, October 20, 2004, 

beginning at 10:30 a.m.