Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 142 / Wednesday, July 25, 2007 / Notices 40827 

meats, poultry and fish; dairy products; 

processed fruits and vegetables; and fats 

and oils). Each component is weighted 

using the relative weight as determined 

by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 

value of food assistance is adjusted each 

July 1 by the annual percentage change 

in a three-month average value of the 

Price Index for March, April and May 

each year. The three-month average of 

the Price Index increased by 9.9 percent 

from 149.56 for March, April and May 

of 2006 to 164.34 for the same three 

months in 2007. When computed on the 

basis of unrounded data and rounded to 

the nearest one-quarter cent, the 

resulting national average for the period 

July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2008 will 

be 18.75 cents per meal. This is an 

increase of 1.75 cents from the school 

year 2007 (July 1, 2006 through June 30, 

2007) rate. 

Authority: Sections 6(c)(1)(A) and (B), 

6(e)(1), and 17(h)(1)(B) of the National School 

Lunch Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 

1755(c)(1)(A) and (B) and (e)(1), and 

1766(h)(1)(B)). 

Dated: July 19, 2007. 

Roberto Salazar, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. E7–14377 Filed 7–24–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–30–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Motorized Travel Management Plan, 

Coconino National Forest; Coconino 

and Yavapai Counties, AZ 

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an 

environmental impact statement. 

SUMMARY: The Coconino National Forest 

will prepare an environmental impact 

statement (EIS) to disclose the effects of 

designating a system of roads, trails and 

areas for motorized vehicle use, thereby 

developing a motorized travel 

management plan. Such a plan is 

needed to meet new National travel 

management regulations and to improve 

the management and enforcement of 

motor vehicle use on National Forest 

Service lands. This notice describes the 

components to be included in the 

motorized travel plan, proposed forest 

plan amendment, decisions to be made, 

estimated dates pertaining to the 

project, information concerning public 

participation, and the responsible 

agency official. The project area is 

defined by the boundaries of the 

Coconino National Forest, and includes 

the Peaks, Mormon Lake, Red Rock, and 

Mogollon Rim Ranger Districts. 

DATES: Written comments to be 

considered in the preparation of the 

draft environmental impact statement 

(DEIS) should be submitted within 45 

days of the date of publication of this 

Notice of Intent in the Federal Register. 

The DEIS is expected to be published in 

the summer of 2008. The final 

environmental impact statement (FEIS) 

and record of decision (ROD) is 

expected to be available by early 2009. 

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to 

Nora Rasure, Forest Supervisor, ATTN: 

TMR, 1824 S Thompson St, Flagstaff, 

AZ, 86001, Fax: (928) 527–3620, E-mail: 

comments-southwesterncoconino@fs.fed.us. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jim 

Beard, Project Leader, 1824 S Thompson 

St, Flagstaff, AZ, 86001, (928) 527–3600. 

Additional information about this 

project can be found at http:// 

www.fs.fed.us/r3/coconino/tmr.shtml. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

November 9, 2005, the Forest Service 

published final travel management 

regulations governing off-highway 

vehicles (OHV) and other motor 

vehicles on national forests and 

grasslands. The new regulations 

amended part 212, subpart B of part 

251, subpart A of part 261, and removed 

part 295 of title 36 of the Code of 

Federal Regulations (CFR). These three 

regulations are referred to together as 

the TMR (Travel Management Rule). 

The TMR was developed in response to 

the substantial increase in use of OHVs 

on National Forest System lands and 

related damage to forest resources 

caused by unmanaged OHV use over the 

past 30 years. The regulations 

implement Executive Order (EO) 11644 

and EO 11989 regarding off-road use of 

motor vehicles on Federal lands. 

The regulations provide ‘‘for a system 

of National Forest System (NFS) roads, 

NFS trails, and areas of NFS lands that 

are designated for motor vehicle use. 

Motor vehicle use off designated roads 

and trails and outside of designated 

areas is prohibited (36 CFR 212.50).’’

Designated routes and areas shall be 

identified on a motor vehicle use map 

(MVUM) and made available to the 

public. Currently, the Coconino 

National Forest does not restricted 

motor vehicles to designated roads, 

trails or areas; cross-country motorized 

travel is generally permitted except in 

areas that are signed closed or restricted 

to seasonal use. 

In order to comply with the new 

travel management regulations, the 

forest initiated a forestwide travel 

analysis in 2006. The intent of the travel 

analysis process was to help the forest 

determine the minimum transportation 

system necessary to provide safe and 

efficient travel and for administration, 

utilization, and protection of NFS lands 

(36 CFR 212.5(b)). Key to this process, 

the forest hosted several open houses in 

northern and central Arizona during the 

fall of 2006 and attended additional 

meetings since then, as requested, in 

order to collect ideas regarding 

motorized forest travel from local 

citizens, forest users, state, county, local 

and tribal governments, and other 

Federal agencies. The proposed action 

represents a synthesis of public 

comment and Forest Service specialist 

recommendations gathered during the 

travel analysis process. 

Purpose and Need for Action 

The purpose of this project is to 

designate a socially, economically, and 

environmentally sustainable forest 

transportation system that will 

accommodate motorized access needs 

on the Coconino National Forest. There 

is a need for amending Coconino Forest 

Plan direction to prohibit cross-country 

motorized travel and remove the road 

density direction. There is a need for 

reducing the number of roads across the 

forest and to close roads that conflict 

with resource protection goals outlined 

in the Coconino Forest plan (1987, as 

amended). There is a need to continue 

providing limited motorized use off of 

designated routes to existing dispersed 

camping sites/areas. This action 

responds to the new travel regulations at 

36 CFR 212. 

Proposed Action 

For the purposes of this project and 

notice, ‘‘route’’ is a general term that 

refers to a road or motorized trail 

mapped to a location on the ground. 

The term ‘‘road’’ or ‘‘trail’’ is defined as 

a National Forest System road or trail 

that is designated for motor vehicle use 

pursuant to 36 CFR 212.51. A ‘‘usercreated’’ or ‘‘unauthorized’’ route is a 

road or motorized trail not designated 

for motor vehicle use pursuant to 36 

CFR 212.51. User-created routes have 

generally developed without agency 

authorization, environmental analysis, 

or public involvement and do not have 

the same status as NFS roads or tails 

included in the forest transportation 

system. To meet the project’s purpose 

and need, the following actions are 

proposed: 

Close 1,500 miles of existing open 

roads. In this case, close means it will 

be closed to public travel. Some of these 

roads will be retained for periodic 

administrative use only (maintenance 

Level 1) and others will be 

decommissioned (removed from the 

forest inventory). The most relevant 


rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
40828 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 142 / Wednesday, July 25, 2007 / Notices 

aspect of this action is closing the road 

to public travel. Decisions to obliterate 

decomissioned roads are outside the 

scope of this project because they 

require further site-specific 

environmental analysis and clearances 

before being undertaken; 

Add 40 miles of user-created routes to 

the forest transportation system. These 

routes will be managed as roads and 

will be open to public travel; 

Allow roadside parking within one 

vehicle length from the edge of the road 

surface; 

Prohibit motorized travel off of 

designated routes for the purpose of big 

game retrieval; 

Allow motor vehicles to travel 100 

feet off designated routes for the 

purpose of accessing existing dispersed 

camping sites. User-created routes that 

access additional existing dispersed 

camping sites beyond the 100 foot limit 

will also be designated for motorized 

use. These routes will be shown as spur 

roads on the MVUM. Existing dispersed 

campsites will be displayed on a 

supplementary map to the MVUM and/ 

or signed on the ground; and 

Amend the Coconino National Forest 

Plan to prohibit off-road driving on the 

entire forest, remove road density by 

vegetation type direction, and remove 

any references to ‘‘off-road driving’’

currently in the plan in order to be 

consistent with the language and intent 

in 36 CFR 212. 

This action, in conjunction with 

existing motorized trails and the Cinder 

Hills OHV area, will result in 

approximately 3,950 miles of designated 

NFS routes and one 13,711-acre area 

generally open to motor vehicles on the 

Coconino National Forest. Roads within 

existing seasonal closure areas (Nordic 

Center, Wing Mountain, Pine Grove, 

Rattlesnake, Woods, Cottonwood Basin, 

Anderson Mesa/Antelope, Lower Lake 

Mary Bald Eagle closure) will continue 

to only be open seasonally to motor 

vehicles. 

Possible Alternatives 

In addition to the Proposed Action, 

the No Action alternative will be 

analyzed. The Forest Service is required 

to analyze the ‘‘No Action’’ alternative 

under the provisions of NEPA (40 CFR 

1502.14). No Action will consider the 

effects of not making any changes to 

forest’s current road system and not 

prohibiting motorized cross-country 

travel. Additional alternatives may be 

developed in response to significant 

issues brought up during public 

scoping. 

Responsible Official 

The responsible official for this 

project is the Coconino National Forest 

Supervisor. 

Nature of Decision To Be Made 

Items in this decision include: 

Changes to the existing road system; 

changes to existing motorized trails and 

areas open to cross-country motorized 

travel; the distance motor vehicles may 

travel off of specific designated routes 

for the purpose of dispersed camping; 

and language and content changes to the 

Coconino Forest Plan via a forest plan 

amendment. The decision will be based 

on a consideration of the environmental 

effects of implementing the proposed 

action or alternatives developed in 

response to significant issues. The 

Forest Supervisor may select the 

proposed action, an alternative analyzed 

in detail, or a modified proposed action 

or alternative within the project’s range 

of alternatives. 

Scoping Process 

Scoping is an ongoing procedure used 

to identify important issues and 

determine the extent of analysis 

necessary for an informed decision on a 

proposed action. This Notice of Intent 

serves as formal initiation of the scoping 

process. The Forest Service is seeking 

comments from individuals, 

organizations, and local, state and 

Federal agencies that may be interested 

in or affected by the proposed action. 

Comments may pertain to the nature 

and scope of the environmental, social, 

and economic issues, and possible 

alternatives related to the development 

of the motorized travel plan and EIS. A 

copy of the proposed action has been 

sent to potentially affected persons and 

those that have expressed an interest in 

this project during the travel analysis 

process. Others may have their names 

added to the project mailing list at any 

time by submitting a request to: Jim 

Beard, Project Leader, 1824 S Thompson 

St., Flagstaff, AZ, 86001, E-mail: 

coment-southwesterncoconino@fs.fed.us. 

A series of open houses are scheduled 

to further explain the proposed action 

and to provide an opportunity for public 

input. Open houses are planned at the 

following locations and dates: 

July 31, Flagstaff, AZ, Sinagua High 

School, 5–8 p.m. 

August 1, Happy Jack, AZ, Happy Jack 

Lodge, 5–8 p.m. 

August 2, Camp Verde, AZ, Cliff Castle 

Casino, 5–8 p.m. 

August 4, Flagstaff, AZ, Sinagua High 

School, 12–5 p.m. 

Preliminary Issues 

During the public collaboration phase 

of the travel analysis process, an issue 

was brought forward about the lack of 

motorized trails in the forest, especially 

after the forest prohibits cross-country 

motorized travel. The Coconino 

National Forest can consider 

alternatives to designate additional 

motorized trails to the forest 

transportation system. More specific 

route location information will be 

required in order to fully develop and 

analyze this alternative. New routes will 

be assessed using both 36 CFR 212.55(b) 

criteria for motorized trails, as well as 

consistency with Coconino Forest Plan 

management direction. 

Other issues brought forward during 

the travel analysis process included offroad access for firewood gathering and 

grazing allotment management. As per 

the TMR, motor vehicle use authorized 

under a permit is exempted from the 

route and area designations. The 

necessity of using motor vehicles off of 

designated routes should be articulated 

in the permit and where necessary, 

would be analyzed and authorized 

under a separate NEPA decision (it is 

outside the scope of this project). 

Additional issues during travel 

analysis included off-road access for big 

game retrieval and dispersed camping. 

The forest is not proposing to allow 

motor vehicles off of designated routes 

for big game retrieval because our 

preliminary analysis found that the 

proposed transportation system will 

provide adequate and reasonable access 

to hunters within all game management 

units across the forest; 79 percent of the 

forest will remain within 0.5 miles of a 

designated open road. The proposed 

action includes limited use of motor 

vehicles off of designated routes for the 

purpose of dispersed camping and 

addresses issues related to dispersed 

camping access. 

An issue regarding motorized access 

to non-motorized areas by people with 

disabilities is addressed by existing 

Federal laws, regulations, and policies, 

which do not require areas that prohibit 

motor vehicle use to make exceptions 

because a person has a disability. Any 

wheelchair or mobility device, as 

defined by the American with 

Disabilities Act (ADA), may continue to 

be used wherever foot travel is 

permitted. 

Comment Requested 

This notice of intent initiates the 

scoping process which will guide the 

development of the environmental 

impact statement. 


rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 142 / Wednesday, July 25, 2007 / Notices 40829 

Early Notice of Importance of Public 

Participation in Subsequent 

Environmental Review 

A DEIS will be prepared for comment. 

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 related to public 

participation in the environmental 

review process. First, reviewers of a 

draft EIS 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 after completion of the 

final EIS 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 EIS. 

To assist the Forest Service in 

identifying and considering issues and 

concerns on 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 statement. 

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 at 40 CFR 1503.3 in addressing 

these points. 

Comments received, including the 

names and addresses of those who 

comment, will be considered part of the 

public record on this proposal and will 

be available for public inspection. 

Comments submitted anonymously will 

be accepted and considered; however, 

those who submit anonymous 

comments will 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 if 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. 

(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 1508.22; 

Forest Service Handbook 1909.15, Section 

21) 

Dated: July 18, 2007. 

Nora B. Rasure, 

Forest Supervisor, Coconino National Forest. 

[FR Doc. 07–3618 Filed 7–24–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Beartooth Ranger District Travel 

Management Plan, Custer National 

Forest; Sweet Grass, Park, Stillwater, 

and Carbon Counties, MT 

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice; intent to prepare 

environmental impact statement. 

SUMMARY: The Forest Service will 

prepare an Environmental Impact 

Statement (EIS) to disclose the effects of 

designating National Forest System 

roads, trails, and areas available for 

public motorized use and changing pack 

and saddle stock use on certain nonmotorized trails on the Beartooth Ranger 

District, Custer National Forest. The 

decision will be to determine whether to 

include routes that are not currently 

National Forest System roads, trials, and 

areas for public motorized use on the 

Beartooth Ranger District, establish a 

season of use and/or type of vehicle use 

for roads, trails, and areas designated for 

public motorized use, change dispersed 

vehicle camping designations, and 

restrict pack and saddle stock use on 

select non-motorized trails. A National 

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) 

decision is not required to designate 

roads, trails, and areas for public 

motorized use that are currently part of 

the National Forest System of roads, 

trails and areas. 

Once a decision is made, a Motor 

Vehicle Use Map (MVUM) will be 

prepared, in compliance with the 2005 

Forest Service Travel Management Rule 

(36 CFR Part 212). The MVUM will 

show all the routes that are designated 

for public motorized use on the 

Beartooth Ranger District. The MVUM 

will be the primary tool used to 

determine compliance and enforcement 

with motorized vehicle use designations 

on the ground. Those existing routes 

and other non-system routes not 

designated open on the MVUM will be 

legally closed to motorized travel. The 

decisions on motorized travel may 

include motorized over-the-snow travel. 

DATES: The draft environmental impact 

statement is planned to be released in 

October 2007 and the final 

environmental impact statement is 

planned for release in June 2008. The 

project was initially released for public 

scoping January 30, 2004 through May 

1, 2004. However, the scooping period 

was extended to September 1, 2004 due 

to great public interest and the many 

requests asking for an extension of the 

scoping period through the field season. 

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to 

Beartooth Ranger District Travel 

Management Plan, Custer National 

Forest, 1310 Main Street, Billings, MT 

59105 or call (406) 657–6205 extension 

225. 

If you prefer, you can submit 

comments on the internet at commentsnorthern-custer-beartooth@fs.fed.us by 

typing on the subject line ‘‘Beartooth RD 

Travel Management Plan.’’

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Doug Epperly, Project Coordinator, at 

(406) 657–6205 ext. 225. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Purpose and Need for Action 

The purpose of the proposal is to 

designate a system of roads, trails, and 

areas for motor vehicle use, including 

over-the-snow travel and existing 

recreation use, on the Beartooth Ranger 

District, Custer National Forest. The 

system of roads, trails, and areas to be 

designated will be consistent with the 

laws, regulations, and policies 

governing the management of National 

Forest System lands. Specifically, this 

includes the Forest Service 2005 Travel 

Management Rule (36 CFR part 212), the 

January 2001 Off-Highway Vehicle 

Record of Decision and Plan 

Amendment for Montana, North Dakota, 

and Portions of South Dakota (hereafter 

Tri-state OHV Plan), the subsequent 

Forest Plan Amendment Number 39, the 

1987 Beartooth Travel Plan, and the 

Custer National Forest and National 

Grasslands Land and Resource 

Management Plan (hereafter referred to 


rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES