42742 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 153 / Friday, August 8, 1997 / Notices

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

Supplement for Hamm-Hasloe

Reforestation; Stanislaus National

Forest, Groveland Ranger District;

Notice of Intent To Prepare a

Supplement to an Environmental

Impact Statement

The Department of Agriculture, Forest

Service will prepare a supplement to the

Hamm-Hasloe environmental impact

statement (EIS) for a proposal to reforest

the Hamm-Hasloe Fire Area which was

burned in the Stanislaus Complex Fires

of 1987. An estimated 45 units,

approximately 1,500 acres, (the original

project area totals 15,045 acres) will be

analyzed due to changing conditions on

the ground since the original decision

was made.

The project area is located in both

Tuolumne and Mariposa Counties in the

following townships, ranges and

sections (Mount Diablo Meridian):

Portions of sections 25, 26, T.1S.,

R.16E.. Portions of sections 7, 16, 17, 21,

26–28, 34–36, T.1S., R.17E.. Portions of

sections 1, 3–5, 10–12, 14, 22–26, 32,

34, 35, T.2S., R.17E.. Portions of

sections 5–8, 17, 18, 30, T.2S., R.18E..

Portions of sections 1, 5, T.3S., R.17E..

This analysis and referenced

document will follow the direction

contained in the Record of Decision for

the Final Environmental Impact

Statement for Vegetation Management

for Reforestation in Region Five,

California which was signed February

13, 1989 by Regional Forester Paul

Barker. The selected alternative in this

Record of Decision calls for local

management flexibility in selecting the

appropriate vegetation management

methods for reforestation. The actions

proposed in the Hamm-Hasloe

Reforestation EIS Supplement will also

be consistent with the Stanislaus

National Forest Land and Resource

Management Plan.

Units will be evaluated for site

preparation prior to tree planting. Only

these treatments will be modified under

this supplement, subsequent tree

planting and release treatments are

already covered in the existing EIS and

will still be implemented as analyzed

under that document. Treatments

analyzed will include; mechanical and

hand treatments, aerial and ground

application of herbicides, and control

burning. Alternatives developed could

include combinations of treatments as

well as no action. Most of the new

treatment prescriptions will involve

removal of brush which is now too tall

to spray by hand.

Federal, State, and local agencies, and

interested individuals or groups are

invited to participate in the scoping

process. Letters will be sent to all

individuals and groups who received a

copy of the original EIS and expressed

interest and concerns during the

original project scoping. No scoping

meetings are planned for this project.

This process will include:

1. Identification of potential issues or

concerns.

2. Identification of issues to be analyzed

in depth.

3. Elimination of issues which have

been covered by a previous

environmental review.

4. Determination of potential

cooperating agencies and assignment

of responsibilities.

Following the environmental analysis

the Supplement is expected to be made

available for public review by October

1997. The Supplement and Record of

Decision is estimated to be completed

by November 1997.

The comment period on the draft

supplement will be 45 days from the

date the Environmental Protection

Agency’s notice of availability appears

in the Federal Register. It is very

important that those interested in the

management of the Hamm-Hasloe area

participate at that time. To be the most

helpful, comments should be as specific

as possible and may address the

adequacy of the statement or the merits

of the alternatives discussed (see The

Council on Environmental Quality

Regulations for implementing the

procedural provisions of the National

Environmental Policy Act at 40 CFR

1503.3). In addition, Federal court

decisions have established that

reviewers must structure their

participation in the environmental

review of the proposal so that it is

meaningful and alerts an agency to the

reviewers’ position and contentions,

Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v

NRDC, 435 U.S. 519, 553 (1978), and

that environmental objections that could

have been raised at the draft stage may

be waived if not raised until after

completion of the final document.

Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v Harris, 490

F. Supp. 1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980).

The reason for this is to ensure that

substantive comments and objections

are made available to the Forest Service

at a time when they can meaningfully

consider them and respond to them in

the final document.

Glenn Gottschall, Acting Forest

Supervisor, Stanislaus National Forest,

Sonora, California is the responsible

official.

Written comments and suggestions

concerning this project or analysis

should be addressed to Calvin Bird,

Groveland District Ranger, 24545

Highway 120, Groveland, CA, 95321.

Additional information can be obtained

through John Schmechel, District

Silviculturist, at the above address.

Dated: July 30, 1997.

David M. Freeland,

Acting Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 97–20931 Filed 8–7–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Natural Resources Conservation

Service

Notice of Proposed Change to the

Natural Resources Conservation

Service’s National Handbook of

Conservation Practices

AGENCY: Natural Resources

Conservation Service (NRCS), U.S.

Department of Agriculture, New York

State Office.

ACTION: Notice of availability of

proposed changes in the NRCS National

Handbook of Conservation Practices,

Section IV of the New York State NRCS

Field Office Technical Guide (FOTG) for

review and comment.

SUMMARY: It is the intention of NRCS to

issue a series of new conservation

practice standards in its National

Handbook of Conservation Practices.

These new standards include: Waste

Management System (NY312), Roof

Runoff Management System (NY558),

Manure Field Piles (NY193), and

Riparian Forest Buffer (NY391).

DATES: Comments will be received until

September 8, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Inquire in writing to Richard D.

Swenson, State Conservationist, Natural

Resources Conservation Service (NRCS),

441 S. Salina Street, Fifth Floor, Suite

354, Syracuse, New York, 13202–2450.

Copies of these standards are

available from the above individual.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section

343 of the Federal Agricultural

Improvement and Reform Act of 1996

states that revisions made after

enactment of the law to NRCS State

technical Guides used to carry out

highly erodible land and wetland

provisions of the law shall be made

available for public review and

comment. For the next 30 days the

NRCS will receive comments relative to

the proposed changes. Following that

period a determination will be made by

the NRCS regarding disposition of those

comments and a final determination of

change will be made.