This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains documents other than rules or

proposed rules that are applicable to the

public. Notices of hearings and investigations,

committee meetings, agency decisions and

rulings, delegations of authority, filing of

petitions and applications and agency

statements of organization and functions are

examples of documents appearing in this

section.

Notices Federal Register

4719

Vol. 62, No. 21

Friday, January 31, 1997

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

Acceptance of 90-acre Donation and

Extension of Indian Peaks Wilderness

Area, Roosevelt NF, Colorado

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of land donation

acceptance and boundary extension.

SUMMARY: The Secretary of Agriculture

has accepted a 90-acre donation from

The Nature Conservancy of Boulder,

Colorado, and extended the Indian

Peaks Wilderness Area to include this

90-acre parcel.

EFFECTIVE DATE: The acceptance of this

donation and the extension of Indian

Peaks Wilderness Area were effective

November 28, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Eleanor S. Towns, Director, Lands,

USDA, Forest Service, PO Box 96090,

Washington, DC 20090–6090, (202) 453–

8248 or M. M. Underwood, Forest

Supervisor, 240 W. Prospect, Fort

Collins, Colorado 80526–2098, (970)

498–1100.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In

accordance with the provisions of

section 6(a) of the Wilderness Act of

September 3, 1964 (78 Stat. 890), the

Secretary of Agriculture has accepted a

90-acre donation adjacent to the Indian

Peaks Wilderness Area, Roosevelt

National Forest, Colorado. Notification

to the President of the Senate and the

Speaker of the House of Representatives

was provided on September 26, 1996.

Land accepted by the Secretary of

Agriculture under Section 6(a) becomes

part of the wilderness area involved. A

copy of the Secretary’s acceptance

which includes the legal description of

the lands which were donated and

which are now a part of the Indian

Peaks Wilderness Area appears at the

end of this notice.

Dated: January 21, 1997.

Tom L. Thompson,

Deputy Regional Forester.

Acceptance of 90-acre Donation and

Extension of Indian Peaks Wilderness Area

Pursuant to the authority granted to the

Secretary of Agriculture by Section 6(a) of the

Wilderness Act of September 3, 1964 (Pub. L.

88–577, 78 Stat. 890; 16 U.S.C. 1131), a

donation of 90 acres of land is accepted and

will become part of the Indian Peaks

Wilderness Area (Pub. L. 95–450, 92 Stat.

1095; 16 U.S.C. 1132), Roosevelt National

Forest, Colorado.

The Bunker Bill Placer Mining Claim,

Survey No. 15619, Grand Island Mining

District, County of Boulder, State of

Colorado.

This acceptance shall be effective 60 days

after notice has been given to the President

of the Senate and Speaker of the House of

Representatives as required by section 6(a) of

the Wilderness Act of September 3, 1964.

Dated: September 26, 1996.

Brian Eliot Burke,

Deputy Under Secretary, Natural Resources

and Environment.

[FR Doc. 97–2348 Filed 1–30–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M

Sandpoint Ranger District Noxious

Weed Control Project, Idaho

Panhandle National Forests, Bonner

County, Idaho

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an

environmental impact statement.

SUMMARY: The USDA Forest Service will

prepare an environmental impact

statement (EIS) to disclose the potential

environmental effects of noxious weed

treatment of the Sandpoint Ranger

District. Treatment sites would be at

various locations across the district and

are within the Pend Oreille Ecosystem,

Sandpoint Ranger District, Idaho

Panhandle National Forests, Bonner

County, Idaho. Most treatment sites are

located near or along forest roads, trails,

powerline corridors, recreation sites and

wildlife forage habits (i.e. dry sites).

The proposed action to control

populations of noxious and undesirable

weeds on certain travel corridors and

areas is designed to prevent the spread

of these weeds and promote the

retention and health of native and/or

desirable plants within this ecosystem.

The proposed action would use an

integrated pest management approach to

control weeds. This approach includes

mechanical, biological, cultural, and

chemical control.

At least 16 species of noxious or

undesirable weed will be considered for

control. The major species considered

for control include spotted knapweed

(Centaurea maculosa), orange

hawkweed (Hieracium aurantiacum),

meadow hawkweed (Hieracium

pratense), dalmation toadflax (Linaria

dalmatica), Canada thistle (Cirsium

arvense), common St. Johnswort

(Hypericum perforatum), hound’s

tongue (Cynoglossum officinale) and

common tansy (Tanacetum vulgare).

Other species may include diffuse

knapweed (Centaurea diffusa), purple

loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria), ox-eye

daisy (Chrysanthemum leucanthemum),

rush skeltonweed (Chondrilla juncea),

sulphur cinquefoil (Potentilla recta),

yellow starthistle (Centaurea

solstitialis), musk thistle (Carduus

nutans), and bull thistle (Cirsium

vulgare).

This project level EIS will tier to the

Idaho Panhandle National Forests Weed

Pest Management EIS, October 1989; the

Idaho Panhandle National Forest Land

and Resource Management Plan (Forest

Plan), September 1987; the Final EIS

Noxious Weed Management Project,

Bonners Ferry Ranger District,

September 1995, and the Priest Lake

Noxious Weed Control Final EIS.

DATES: Written comments and

suggestions should be received no later

than March 3, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments

and suggestions on the proposed

management activities or requests to be

placed on the project mailing list to

Betsy Hammet, Project Leader,

Sandpoint Ranger District, 1500 Hwy 2,

Suite 110, Sandpoint, ID 83864.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Betsy Hammet, EIS Team Leader,

Sandpoint Ranger District, phone

number (208 263–5111.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Weed

control is proposed on 46 sites that have

been identified on the Sandpoint Ranger

District. These sites range in size from

single plants to approximately 300 acres

and total approximately 1,270 gross

acres. These sites represent less than 1%

of the 315,420 acres in the Sandpoint

Ranger District.

The primary purposes for weed

control are as follows:

(1) Protect the natural condition and

biodiversity of the Pend Oreille
4720 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 21 / Friday, January 31, 1997 / Notices

Ecosystem by preventing or limiting the

spread of aggressive, non-native plant

species that displace native vegetation.

(2) Eliminate new invaders before

they become established.

(3) Prevent or limit the spread of

established weeds into areas containing

little or no infestation.

(4) Reduce weed seed sources on trail

heads and dispersed campsites, along

main roads and trails, within powerline

corridors, and in wildlife forage habitat

(i.e. dry sites).

(5) Protect sensitive and unique

habitats including research natural

areas, wetlands, and sensitive plant

populations.

The treatment sites are in scattered

locations across the district. Small

infestations that are discovered in

addition to the 46 sites would be treated

within the scope of the Final EIS and

Record of Decision. The Idaho

Panhandle National Forests Land and

Resource Management Plan provides

guidance for management activities

within the potentially affected area

through its goals, objectives, standards

and guidelines, and management area

direction. The Forest Plan directs that

forest pests be managed by an integrated

pest management approach.

The decision to be made is what

actions, if any, should be taken to

control weeds in the Pend Oreille

Ecosystem, where treatment should be

applied, and what types of treatment

should be used.

The Forest Service will consider a

range of alternatives. One of these will

be the ‘‘no action’’ alternative in which

none of the proposed treatment

activities would be implemented.

Additional alternatives will represent

the range of control methods currently

available for treatment of weeds,

including non-chemical methods.

Public participation is an important

part of the analysis and will play an

important role in developing the

alternatives. The initial scoping process

(40 CFR 1501.7) will occur during

February, March, and April, 1997. The

mailing list for public scoping will be

developed from responses to this NOI,

and to a Scoping Notice sent out to

interested individuals, organizations

and agencies. In addition, the public is

encouraged to visit with Forest Service

officials during the analysis and prior to

the decision. The Forest Service will

also be seeking information, comments,

and assistance from Federal, State, and

local agencies and other individuals or

organizations who may be interested in

or affected by the proposed actions.

Comments from the public and other

agencies will be used in preparation of

the Draft EIS. The scoping process will

be used to:

1. Identify potential issues.

2. Identify major issues to be analyzed

in depth.

3. Eliminate minor issues or those

which have been covered by a relevant

previous environmental analysis.

4. Identify alternatives to the

proposed action.

5. Identify potential environmental

effects of the proposed action and

alternatives (i.e., cumulative effects).

Some public concerns have already

been identified from initial

interdisciplinary review of the weed

control proposal. The following

significant issues have been identified

so far:

1. Current and potential impacts of

the spread of noxious weeds on the

physical, biological, and ecological

environment within the Sandpoint

Ranger District.

2. Potential effectiveness, economics

and impacts on natural resources of

various weed control methods.

3. Potential effects on human health

from the application of herbicides.

This list will be verified, expanded, or

modified based on public scoping and

interdisciplinary review of this

proposal.

The draft environmental impact

statement is expected to be filed with

the Environmental Protection Agency

(EPA) and available for public review in

June, 1997. At that time, the EPA will

publish a Notice of Availability of the

draft environmental impact statement in

the Federal Register. The comment

period on the draft environmental

impact statement 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 draft environmental impact

statements 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

environmental statement stage but that

are not raised until after completion of

the final environmental statement 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 scoping 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 regarding the proposed action,

comments on the draft environmental

impact statement 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 environmental

impact statement 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.

I am the responsible official for this

environmental impact statement. My

address is Sandpoint Ranger District,

1500 Hwy 2, Suite 110, Sandpoint, ID

83864.

Dated: January 21, 1997.

David S. Dillard,

District Ranger.

[FR Doc. 97–2306 Filed 1–30–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M

Deschutes Provincial Interagency

Executive Committee (PIEC), Advisory

Committee

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of meeting.

SUMMARY: The Deschutes PIEC Advisory

Committee will meet on February 13,

1997 at Rock Springs Conference Center,

7 miles north of Bend, OR on Highway

20. The meeting will start at 9:30 am.,

and finish at 5:00 pm. Agenda items

include: (1) Introduction of new

members, (2) Review of scientific

documents for the Eastside Ecosystem

project, (3) Reports from subcommittees,

and (4) Open public forum. All

Deschutes Province Advisory

Committee meetings are open to the

public.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Harry Hoogesteger, Province Liaison,

USDA, Fort Rock Ranger District, 1230

N. E. 3rd, Bend, Oregon 97701, 541–

383–4704.