Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 35 / Monday, February 23, 2015 / Notices 9431 

policies, procedures, regulations, 

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Done in Washington, DC on: February 18, 

2015. 

Alfred V. Almanza, 

Acting Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2015–03576 Filed 2–20–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–DM–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Tahoe National Forest; California; 

Tahoe National Forest Over-Snow 

Vehicle (OSV) Use Designation 

Environmental Impact Statement 

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an 

environmental impact statement. 

SUMMARY: The Forest Service, U.S. 

Department of Agriculture will prepare 

an Environmental Impact Statement 

(EIS) on a proposal to designate oversnow vehicle (OSV) use on National 

Forest System (NFS) roads, NFS trails, 

and areas on NFS lands within the 

Tahoe National Forest; and to identify 

snow trails for grooming within the 

Tahoe National Forest. In addition, the 

Forest Service is proposing to establish 

snow depths for OSV use and snow 

grooming. 

DATES: Comments concerning the scope 

of the analysis must be received by 

March 25, 2015. The draft 

environmental impact statement is 

expected in January 2016, and the final 

environmental impact statement is 

expected in August 2016. 

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to 

Michael Woodbridge, on behalf of Tom 

Quinn, Forest Supervisor, Tahoe 

National Forest, 631 Coyote Street, 

Nevada City, CA 95959. Comments may 

also be sent via facsimile to 530–478– 

6109 or submitted on the Tahoe 

National Forest OSV Designation Web 

page: http://www.fs.fed.us/nepa/nepa_

project_exp.php?project=45914. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michael Woodbridge, Public Affairs 

Officer, USDA Forest Service, Tahoe 

National Forest, 631 Coyote Street, 

Nevada City, CA 95959; phone 530– 

478–6205; email mjwoodbridge@

fs.fed.us. Hours for personal 

communication at the Supervisor’s 

Office are between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 

p.m. Pacific Time, Monday through 

Friday. 

Individuals with a hearing or speech 

disability may dial 711 for 

Telecommunication Relay Services. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Snow Trail Grooming Program: For 

over 30 years, the Forest Service, Pacific 

Southwest Region, in cooperation with 

the California Department of Parks and 

Recreation Off-Highway Motor Vehicle 

Recreation (OHMVR) Division has 

enhanced winter recreation, and more 

specifically snowmobiling recreation, by 

maintaining NFS trails (snow trails) by 

grooming snow for snowmobile use. 

Most groomed snow trails are co-located 

on underlying NFS roads. Some 

grooming occurs on county roads and 

closed snow-covered highways. Most 

grooming activities are currently funded 

by the state off-highway vehicle trust 

fund. 

The Forest Service manages OSV use 

on the Tahoe National Forest consistent 

with management direction contained 

in the Tahoe National Forest Land and 

Resource Management Plan (Forest 

Plan). The following summarizes 

current management of OSV use on 

approximately 829,510 acres of NFS 

lands in the Tahoe National Forest: 

1. Approximately 236 miles of 

designated NFS OSV trails; 

2. Of the approximately 236 miles of 

designated NFS OSV trails, 

approximately 188 miles are OSV trails 

available for grooming; 

3. Approximately 105 miles of NFS 

trail (Pacific Crest Trail) is closed to 

OSV use; 

4. Approximately 48,756 acres of NFS 

land is restricted to designated routes 

only; 

5. Approximately 1,408 acres of NFS 

land is closed to OSV use from 

September 15 through December 31. 

6. Approximately 669,537 acres of 

NFS land is open to off-trail crosscountry OSV use; and 

7. Approximately 109,808 acres of 

NFS land is closed to OSV use. 

The final amended Subpart C of the 

Travel Management Rule was issued on 

January 28, 2015 (80 FR 4500, Jan. 28, 

2015), and becomes effective on 

February 27, 2015. The final rule states: 

‘‘Over-snow vehicle use on NFS roads, 

on NFS trails, and in areas on NFS lands 

shall be designated by the Responsible 

Official on administrative units or 

Ranger Districts, or parts of 

administrative units or Ranger Districts, 

of the NFS where snowfall is adequate 

for that use to occur, and, if appropriate, 

shall be designated by class of vehicle 

and time of year . . .’’ (36 CFR 212.81 

(a)). Further, under 36 CFR 261.14, it is 

prohibited to possess or operate an OSV 

on NFS lands in that administrative unit 

or Ranger District other than in 

accordance with those designations. 

OSV designations made as a result of 

the analysis in this Environmental 

Impact Statement would conform to the 

final Subpart C of the Travel 

Management Rule. 

Purpose and Need for Action 

One purpose of this project is to 

effectively manage OSV use on the 

Tahoe National Forest to provide access, 

ensure that OSV use occurs when there 

is adequate snow, promote the safety of 

all users, enhance public enjoyment, 

minimize impacts to natural and 

cultural resources, and minimize 

conflicts among the various uses. 

There is a need to provide a 

manageable, designated OSV system of 

trails and areas within the Tahoe 

National Forest that is consistent with 

and achieves the purposes of the Forest 

Service Travel Management Rule at 36 

CFR part 212. This action responds to 

direction provided by the Forest 

Service’s Travel Management Rule at 36 

CFR part 212 and Subpart C of the 

Travel Management Rule. 

The existing system of OSV trails and 

areas open for OSV use on the Tahoe 

National Forest results from 

implementation of Forest Plan 

management direction for OSV use. 

Public OSV use of the majority of this 

existing system continues to be 

manageable and consistent with current 

travel management regulations. 

Exceptions have been identified, based 

on internal and informal public input 

and the criteria listed at 36 CFR 212.55. 

These include needs to protect natural 

resources, provide improved access for 

OSV users, provide improved quiet 

winter recreation opportunities and 

ensure consistency with overall 

management area direction contained in 

the Forest Plan. These exceptions 

represent additional needs for change, 

and in these cases, changes are 

proposed to meet the overall objectives. 

The snow trail grooming analysis 

would also address the need to provide 

a high quality snowmobile trail system 

on the Tahoe National Forest that is 


Rmajette on DSK2VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
9432 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 35 / Monday, February 23, 2015 / Notices 

smooth and stable for the rider. 

Groomed trails are designed so the 

novice rider can use them without 

difficulty. 

Proposed Action 

The Forest Service proposes the 

following: 

1. To designate OSV use on NFS 

roads, NFS trails, and areas on NFS 

lands within the Tahoe National Forest 

where snow depth is adequate for that 

use to occur. The Tahoe National Forest 

is proposing off-trail cross-country OSV 

use covering 665,717 acres. Trails where 

OSV use would be allowed would total 

236 miles. 

2. To identify approximately 188 

miles of the Tahoe National Forest’s 

approximately 236 miles of designated 

OSV trails as available for snow 

grooming. 

3. To implement a standard of 12 

inches of snow depth or more for snow 

trail grooming when funds and 

equipment are used from sources other 

than the OHMVR Division. When using 

OHMVR Division funds, their snow 

depth standards will be used. 

4. To implement a Forest-wide snow 

depth requirement for OSV use that 

would provide for public safety and 

natural and cultural resource protection 

by (1) allowing OSV use in designated 

areas when there is a minimum of 12 

inches of snow covering the landscape, 

and (2) allowing OSV use on designated 

NFS roads and designated NFS trails 

when there is a minimum of 6 inches of 

snow covering the road or trail. When 

the snow-depth requirement is not met, 

OSV use would be prohibited. Most 

snow trails would be located on existing 

dirt, gravel, or paved trails or roads. 

These trails and roads are used in the 

summer for highway vehicle and off 

highway vehicle uses. 

5. To establish OSV use prohibitions 

in three areas. OSV use is currently 

prohibited on 109,808 acres of the 

Tahoe National Forest in accordance 

with the existing Forest Plan 

management direction. These current 

OSV prohibitions would continue. The 

Tahoe National Forest has identified 

three additional areas in which OSV use 

would be prohibited. Adopting these 

prohibitions would require an 

amendment to the Forest Plan. These 

areas are: 

a. High Loch Leven (approximately 

3,117 acres)—To provide increased nonmotorized winter recreation 

opportunities in the Loch Leven 

Management Area. 

b. Robinson Flat Cultural 

(approximately 1 acre)—To protect 

fragile historic building structures from 

damage by snowmobile use. 

Snowmobile riders are known to use the 

snow covered roofs of the historic 

structures as ramps at Robinson Flat. 

c. Independence Lake Donated Parcels 

(approximately 703 acres)—To protect 

watershed values on steep terrain 

within the Independence Lake 

watershed which provides habitat for 

the Lahontan cutthroat trout, a species 

listed as Threatened under the 

Endangered Species Act. 

6. To designate OSV crossings for the 

Pacific Crest Trail. There would be two 

designated crossings, as well as two 

sections in which an OSV trail and the 

Pacific Crest Trail share the same route 

where the Pacific Crest Trail is located 

on roads. 

OSV use inconsistent with these 

designations would be prohibited under 

36 CFR part 261 once the decision is 

issued and OSV use maps are made 

available to the public. 

The use designations resulting from 

this analysis would only apply to the 

use of OSVs. An OSV is defined in the 

Forest Service’s Travel Management 

Regulations as ‘‘a motor vehicle that is 

designed for use over snow and that 

runs on a track or tracks and/or a ski or 

skis, while in use over snow’’ (36 CFR 

212.1). 

Limited administrative use by the 

Forest Service; use of any fire, military, 

emergency, or law enforcement vehicle 

for emergency purposes; authorized use 

of any combat or combat support 

vehicle for national defense purposes; 

law enforcement response to violations 

of law, including pursuit; and OSV use 

that is specifically authorized under a 

written authorization issued under 

Federal law or regulations would be 

exempt from these designations (36 CFR 

212.81(a)). 

These actions would begin 

immediately upon the issuance of the 

record of decision, which is expected in 

December of 2016. The Forest Service 

would produce an OSV use map that 

would resemble the existing motor 

vehicle use map for the Tahoe National 

Forest. Such a map would allow the 

public to identify the routes and areas 

where OSV use would be allowed on 

the Tahoe National Forest. 

Responsible Official 

The Tahoe National Forest Supervisor 

will issue the decision. 

Nature of Decision To Be Made 

This decision will designate OSV use 

on NFS roads, on NFS trails, and in 

areas on NFS lands in the Tahoe 

National Forest where snowfall is 

adequate for that use to occur. It will 

also identify the NFS trails available for 

snow grooming. The decision would 

only apply to the use of OSVs as defined 

in the Forest Service’s Travel 

Management Regulations (36 CFR 

212.1). The Forest Supervisor will 

consider all reasonable alternatives and 

decide whether to continue current 

management of OSV uses on the Tahoe 

National Forest, implement the 

proposed action, or select an alternative 

for the management of OSV use. 

Scoping Process 

This notice of intent initiates the 

scoping process, which guides the 

development of the environmental 

impact statement. 

Scoping meetings will be held 

between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Pacific Time 

at the following locations: 

March 2: Nevada City, Supervisor’s 

Office, 631 Coyote Street, Nevada City, 

CA 95959. 

March 3: Truckee, Truckee Ranger 

Station, 10811 Stockrest Springs Road, 

Truckee, CA 96161. 

March 4: Sierraville, Sierraville 

Ranger District, 317 South Lincoln 

Street, Sierraville, CA 96126. 

March 5: Sierra City, Sierra City 

Community Hall, 13 Castagna Alley, 

Sierra City, CA 96125. 

Foresthill—Date and location to be 

determined. 

Comments received in response to 

this solicitation, including names and 

addresses of those who comment, will 

be part of the public record for this 

proposed action. Comments submitted 

anonymously will also be accepted and 

considered. 

The Tahoe National Forest OSV Use 

Designation Project is an activity 

implementing a land management plan. 

It is not an activity authorized under the 

Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 

(Pub. L. 108–148). Therefore, this 

activity is subject to pre-decisional 

administrative review consistent with 

the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 

2012 (Pub. L. 112–74) as implemented 

by Subparts A and B of 36 CFR part 218. 

Certain portions of the proposed action 

would amend the Forest Plan. These 

actions are subject to pre-decisional 

administrative review, pursuant to 

Subpart B of the Planning Rule (36 CFR 

part 219). 

Dated: February 13, 2015. 

Tom Quinn, 

Forest Supervisor, Tahoe National Forest. 

[FR Doc. 2015–03595 Filed 2–20–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11–P 


Rmajette on DSK2VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES