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contains documents other than rules or

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Notices Federal Register

11629 

Vol. 80, No. 42 

Wednesday, March 4, 2015 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Eldorado National Forest; California; 

Eldorado 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 roads, National Forest 

System trails, and Areas on National 

Forest System lands within the 

Eldorado National Forest; and to 

identify snow trails for grooming within 

the Eldorado National Forest. In 

addition, the Forest Service proposes to: 

1. Formally adopt California State 

Parks’ Off-Highway Motor Vehicle 

Recreation (OHMVR) Division snow 

depth standards for grooming to occur; 

2. Implement a forest-wide snow 

depth requirement for OSV use that 

would provide for public safety and 

natural and cultural resource protection 

by allowing off-trail, cross-country OSV 

use in designated Areas when there is 

a minimum of 12 inches of continuous 

and supportable snow covering the 

landscape; 

3. Allow OSV use on designated 

National Forest System snow trails 

when there is a minimum of 6 inches of 

snow, regardless of the underlying 

surface; and 

4. Prohibit OSV use in selected Areas 

and on non-motorized trails. 

This proposal would be implemented 

on all of the Eldorado National Forest. 

DATES: Comments concerning the scope 

of the analysis must be received by 

April 3, 2015. The draft environmental 

impact statement is expected in 

February 2016 and the final 

environmental impact statement is 

expected in October 2016. 

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to 

Micki D. Smith, on behalf of Laurence 

Crabtree, Forest Supervisor, Eldorado 

National Forest, 100 Forni Road 

Placerville, CA 95667. Comments may 

also be sent via facsimile to 530–621– 

5297. Comments may also be submitted 

on the Eldorado National Forest OSV 

Designation Web page: http://

www.fs.usda.gov/project/

?project=46034. 

Individuals who use 

telecommunication devices for the deaf 

(TTY) may call the Federal Information 

Relay Service (FIRS) at (800) 877–8339 

TTY, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Micki D. Smith, Amador Resource and 

Recreation Staff Officer, USDA Forest 

Service, Eldorado National Forest, 100 

Forni Road, Placerville, CA 95667; 

phone: 209–295–5960; mdsmith@

fs.fed.us. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

following summarizes how the Forest 

Service currently manages OSV use on 

the approximately 606,260-acre 

Eldorado National Forest: 

1. Approximately 56 miles of National 

Forest System OSV trails exist on the 

Eldorado National Forest; all of which 

are groomed for OSV use; 

2. Approximately 159 miles of 

National Forest System trails are closed 

to OSV use, but accessible from Areas 

otherwise open to off-trail, crosscountry OSV use; 

3. Approximately 452,140 acres of 

National Forest System land are open to 

off-trail, cross-country OSV use; and 

4. Approximately 154,120 acres of 

National Forest System land are closed 

to OSV use. 

Travel Management Rule Subpart C: 

The Forest Service issued a final rule 

governing OSV management (Subpart C 

of the Travel Management Rule, 36 CFR 

part 212) in the Federal Register on 

January 18, 2015, and this rule went 

into effect on February 27, 2015 (80 FR 

4500, Jan. 28, 2015). Subpart C of the 

Travel Management Rule states, 

‘‘Over-snow vehicle use on National 

Forest System roads, on National Forest 

System trails, and in areas on National 

Forest System lands shall be designated 

by the Responsible Official on 

administrative units or Ranger Districts, 

or parts of administrative units or 

Ranger Districts, of the National Forest 

System where snowfall is adequate for 

that use to occur, and, if appropriate, 

shall be designated by class of vehicle 

and time of year, provided that the 

following uses are exempted from these 

decisions: 

1. Limited administrative use by the 

Forest Service; 

2. Use of any fire, military, 

emergency, or law enforcement vehicle 

for emergency purposes; 

3. Authorized use of any combat or 

combat support vehicle for national 

defense purposes; 

4. Law enforcement response to 

violations of law, including pursuit; and 

5. Over-snow vehicle use that is 

specifically authorized under a written 

authorization issued under Federal law 

or regulations’’ (36 CFR 212.81(a)). 

The designations resulting from this 

analysis would only apply to the use of 

OSVs. An OSV is defined in the Forest 

Service’s Travel Management Rule 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). OSV use 

designations made as a result of the 

analysis in this environmental impact 

statement would conform to Subpart C 

of the Travel Management Rule. OSV 

use that is inconsistent with the OSV 

use designations made under this 

decision would be prohibited under 36 

CFR 261.14. 

These designations would not affect 

valid existing rights held by federally 

recognized tribes, counties, or private 

individuals, including treaty rights, 

other statutory rights, or private rightsof-way. 

Snow Trail Grooming Program: For 

over 30 years, the Forest Service, Pacific 

Southwest Region, in cooperation with 

the California Department of Parks and 

Recreation (California State Parks) Offhighway Motor Vehicle Division has 

enhanced winter recreation, and more 

specifically, snowmobiling recreation by 

maintaining National Forest System 

trails (snow trails) by grooming snow for 

snowmobile use. Most groomed snow 

trails are co-located on underlying 

National Forest System roads and trails. 

Some grooming occurs on county roads 

and closed snow-covered highways, and 

some routes are designated crosscountry over snow. Grooming activities 

are funded by the state off-highway 

vehicle trust fund. 

In 2013, the Forest Service entered 

into a Settlement Agreement with 

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11630 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 42 / Wednesday, March 4, 2015 / Notices 

Snowlands Network et al., to ‘‘complete 

appropriate NEPA [National 

Environmental Policy Act] analysis(es) 

to identify snow trails for grooming’’ on 

the Eldorado National Forest and four 

other national forests in California. The 

Forest Service will comply with the 

terms of the Settlement Agreement for 

the Eldorado National Forest by 

completing this analysis. Other 

requirements of the Settlement 

Agreement are listed in the ‘‘Need for 

Analysis’’ section, below. 

Purpose and Need for Action 

One purpose of this project is to 

effectively manage OSV use on the 

Eldorado 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 Eldorado 

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. 

The existing system of available OSV 

trails and Areas on the Eldorado 

National Forest is the culmination of 

multiple agency decisions over recent 

decades. Public OSV use of the majority 

of this available system continues to be 

manageable and consistent with current 

travel management regulations. 

Exceptions have been identified, based 

on internal and public input and the 

criteria for designating roads, trails, and 

Areas listed at 36 CFR 212.55. These 

include needs to provide improved 

access for OSV users and enact 

prohibitions required by the Eldorado 

National Forest Land and Resource 

Management Plan (Forest Plan) and 

other management direction. These 

exceptions represent additional needs 

for change, and in these cases, changes 

are proposed to meet the overall 

objectives. 

The Forest Service has identified 

trails and Areas in which OSV use 

should be prohibited based on 

management direction in the Forest 

Plan. These trails and areas are 

currently managed as closed to OSV use 

through temporary closure orders to 

comply with Forest Plan direction. 

However, those closure orders will 

eventually expire. Therefore, the 

proposed action will prohibit OSV use 

on these trails and in these Areas on a 

more permanent basis to be consistent 

with the Forest Plan. 

A second purpose of this project is to 

identify snow trails where the Forest 

Service or its contractors would conduct 

grooming for OSV use. Under the terms 

of the Settlement Agreement between 

the Forest Service and Snowlands 

Network et al., the Forest Service is 

required to complete the appropriate 

NEPA analysis to identify snow trails 

for grooming on the Eldorado National 

Forest. 

The snow trail grooming analysis 

would also address the need to provide 

a safe, high-quality snowmobile trail 

system on the Eldorado National Forest 

that is smooth and stable for the rider. 

Groomed trails are designed so that the 

novice rider can use them safely and 

without difficulty. 

Need for Analysis 

Subpart C of the Forest Service Travel 

Management Regulation requires the 

Forest Service to designate over-snow 

vehicle (OSV) use on National Forest 

System roads, National Forest System 

trails, and Areas on National Forest 

System lands. Both decisions will be 

informed by an analysis as required by 

the National Environmental Policy Act 

(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 

Subpart C of the Travel Management 

Regulation specifies that all 

requirements of subpart B of the Travel 

Management Regulations will continue 

to apply to the designation decision, 

including: 

1. Public involvement as required by 

the National Environmental Policy Act 

(36 CFR 212.52); 

2. Coordination with Federal, State, 

county, and other local governmental 

entities and tribal governments (36 CFR 

212.53); 

3. Revision of designations (36 CFR 

212.54); 

4. Consideration of the criteria for 

designation of roads, trails, and Areas 

(36 CFR 212.55); 

5. Identification of designated uses on 

a publicly available use map of roads, 

trails, and Areas (36 CFR 212.56); and 

6. Monitoring of effects (36 CFR 

212.57). 

Pursuant to the Settlement 

Agreement, the Forest Service is 

required to complete an appropriate 

NEPA analysis to identify snow trails 

for grooming. Furthermore, additional 

terms of the Settlement Agreement 

require the Forest Service to: 

1. Analyze ancillary activities such as 

the plowing of related parking lots and 

trailheads as part of the effects analysis; 

2. Consider a range of alternative 

actions that would result in varying 

levels of snowmobile use; and 

3. Consider an alternative submitted 

by Plaintiffs and/or Interveners during 

the scoping period in the NEPA analysis 

so long as the alternative meets the 

purpose and need, and is feasible and 

within the scope of the NEPA analysis. 

Proposed Action 

The Forest Service proposes several 

actions on the Eldorado National Forest 

to be analyzed as required by the 

National Environmental Policy Act 

(NEPA). The actions proposed are as 

follows: 

1. To designate OSV use on National 

Forest System roads, National Forest 

System trails, and Areas on National 

Forest System lands within the 

Eldorado National Forest where 

snowfall depth is adequate for that use 

to occur. This would result in no change 

in the number of miles of snow trail and 

acres of OSV Areas on the Eldorado 

National Forest where OSV use would 

be allowed, subject to snow depth 

restrictions. All existing OSV 

prohibitions applying to Areas or trails 

would continue. OSV use that is 

inconsistent with the designations made 

under this project would be prohibited 

under 36 CFR 261.14. 

2. To enact OSV prohibitions of a 

more permanent nature than the 

temporary closures that currently exist 

in the following Areas and trails, 

consistent with management direction 

in the Forest Plan: 

a. Caples Creek Recommended 

Wilderness; 

b. Primitive High Country; 

c. Areas within Semi-primitive Nonmotorized High Country: Little 

McKinstry, Shadow Lake, Rockbound, 

July Flat, Bryan Meadow, Devils Lake, 

Hidden Lake, and Little Indian; 

d. Research Natural Areas (RNAs): 

Peavine RNA, and Station Creek RNA; 

e. Special Use permitted areas: 

Kirkwood Mountain and Kirkwood 

Nordic Ski Resorts, Sierra-at-Tahoe 

Resort, Adventure Mountain, and Echo 

Summit Nordic area; 

f. Rock Creek Critical Deer Winter 

Range; 

g. Loon Lake Winter Recreation Area 

(including forest developed roads); 

h. Emigrant Lake Trail; 

i. Carson-Emigrant National 

Recreation Trail from Horse Canyon 

Saddle to Caples Lake Trailhead; and 

j. Rock Creek Trails (including Mar 

Det). 

3. To identify approximately 56 miles 

of designated snow trails that would be 

groomed on the Eldorado National 

Forest for OSV use. Our trail mileages 

are estimates only and we are currently 

reviewing the status of trails where 

there is uncertainty regarding Forest 

Service jurisdiction or grooming 

authorization, such as trails located on 

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Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 42 / Wednesday, March 4, 2015 / Notices 11631 

private property, or county roads that 

groomed trails have historically passed 

through. 

4. To groom trails consistent with 

historical grooming practices, when 

there are 12 or more inches of snow, and 

formally adopt California State Parks’ 

Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation 

(OHMVR) Division snow depth 

standards for grooming to occur. 

5. To implement a forest-wide snow 

depth requirement for OSV use that 

would provide for public safety and 

natural and cultural resource protection 

by allowing off-trail, cross-country OSV 

use in designated Areas when there is 

a minimum of 12 inches of continuous 

and supportable snow covering the 

landscape; and allow OSV use on 

designated National Forest System snow 

trails when there is a minimum of 6 

inches of snow, regardless of the 

underlying surface. When the snowdepth requirement is not met, OSV use 

would be prohibited. 

These actions would begin 

immediately upon the issuance of the 

record of decision, which is expected in 

October of 2016. The Forest Service 

would produce an OSV use map 

(OSVUM) that would look like the 

existing motor vehicle use map (MVUM) 

for the Eldorado National Forest. Such 

a map would allow OSV enthusiasts to 

identify the routes and Areas where 

OSV use would be allowed on the 

Eldorado National Forest. 

Responsible Official 

The Eldorado National Forest 

Supervisor will issue the decision. 

Nature of Decision To Be Made 

This decision will designate OSV use 

on National Forest System roads, on 

National Forest System trails, and in 

Areas on National Forest System lands 

on the Eldorado National Forest where 

snowfall is adequate for that use to 

occur. It will also identify the National 

Forest System trails where grooming 

would occur. The decision would only 

apply to the use of over-snow vehicles 

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 

Eldorado National Forest, implement 

the proposed action, or select an 

alternative for the management of OSV 

uses. 

Scoping Process 

This notice of intent initiates the 

scoping process, which guides the 

development of the environmental 

impact statement. 

It is important that reviewers provide 

their comments at such times and in 

such manner that they are useful to the 

agency’s preparation of the 

environmental impact statement. 

Written comments should be within the 

scope of the proposed action, have a 

direct relationship to the proposed 

action, and must include supporting 

reasons for the responsible official to 

consider. Therefore, comments should 

be provided prior to the close of the 

comment period and should clearly 

articulate the reviewer’s concerns and 

contentions. The preferred format for 

attachments to electronically submitted 

comments would be as an MS Word 

document. Attachments in portable 

document format (pdf) are not preferred, 

but are acceptable. 

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 be accepted and 

considered, however. 

The Eldorado National Forest OverSnow Vehicle (OSV) Use Designation 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. 

Dated: February 26, 2015. 

Laurence Crabtree, 

Forest Supervisor, Eldorado National Forest. 

[FR Doc. 2015–04459 Filed 3–3–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

Economic Development Administration 

Notice of Petitions by Firms for 

Determination of Eligibility To Apply 

for Trade Adjustment Assistance 

AGENCY: Economic Development 

Administration, Department of 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice and opportunity for 

public comment. 

Pursuant to Section 251 of the Trade 

Act 1974, as amended (19 U.S.C. 2341 

et seq.), the Economic Development 

Administration (EDA) has received 

petitions for certification of eligibility to 

apply for Trade Adjustment Assistance 

from the firms listed below. 

Accordingly, EDA has initiated 

investigations to determine whether 

increased imports into the United States 

of articles like or directly competitive 

with those produced by each of these 

firms contributed importantly to the 

total or partial separation of the firm’s 

workers, or threat thereof, and to a 

decrease in sales or production of each 

petitioning firm. 

LIST OF PETITIONS RECEIVED BY EDA FOR CERTIFICATION ELIGIBILITY TO APPLY FOR TRADE ADJUSTMENT ASSISTANCE

[2/12/2015 through 2/26/2015] 

Firm name Firm address Date accepted for 

investigation Product(s) 

LFI, Inc. ......................... 1 Industrial Drive South, Smithfield, RI 02917 .. 2/25/2015 The firm manufactures high precision minimally 

invasive surgical instruments. 

Any party having a substantial 

interest in these proceedings may 

request a public hearing on the matter. 

A written request for a hearing must be 

submitted to the Trade Adjustment 

Assistance for Firms Division, Room 

71030, Economic Development 

Administration, U.S. Department of 

Commerce, Washington, DC 20230, no 

later than ten (10) calendar days 

following publication of this notice. 

Please follow the requirements set 

forth in EDA’s regulations at 13 CFR 

315.9 for procedures to request a public 

hearing. The Catalog of Federal 

Domestic Assistance official number 

and title for the program under which 

these petitions are submitted is 11.313, 

Trade Adjustment Assistance for Firms. 

Dated: February 26, 2015. 

Michael S. DeVillo, 

Eligibility Examiner. 

[FR Doc. 2015–04455 Filed 3–3–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–WH–P 

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