[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 79 (Friday, April 24, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20368-20369]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-10895]


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Notices
                                                Federal Register
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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.

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Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 79 / Friday, April 24, 1998 / 
Notices

[[Page 20368]]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


East Side Project, McKean, Elk, and Forest Counties, PA

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: The Forest Service will prepare a Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement to disclose the environmental consequences of the proposed 
East Side Project. The Forest Service is proposing to harvest timber on 
approximately 8,206 acres of National Forest land distributed over a 
141,000 acre area located on the eastern half of the Allegheny National 
Forest. Forest health is the driving concern in this project proposal. 
Growth loss and mortality are occurring as a result of extensive insect 
defoliation and drought which occurred from 1991 through 1994.
    Reforestation treatments and commercial timber harvest will be used 
in stands which have experienced considerable tree mortality. Harvest 
treatments will consist of clearcuts, overstory removals, two-age, 
shelterwood seed/removals, thinnings, group selection, individual tree 
selections and improvement cuts. Reforestation treatments will consist 
of herbicide application, area fencing, planting, site preparation and 
fertilization. In addition to commercial timber harvest, the proposed 
action will consider approximately 606 acres of wildlife habitat 
improvement. These treatments will consist of creating openings, 
planting warm season grasses, planting shrubs and trees, fencing, aspen 
regeneration and pruning. Four fish structures will also be created. 
Additional transportation requirements for this project include 17.2 
miles of new road construction, 19.5 miles of road reconstruction 
(betterment), 53.8 miles of road reconstruction (restoration) and 7.1 
miles of road obliteration. It is anticipated that 7 existing stone 
pits and 12 new pits will be used as a source of material for road 
construction and reconstruction.
    The Agency invites written comments and suggestions on the scope 
and substance of the analysis and the environmental impact statement. 
In addition, the Agency gives notice that the environmental impact 
statement preparation process will be conducted so that interested and 
affected people are aware of how they may participate in and contribute 
to the final decision.

DATES: Comments and suggestions concerning the scope of the analysis 
should be submitted in writing and postmarked by May 17, 1998, to 
ensure timely consideration.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to East Side Project, Allegheny 
National Forest, 222 Liberty Street, P.O. Box 847, Warren, PA 16365.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Lois M. DeMarco, Allegheny National Forest at 814/723-5150 about the 
Environmental Impact Statement.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Allegheny National Forest Land and 
Resource Management Plan, approved in 1986, provides for the management 
of forest resources. Vegetative management objectives include producing 
a sustainable supply of high-quality sawtimber and wood products, 
developing and maintaining a wide array of wildlife habitats, and 
providing a range of recreation settings and experiences. Specific 
objectives are defined for each Management Area.
    From 1991 through 1994, a series of defoliations linked to elm 
spanworm and forest tent caterpillar occurred over a wide area of the 
northern tier of Pennsylvania. One or more defoliations occurred on 
374,305 acres of the Allegheny National Forest. A series of droughts 
also occurred in 1988, 1991, and 1995. In 1994 scattered areas of tree 
mortality and decline were observed by Forest Service personnel. 
Additional mortality has resulted in large areas of the Forest which 
will not meet the long-term vegetative management objectives stated in 
the Forest Plan.
    An environmental analysis was performed in 1996 which was 
documented in the Mortality II Environmental Assessment and Decision 
Notice signed on February 5, 1997. The Mortality II Decision and 
Environmental Assessment were litigated. The outcome of the litigation 
requires the Forest Service to prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement (with consideration of a broad range of reasonable 
alternatives) and a reconsideration of the optimality and 
appropriateness of even-aged management decisions within the project 
area.
    Four additional environmental analyses were at various stages of 
completion when Judge William Standish of the Third Judicial District 
issued a ruling on the Mortality II litigation. We have reviewed the 
requirements of NEPA (40 CFR 1508.25) to define the scope of the EIS 
and have determined that it should include the areas previously 
presented as Morality II and should be expanded to consider areas 
previously identified as Thomas Rock, Coal Mine, Rocket John and Forest 
Road (FR) 446.
    We reviewed the comments received on each of the projects now 
included in the EIS and have identified the following preliminary 
issues: 1. The use of even-aged vs. uneven-aged management; and 2. The 
construction of additional roads and improvements to existing roads.
    A range of alternatives will be considered. One of these will 
consider No Action for the project area. Another alternative will 
consider the use of uneven-aged management on a broader scale than does 
the proposed action. Issues which are generated through the scoping 
process may generate additional alternatives.
    The Draft EIS is expected to be filed with the Environmental 
Protection Agency and to be available for public review by October 1, 
1998. At that time, the Environmental Protection Agency will publish a 
notice of availability of the draft environmental impact statement in 
the Federal Register. The comment period on the draft will be 45 days 
from the date the EPA notice appears in the Federal Register.
    It is very important that those interested in the management of the 
Allegheny National Forest participate at that time. To be most helpful, 
comments on the draft environmental impact statement 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

[[Page 20369]]

(CEQ) for implementing the procedural provisions of the National 
Environmental Policy Act at 40 CFR 1503.3).
    The Forest Service believes it is important to give reviewers 
notice at this early stage 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 proposals 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). Also, environmental objections that could be raised at the 
draft environmental impact statement stage may be waived if not raised 
until after completion of the final environmental impact statement, 
City of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F.2d 1016, 1022 (9th Cir. 1988), 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 environmental impact 
statement.
    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 CEQ Regulations for implementing the procedural 
provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act at 40 CFR 1503.3 in 
addressing these points). After the comment period ends on the draft 
environmental impact statement, the comments received will be analyzed 
and considered by the Forest Service in preparing the final 
environmental impact statement.
    The final environmental impact statement is scheduled to be 
completed in February 1999. In the final EIS, the Forest Service is 
required to respond to the comments received (40 CFR 1503.4). The 
responsible official will consider the comments, responses, 
environmental consequences discussed in the environmental impact 
statement, and applicable laws, regulations and policies in making a 
decision regarding this proposal. The responsible official will 
document the decision and reasons for the decision in a Record of 
Decision. That decision will be subject to appeal under 36 CFR part 
215.
    The responsible official is John E. Palmer, Forest Supervisor, 
Allegheny National Forest, 222 Liberty Street, P.O. Box 847, Warren PA 
16365.

    Dated: April 16, 1998.
John E. Palmer,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 98-10895 Filed 4-23-98; 8:45 am]
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