40876 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 147 / Friday, July 31, 1998 / Notices

decision will be subject to appeal in

accordance with 36 CFR part 215.

Benjamin T. Worthington,

Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 98–20227 Filed 7–30–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

Big Bend Ridge Vegetation

Management Project, Targhee National

Forest, Fremont County, ID

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare

environmental impact statement.

SUMMARY: The Forest Supervisor of the

Targhee National Forest gives notice of

the agency’s intent to prepare an

environmental impact statement for the

Big Bend Ridge Vegetation Management

Project. After conducting a Properly

Functioning Condition (PFC)

assessment and a Landscape

Assessment, Forest Service personnel

found several concerns with various

ecosystems that comprise the Big Bend

Ridge Project Area. These included:

• Presence of dense stands of mature

Douglas-fir trees that are susceptible to

insect, disease and fire outbreaks. These

dense stands are losing their crowns.

• Consistent lack of Douglas-fir

seedling establishment.

• Lack of rejuvenation of bigtooth and

mountain maple plant communities.

• Lack of rejuvenation and the

decline in seral aspen plant

communities.

• Decline in potential forage values

for big game.

• Increased risks associated with

wildfire along the adjacent and

expanding urban interface.

An interdisciplinary team developed

a proposal to address these concerns.

The Big Bend Ridge Vegetation

Management Project proposes to:

• Commercially thin (thinning from

below—larger diameter trees would be

left) approximately 2,500 acres (about 9

million board feet) of densely stocked

Douglas-fir stands (thinning would also

regenerate seral aspen communities that

occur in these treatment areas).

Approximately 70% of the harvest

would be done with cable or helicopter

yarding methods; the remainder being

done with crawler tractors or rubbertired skidders.

• Establish a 200 acre demonstration

area to test and monitor the use of

prescribed fire and mechanical

treatments in establishing Douglas-fir

seedlings.

• Use prescribed fire and hand

methods, as a demonstration project, to

treat and monitor rejuvenation of 100

acres of big tooth and mountain maple

plant communities.

• Use prescribed fire to rejuvenate

aspen and reduce fuels and fire hazards

along the wildland urban interface on

700 acres of mixed conifer and seral

aspen plant communities.

• Use prescribed fire to improve 900

acres of big-game range (treatment areas

would also benefit urban interface

considerations).

Areas treated silviculturally, 3.3 miles

of non-system road reconstruction and 3

miles of non-system road construction.

Big Bend Ridge Project Area is located

5 miles north of Ashton, Idaho and

contains 30,000 acres of National Forest

lands on the Ashton/Island Park Ranger

District, Alternatives to this proposal,

including No-Action, will be developed

by an interdisciplinary team to respond

to significant issues generated during

the scoping process. A more detailed

description of the proposed action is

available from the Ashton/Island Park

Ranger District; see address below.

DATES: Send written comments and

suggestions on the issues concerning the

proposed action by August 31, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to

Adrienne Keller, District Ranger,

Ashton/Island Park Ranger District, P.O.

Box 858, Ashton, ID 83420.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Melissa Jenkins, phone (208) 558–7301

or Duane Monte, phone (208) 624–

3151—Interdisciplinary Team Leaders.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

Revised Forest Plan (RFP) for the

Targhee National Forest was approved

in 1997. Management direction for the

Big Bend Ridge Project Area is primarily

for timber management with emphasis

on big game security (Management

Prescriptions 5.1.4[a] & 5.2.4[c]).

Management on the remainder of the

project area is governed by prescriptions

2.2—Research Natural Areas; 2.8.3—

Aquatic Influence Zone; 5.1[c]—Timber

Management; and 5.2.1—Visual Quality

Improvement.

Initial public involvement will

include mailing a project description

and maps to interested parties to solicit

comments on the proposal. Preliminary

issues include: Access management, elk

security/vulnerability, visuals, urban

interface, and forest health.

Additional opportunity to comment

on the project will occur on the draft

Environmental Impact Statement (draft

EIS). The draft EIS is expected to be

filed with the Environmental Protection

Agency and available for public review

in mid December 1998.

The comment period on the draft EIS

will be 45 days from the date the

Environmental Protection Agency’s

notice of availability appears in the

Federal Register. At the same time,

copies of the draft EIS will be

distributed to interested and affected

agencies, organizations, tribes, and

members of the public for their review

and comment. It is very important that

those interested in the proposed action

participate at that time.

The Forest Service believes, at this

early stage, it is important to give

reviewers notice of several court rulings

related to the 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

reviewers’ position and contentions.

Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v.

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

environmental objections that could

have been raised at the draft stage but

that are raised until after completion of

the final environmental impact

statement may be waived or dismissed

by the courts. City of Angoon v. Hodel,

(9th Circuit, 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 comment period so that substantive

comments and objections are made

available to the Forest Service at a time

when it can meaningful consider them

and respond to them in the final

environmental impact statement.

To assist the Forest Service in

identifying and considering issues and

concerns on 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. 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.

The final EIS is scheduled to be

completed in March 1999. In the final

EIS, the Forest Service is required to

respond to comments received during

the comment period that pertain to the

environmental consequences discussed

in the draft EIS and applicable laws,

regulations, and policies considered in

making the decisions on this proposal.
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 147 / Friday, July 31, 1998 / Notices 40877

Responsible Official

Jerry B. Reese, Forest Supervisor, is

the responsible official. As responsible

official, he will document the selected

alternative for the Big Bend Ridge

Vegetation Management Project EIS and

his rationale in a Record of Decision.

The decision for the Big Bend Ridge

Vegetation Management Project will be

subject to Forest Service Appeal

Regulations (36 CFR Part 215).

Dated: July 17, 1998.

Jerry Reese,

Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 98–20084 Filed 7–27–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M

COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM

PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR

SEVERELY DISABLED

Procurement List; Proposed Additions

and Deletions

AGENCY: Committee for Purchase From

People Who Are Blind or Severely

Disabled

ACTION: Proposed additions to and

Deletions from Procurement List.

SUMMARY: The Committee has received

proposals to add to the Procurement List

commodities and services to be

furnished by nonprofit agencies

employing persons who are blind or

have other severe disabilities, and to

delete commodities previously

furnished by such agencies.

COMMENTS MUST BE RECEIVED ON OR

BEFORE: August 31, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Committee for Purchase

From People Who Are Blind or Severely

Disabled, Crystal Gateway 3, Suite 310,

1215 Jefferson Davis Highway,

Arlington, Virginia 22202–4302.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Beverly Milkman (703) 603–7740.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This

notice is published pursuant to 41

U.S.C. 47(a)(2) and 41 CFR 51–2.3. Its

purpose is to provide interested persons

an opportunity to submit comments on

the possible impact of the proposed

actions.

Additions

If the Committee approves the

proposed addition, all entities of the

Federal Government (except as

otherwise indicated) will be required to

procure the commodities and services

listed below from nonprofit agencies

employing persons who are blind or

have other severe disabilities.

I certify that the following action will

not have a significant impact on a

substantial number of small entities.

The major factors considered for this

certification were:

1. The action will not result in any

additional reporting, recordkeeping or

other compliance requirements for small

entities other than the small

organizations that will furnish the

commodities and services to the

Government.

2. The action does not appear to have

a severe economic impact on current

contractors for the commodities and

services.

3. The action will result in

authorizing small entities to furnish the

commodities and services to the

Government.

4. There are no known regulatory

alternatives which would accomplish

the objectives of the Javits-WagnerO’Day Act (41 U.S.C. 46–48c) in

connection with the commodities and

services proposed for addition to the

Procurement List. Comments on this

certification are invited. Commenters

should identify the statement(s)

underlying the certification on which

they are providing additional

information.

The following commodities and

services have been proposed for

addition to Procurement List for

production by the nonprofit agencies

listed:

Commodities

Skid Board 1670–01–342–5913

NPA: Lions Industries for the Blind, Inc.,

Kinston, North Carolina

Anti-Microbial Textiles Shipper

M.R. 1911

NPA: Lions Services, Inc., Charlotte, North

Carolina

Ergonomic Kitchen Gadgets

M.R. 880—Nylon Square Turner

M.R. 882—Nylon Spoon

M.R. 884—Nylon Spaghetti Server

M.R. 887—Jar Opener

M.R. 881—Nylon Round Turner

M.R. 883—Nylon Slotted Spoon

M.R. 885—Nylon Ladle

NPA: Cincinnati Association for the Blind,

Cincinnati, Ohio

Pet Mats

M.R. 1700

NPA: Winston-Salem Industries for the

Blind, Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Services

Administrative Services, Department of

Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 6010

Amarillo Boulevard West, Amarillo,

Texas

NPA: Dallas Lighthouse for the Blind, Inc.,

Dallas, Texas

Base Supply Center, Bolling Air Force Base,

Washington, DC

NPA: Blind Industries & Services of

Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland

Customer Service Representatives

General Services Administration, Northwest

Arctic Region, 400 15th Street, SW,

Auburn, Washington

NPA: The Lighthouse for the Blind, Inc.,

Seattle, Washington

Food Service Attendant (Postwide), Fort

Carson, Colorado

NPA: Pueblo Diversified Industries, Inc.,

Pueblo, Colorado

Janitorial/Custodial

San Diego Vet Center, 2900 Sixth Avenue,

San Diego, California

West LA VA Community Base Clinic, 1063,

N. Vine Street, Los Angeles, California

NPA: Job Options, Inc., San Diego, California

Janitorial/Custodial, Federal Records Center

and USDA Laboratory, East Point,

Georgia

NPA: WORKTEC, Jonesboro, Georgia

Janitorial/Custodial, GPO Springbelt

Warehouse, 7701 Southern Drive,

Springfield, Virginia

GPO Laurel Warehouse, 8610 & 8660 Cherry

Lane, Laurel, Maryland

NPA: Davis Memorial Goodwill Industries,

Washington, DC

Janitorial/Custodial, Veterans Affairs

Outpatient Clinic, Sayre, Pennsylvania

NPA: Penn-York Opportunities for the

Handicapped, Inc., Athens, Pennsylvania

Janitorial/Custodial, Carr Inlet Acoustical

Range, 630—3rd Avenue, Fox Island,

Washington

NPA: Peninsula Services, Bremerton,

Washington

Operation of Individual Equipment Element,

Bolling Air Force Base, Washington, DC

NPA: Blind Industries & Services of

Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland

Operation of Individual Equipment Element,

Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska

NPA: Envision, Inc., Wichita, Kansas

Operation of Individual Equipment Element,

Seymour-Johnson Air Force Base, North

Carolina

NPA: Raleigh Lions Clinic for the Blind, Inc.,

Raleigh, North Carolina

Switchboard Operation, Department of

Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 950

West Haven Avenue, West Haven,

Connecticut

NPA: BESB Industries, West Hartford,

Connecticut

Switchboard Operation, Department of

Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Sioux

Falls, South Dakota

NPA: South Dakota Industries for the Blind,

Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Deletions

I certify that the following action will

not have a significant impact on a

substantial number of small entities.

The major factors considered for this

certification were:

1. The action will not result in any

additional reporting, recordkeeping or

other compliance requirements for small

entities.

2. The action does not appear to have

a severe economic impact on future

contractors for the commodities.