27154 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 95 / Wednesday, May 16, 2001 / Notices

Total Estimated Burden Hours:

563,765.

Status: Reinstatement, with change.

Authority: Section 3507 of the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 35, as

amended.

Dated: May 8, 2001.

Donna L. Eden,

Director, Office of Investment Strategies,

Policy and Management.

[FR Doc. 01–12241 Filed 5–15–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4210–01–M

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

Notice of Intent To Prepare an

Environmental Impact Statement for

the Proposed Exchange of Lands With

Federal Interest on South Fox Island,

Leelanau County, MI, Between the

State of Michigan and a Private Citizen

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service,

Interior, lead; National Park Service,

Interior, cooperating; Michigan

Department of Natural Resources,

cooperating.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare an

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)

for the proposed exchange of lands with

Federal interest on South Fox Island,

Leelanau County, Michigan.

SUMMARY: This notice advises the public

that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

(FWS) intends to gather the information

necessary for the preparation of an EIS.

The actions to be evaluated by this EIS

are: (1) The approval by FWS of the

exchange of 313 acres, acquired by the

State with Federal Aid in Wildlife

Restoration assistance, for lands with

equal monetary and wildlife restoration

values; (2) the approval by the National

Park Service (NPS) for the State to

exchange 105 acres with NPS interest

for private lands with equal or greater

monetary and recreational value; and (3)

the related exchange of 220 acres of

unencumbered State-owned land for fee

title and easements for private lands of

equal value. All acreage is approximate.

The proposed exchange will consolidate

and confine most State ownership to

approximately the northern one-third of

South Fox Island, Leelanau County,

Michigan, about 30 miles west

northwest of Charlevoix, in Lake

Michigan.

Based upon public comments and

agency concerns, the current Proposed

Action is a modification of the original

proposal as presented in the

Environmental Assessment Notice of

Intent (65 FR 57367, Sep. 22, 2000) and

public scoping meetings. The

approximately 115 acre southern tip

would feature three areas: (1) The

southernmost portion (part of section

21) that includes the lighthouse,

associated buildings, and part of the

harbor area would remain in public

ownership. (2) The unforested, sandy

area, approximately bounded by forest

on the north and south and the water’s

edge on the east and west (parts of

sections 16 and 21), would be placed in

a conservation easement if that portion

was transferred to private ownership.

The conservation easement would

prevent any form of development from

occurring within its borders. (3) The

northernmost portion of the southern tip

is forested and would go into private

ownership without any conservation

easement. The internet site at: http://

midwest.fws.gov/NEPA/ contains a map

of the proposed conservation easement

and southern tip. The island property

containing a cemetery would move into

public ownership.

The FWS Regional Director is

considering an exchange of lands

acquired with Federal Aid in Wildlife

Restoration funds under the authority of

50 CFR 80.14 and 43 CFR 12.71. The

NPS and General Service’s

Administration (GSA) are considering

the removal of a title reversion clause to

allow the disposal of certain lands on

South Fox Island and for the placement

of a title reversion clause on

replacement lands of equal monetary

and recreational value. Alternatives

could include approval, disapproval, or

modification of the State’s current

proposal of the land exchange.

Modifications could include, but are not

limited to: changes in the boundaries

and acreage of tracts to be exchanged;

elimination of more of the NPS tract

from the exchange; and deed restrictions

on certain lands to be conveyed to the

private owner to protect wildlife and

historic resources.

This notice is being furnished as

required by the National Environmental

Policy Act (NEPA) Regulations (40 CFR

1501.7 and 1508.22). The intent of the

notice is to obtain suggestions and

additional information from other

agencies and the public on the scope of

issues to be addressed in the EIS.

Comments and participation in this

scoping process are solicited.

DATES: Written comments should be

received on or before June 15, 2001.

Scoping meetings are scheduled for June

5, 2001 at Leland High School, 200 N.

Grand Avenue, Leland, Michigan 49654

and on June 6, 2001 at Charlevoix High

School, 108 E. Garfield, Charlevoix,

Michigan 49720. At each location, the

meeting will take place from 6:30 to 9

p.m.

Public Involvement

The public is invited to participate in

the scoping process, attendance at

public meeting, and review of the draft

EIS when it is produced. Scoping

meetings are scheduled for June 5, 2001

at Leland High School, 200 N. Grand

Avenue, Leland, Michigan and on June

6, 2001 at Charlevoix High School, 108

E. Garfield, Charlevoix, Michigan. At

each location, the meeting will take

place from 6:30 to 9 p.m.. There will be

a 30 minute presentation at the

beginning of each meeting prior to

breaking into groups for comments and

questions. Both meetings will be

announced in the local news media.

Release of the draft EIS for public

comment will also be announced in the

local news media, as these dates are

established. Written scoping comments

should be received within 30 days from

the date of publication of this Notice of

Intent. Public comments that were

provided during an Environmental

Assessment process on a similar

proposal will be utilized in developing

alternatives and issues for the draft EIS.

All comments received from

individuals become part of the official

public record. Requests for such

comments will be handled in

accordance with the Freedom of

Information Act and the Council on

Environmental Quality’s NEPA

regulations [40 CFR 1506.6(f)]. Our

practice is to make comments, including

names and home addresses of

respondents, available for public review

during regular business hours.

Individual respondents may request that

we withhold their home address from

the record, which we will honor to the

extent allowable by law. If a respondent

wishes us to withhold his/her name

and/or address, this must be stated

prominently at the beginning of the

comment.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be

addressed to: Mr. Craig Czarnecki, U.S.

Fish and Wildlife Service, East Lansing

Field Office, 2651 Coolidge Road, Suite

101, East Lansing, MI 48823. Electronic

mail comments may also be submitted

within the comment period to:

fw3foxisland@fws.gov

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For

the various agencies, the contacts are:

Mr. Craig Czarnecki, U.S. Fish and

Wildlife Service, East Lansing Field

Office, 2651 Coolidge Road, Suite 101,

East Lansing, MI 48823, telephone: (517)

351–8470, facsimile: (517) 351–1443;

Mr. Jon Parker, U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service, Division of Federal Aid, Bishop

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 95 / Wednesday, May 16, 2001 / Notices 27155

Henry Whipple Federal Building, 1

Federal Drive, Fort Snelling, MN 55111;

telephone: (612) 713–5142, facsimile:

(612) 713–5290; or Ms. Elyse LaForest,

National Park Service, 15 State Street,

Boston, MA 02109, telephone: (617)

223–5190, facsimile: (617) 223–5164;

Mr. Doug Erickson, Michigan

Department of Natural Resources,

Wildlife Division, P.O. Box 30444,

Lansing, MI 48909–7944; telephone:

(517) 335–4316, facsimile: (517)373–

6705.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

approximately 115 acre State owned

tract with NPS and GSA interest

contains the South Fox Island

Lighthouse facilities that are either

listed or may be eligible to be listed on

the National Register of Historic Places

and other historical or archeological

resources may be present. The National

Historic Preservation Act and other laws

require these properties and resources

be identified and considered in project

planning. The public is requested to

inform the FWS of concerns about

archeological sites, buildings and

structures, historic events, sacred and

traditional areas, and other historic

preservation concerns. Under the

Proposed Action, the specific lands

containing the lighthouse and

associated buildings are not intended to

be traded out of public ownership.

The NPS tract also includes proposed

critical habitat for the federally

endangered piping plover. The tract also

contains federally threatened Pitcher’s

thistle, which is also present at other

locations on the island. The deed will

be subject to a conservation easement, if

the portion of the southern tip

containing these two federally listed

species is traded.

The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa

and Chippewa Indians has unresolved

claims to title and other property rights

on the island. There is a cemetery on

private land, which under the proposed

action, would move to public ownership

with guaranteed access.

There have been ongoing conflicts

over trespass on both public, and

private land parcels on the island. The

ability of the public to access all land

currently in State ownership is an

ongoing issue.

The Service estimates that the draft

EIS will be made available to the public

by late 2001.

Dated: May 3, 2001.

William F. Hartwig,

Regional Director, Region 3, Fort Snelling,

MN.

[FR Doc. 01–12335 Filed 5–15–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Indian Affairs

Notice of Intent To Prepare an

Environmental Impact Statement for

the Weber Dam Repair and

Modification Project, Lyon and Mineral

Counties, NV

AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs,

Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This notice advises the public

that the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA),

with the cooperation of the Walker

River Paiute Indian Tribe (Tribe),

intends to gather information necessary

for preparing an Environmental Impact

Statement (EIS) for the Weber Dam

Repair and Modification Project on the

Walker River Paiute Reservation, Lyon

and Mineral Counties, Nevada. The

purpose of the project is to correct

unsafe conditions at Weber Dam in

order to protect health and welfare

needs of the Walker River Paiute and

the citizens of the two counties. Details

on the project location, proposed action,

alternatives, and initial area of

environmental concern to be addressed

in the EIS are provided in the

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section.

This notice also announces public

meetings on the scope of issues to be

addressed in the EIS.

DATES: Comments on the scope and

implementation of this proposal must

arrive by June 18, 2001. The public

scoping meetings will be held on June

5, 2001, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and on

June 6, 2001, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

ADDRESSES: You may mail or hand carry

written comments to Amy L. Heuslein,

Regional Environmental Protection

Officer, Western Regional Office, Bureau

of Indian Affairs, Environmental Quality

Services, P.O. Box 10 (400 N. 5th Street,

14th floor), Phoenix, Arizona, 85001; or

to Chuck O’Rourke, Natural Resources

Officer, Western Nevada Agency,

Bureau of Indian Affairs, 1677 Hot

Springs Road, Carson City, Nevada,

89706. (See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

for E-mail options.)

The June 5, 2001, public meeting will

be held at the Walker River Paiute

Tribal Hall, #1 Hospital Road, Schurz,

Nevada. The June 6, 2001, public

meeting will be held at the Casino West

Convention Center, 11 N. Main Street,

Yerington, Nevada.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Amy Heuslein, (602) 379–6750, or

Chuck O’Rourke, (775) 887–3550.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Weber

Dam is located on the Walker River,

northwest of the town of Schurz,

Nevada, and upriver from Walker Lake.

Walker Lake is a desert lake located at

the terminus of the Walker River, which

once supported naturally-reproducing,

indigenous, Lahontan cutthroat trout

(Oncorhyncus clarki henshawi) (LCT).

LCT are currently listed as threatened

under the Endangered Species Act, 16

U.S.C. 1531–44. The lake fishery is

maintained by hatchery production.

Weber Dam is one of many structures on

the Walker River that prevents LCT from

migrating from the lake to a historical

habitat in the Walker River basin.

Construction of Weber Dam, which is

an earthen structure, began in 1934. It

was completed in 1937. The dam serves

to store water for irrigation of farmland

on the Walker River Paiute Reservation.

Because it sits on an earthquake fault

and has been leaking for many years, the

BIA has determined, under the Indian

Dams Safety Act, 25 U.S.C. 3801–04,

that Weber Dam is a high hazard dam.

This means that if the dam should fail,

there is a potential for loss of human life

downstream. The BIA has therefore

assigned Weber Dam the highest priority

for modification due to its unsafe

condition.

On September 30, 1991, the Tribe

entered into a contract with BIA

pursuant to Public Law 93–638, under

which the Tribe will carry out the BIA’s

responsibilities for repair and

modification of Weber Dam pursuant to

the Indian Dams Safety Act, including

the preparation of environmental

compliance documents. In this case,

after completing an Environmental

Assessment in 1994 and Supplemental

Assessment in 1998, the BIA, in

consultation with the Tribe, determined

that an EIS is needed in order to analyze

the effects of the proposed project on

the human environment. The design

and specifications for the repair and

modification were provided by the

Bureau of Reclamation.

The proposed action to be addressed

in the EIS is the repair and modification

of Weber Dam, pursuant to the Indian

Dams Safety Act. Alternatives to the

proposed action include no action,

relocating a section of the dam from an

existing earthquake fault, renovating the

outlet works, reestablishing a wetlands

area and removing the impediment to

upstream and downstream passage for

LCT. The effect of the proposed action

on LCT is a primary area of

environmental concern to be addressed

in the EIS.

Public Comment Solicitation

As an alternative to submitting

written comments regarding the content

of the EIS to the locations identified in

the ADDRESSES section, interested