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.

Notices Federal Register

55331 

Vol. 70, No. 182 

Wednesday, September 21, 2005 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Trapper Bunkhouse Land Stewardship 

Project, Darby Ranger District, 

Bitterroot National Forest in Ravalli 

County, MT 

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an 

environmental impact statement. 

SUMMARY: The USDA, Forest Service, 

Bitterroot National Forest, will prepare 

an Environmental Impact Statement 

(EIS) to document the analysis and 

disclose the environmental impacts of 

the proposed Trapper Land Stewardship 

Project. The project area is located in 

Ravalli County, west of Darby, Montana. 

The project analysis area encompasses 

approximately 34,300 acres between the 

Trapper Creek and Bunkhouse Creek 

drainages of the Bitterroot River 

watershed. The proposed project would 

manage vegetation to address urban 

interface needs, insect and disease 

infestations, dead and dying vegetation; 

travel systems will also be evaluated to 

reduce sedimentation, restore aquatic 

passage and provide managed recreation 

opportunities including ATV and 

motorcycle travel loops. Site-specific 

Bitterroot Forest Plan amendments are 

proposed for: snag standards, Forest 

Wide Elk Habitat Effectiveness (EHE) 

standards, and-Forest-wide thermal 

cover standards. Approximately 6000 

acres between Trapper and Bunkhouse 

drainages of the Bitterroot River 

watershed are proposed for vegetation 

treatments. We will also be working 

with scientists from the Rocky 

Mountain Research Station and the 

Leopold Wilderness Institute to provide 

opportunities to evaluate our ability to 

influence fire spread with vegetation 

management and the effects of our 

management on the ecosystem. 

Public Involvement: The public is 

invited to comment on the Proposed 

Action or meet with Chuck Oliver at any 

point in time during the 30-day 

comment period beginning on the date 

of the publication of the Notice of Intent 

in the Federal Register. Contact Chuck 

Oliver at (406) 821–3913 or e-mail 

coliver01@fs.fed.us to schedule a 

meeting. To get on the mailing list 

contact Elizabeth Ballard (406) 777– 

5461, or email eballard@fs.fed.us. 

DATES: Initial comments concerning the 

proposed action and the scope of 

analysis should be received in writing, 

no later than 30 days from the 

publication of this notice of intent. 

ADDRESSES: Submit written, oral, or email comments by: (1) Mail—Trapper 

Bunkhouse BEMRP Project; Chuck 

Oliver, District Ranger; Darby Ranger 

Station; 712 N. Main; Darby, Montana 

59829 (2) phone—(406) 821–3913; (3) email—comments-northern-bitterrootdarby@fs.fed.us. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Elizabeth Ballard, Acting North Zone 

Interdisciplinary Team Leader, 

Stevensville Ranger District, Bitterroot 

National Forest, 88 Main St. 

Stevensville, MT, 59870, phone (406) 

777–5461, or e-mail eballard@fs.fed.us. 

Responsible Official: David T. Bull, 

Forest Supervisor, Bitterroot National 

Forest, Hamilton, MT 59807. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Purpose and Need for Action 

The Trapper Bunkhouse Project is 

proposed to respond to the goals and 

objectives of the Bitterroot Community 

Wildfire Protection Plan and the 

Bitterroot National Forest Land and 

Resource Management Plan. 

The purpose and need objectives of 

the proposed Trapper Bunkhouse 

project are to Reduce the probability for 

uncharacteristically large, high-intensity 

wildlife fires within historic low 

intensity, frequently fire regime areas on 

the landscape and especially in the 

urban interface. 

Provide economic value to the 

community and provide funding 

opportunities for other projects related 

to watershed, soil restoration and fuel 

reduction by capturing economic value 

of beetle killed and infested trees as 

well as green tree thinning. 

Provide motorized recreation 

opportunities (firewood, ATV’s and 

motorcycle, driving) while protecting 

resources such as soils, sensitive 

species, and water resources. Improve 

watershed and aquatic conditions. 

In addition, this project provide an 

opportunity to conduct research to 

evaluate our ability to influence fire 

spread with vegetation management and 

the effects of our management on the 

ecosystem. 

Proposed Action 

The proposed action is designed to 

reduce potential impacts and to 

accomplish the project objectives. The 

types of vegetation management 

treatments that may be implemented on 

the landscape to meet the objectives 

include, but are not limited to: Salvage 

of dead and dying trees; green tree 

removals such as commercial and noncommercial thinning (including removal 

of insect and disease infested trees); 

slashing, hand piling, prescribed 

burning, herbicide application for 

noxious weeds, and sporax application 

of Ponderosa Pine stumps to prevent 

spread of annosus root diseases. The 

total proposed vegetation treatment 

acres is approximately 6000. 

Approximately 250 acres of proposed 

research treatment are planned to be 

included within these treatment areas. 

Research treatment options include: 

Mechanical or hand thin ladder fuel 

trees and large competing trees to 

different levels, or prescribed burn only. 

Thinning treatments include the 

following associated treatments: (a) Fuel 

reduction by mechanical removal, pile 

and burn, or prescribed burn; (b) skid 

trails treated with mulch or slash mats 

or left untreated; (c) treating pile burn 

microsite with mulch and/or unburned 

soil or left untreated. 

The types of access management 

treatments that may be implemented on 

the landscape to meet the objectives 

include, but are not limited to: Road 

reconstruction for timber harvest 

purposes, closing or obliterating unneeded roads or routes, construction of 

trails, changing access through 

restrictions or road closures, culvert 

replacement or removal, and 

development of parking areas. 

Approximately 1–2 miles of new trail 

construction may be necessary to 

connect existing routes to one another. 

Approximately 2–3 miles of new trail 

construction may be necessary on 

existing road prisms. Approximately 2– 

3 miles of unauthorized routes would be 

rehabilitated and closed. Approximately 

4–33 road crossings would be modified. 

55332 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 182 / Wednesday, September 21, 2005 / Notices 

Parking areas in 2 to 3 areas would be 

established or modified. 

Possible Alternatives 

Preliminary alternatives which have 

been identified include the proposed 

action and the no action alternatives. 

Responsible Official 

David T. Bull, Forest Supervisor, 

Bitterroot National Forest, 1801 N. First, 

Hamilton, MT 59840. 

Nature of Decision To Be Made 

The Responsible Official will 

determine whether or not to proceed 

with the proposed project activities. 

Scoping Process 

Comments will be accepted during 

the 30-day scoping period as described 

in this notice of intent. To assist in 

commenting, a scoping letter providing 

more detailed information on the project 

proposal has been prepared and is 

available to interested parties. Contact 

Chuck Oliver, Darby District Ranger at 

the address listed in this notice of intent 

if you would like to receive a copy. An 

open house in Darby, Montana is 

planned on October 12, 2005 in Darby, 

Montana. This will be an opportunity 

for you to interact with team members 

to clarify the proposed project. 

Preliminary Issues 

Impacts to the viewshed from the 

town of Darby. 

Comment Requested 

This notice of intent initiates the 

scoping process which guides the 

development of the environmental 

impact statement. 

Early Notice of Importance of Public 

Participation in Subsequent 

Environmental Review 

The comment period on the draft 

environmental impact statement will be 

45 days from the date the 

Environmental Protection Agency 

publishes the notice of availability in 

the Federal Register. 

The Forest Service believes, at this 

early stage, it is important to give 

reviewers notice 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 proposal so that it is 

meaningful and alerts an agency to the 

reviewer’s 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 but that are not raised until 

after completion of the final 

environmental impact statement may be 

waived or dismissed by the courts. City 

of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F.2d 1016, 

1022 (9th Cir. 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 meaningfully 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 or the merits of the 

alternatives formulated and discussed in 

the 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. 

Additional public comment will be 

accepted after publication of the DEIS 

anticipated early in 2006. The 

Environmental Protection Agency will 

publish the Notice of Availability of the 

Draft Environmental Impact Statement 

in the Federal Register. The Forest will 

also publish a legal notice of availability 

in the Ravalli Republic, Hamilton, 

Montana. The comment period on the 

Draft EIS will begin the day after the 

legal notice is published. The Final EIS 

and Decision are expected late in 2006. 

Dated: September 15, 2005. 

David T. Bull, 

Forest Supervisor. 

[FR Doc. 05–18792 Filed 9–20–05; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

International Trade Administration 

(A–588–804, A–559–801) 

Extension of Time Limits for 

Preliminary Results and Final Results 

of the Full Sunset Review of the 

Antidumping Duty Orders on Ball 

Bearings and Parts Thereof from 

Japan and Singapore 

AGENCY: Import Administration, 

International Trade Administration, 

U.S. Department of Commerce. 

EFFECTIVE DATE: September 21, 2005. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Zev 

Primor at 202–482–4114 or Fred W. 

Aziz at 202–482–4023, Import 

Administration, International Trade 

Administration, U.S. Department of 

Commerce, 14th Street & Constitution 

Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230. 

Extension of Time Limits 

In accordance with section 

751(c)(5)(B) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as 

amended (the Act), the U.S. Department 

of Commerce (the Department) may 

extend the period of time for making its 

determination by not more than 90 days, 

if it determines that the sunset review 

is extraordinarily complicated. As set 

forth in 751(c)(5)(C)(v) of the Act, the 

Department may treat a sunset review as 

extraordinarily complicated if it is a 

review of a transition order. The sunset 

reviews subject to this notice are 

transition orders. Therefore, the 

Department has determined, pursuant to 

section 751(c)(5)(C)(v) of the Act, that 

these sunset reviews are extraordinarily 

complicated and require additional time 

for the Department to complete its 

analysis. 

The Department’s preliminary results 

of these full sunset reviews were 

scheduled for September 19, 2005, and 

the final results were scheduled for 

January 27, 2006. They are now being 

extended until December 19, 2005, and 

April 27, 2006, respectively. These dates 

are 90 days from the original scheduled 

dates of the preliminary and final 

results of these sunset reviews. 

This notice is issued in accordance 

with sections 751(c)(5)(B) and (C)(v) of 

the Act. 

Dated: September 15, 2005. 

Barbara E. Tillman, 

Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. 05–18852 Filed 9–20–05; 8:45 am] 

(BILLING CODE: 3510–DS–SP)