5604 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 22 / Thursday, February 3, 2005 / Notices 

Ranger District Office at the junction of 

State Route 321 and State Route 59 

South, Marshburg, PA. (R.S.V.P by 

calling 814–362–4613). There will also 

be an opportunity for the public to ask 

questions and make suggestions to the 

ID Team. 

Comment Requested: This notice of 

intent initiates the scoping process, 

which guides the development of the 

environmental impact statement. Your 

comments will help the Forest Service 

refine and enhance the list of issues that 

are considered when analyzing 

alternatives to the proposed action. 

When this analysis is nearly complete, 

the Draft EIS will be filed with the 

Environmental Protection Agency and 

become available for public review 

(expected by November 2005). At that 

time the Environmental Protection 

Agency will publish a Notice of 

Availability of the document in the 

Federal Register (this will begin the 45-

day comment period on the Draft EIS). 

After the comment period ends on the 

Draft EIS, the comments will be 

analyzed and considered by the Forest 

Service in preparing the final 

environmental impact statement. The 

Final EIS and Record of Decision are 

scheduled for release in May 2006. 

Comments received, including names 

and addresses of those who comment, 

will be considered part of the public 

record and may be subject to public 

disclosure. Any person may request the 

Agency to withhold a submission from 

the public record by showing how the 

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 

permits such confidentiality. 

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 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 stage 

but that are not raised until after 

completion of the final environmental 

impact statement stage may be waived 

or dismissed by the courts City of 

Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F.2nd 1016, 1022 

[9th Cir. 1986] and MDSU Wisconsin 

Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490 F. Supp. 

1334, 1338 [E.D. Wis. 1980]). 

Because of the above 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 are made 

available to the Forest Service at a time 

when they can be meaningfully 

considered and responded to 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, 

sections, 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 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. 

This decision will be subject to appeal 

under 36 CFR 215. The responsible 

official is John R. Schultz, Bradford 

Ranger District, 29 Forest Service Drive, 

Bradford, PA 16701.

Dated: January 27, 2005. 

Kevin B. Elliott, 

Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 05–2005 Filed 2–2–05; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service 

Mendocino Resource Advisory 

Committee

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of meeting.

SUMMARY: The Mendocino County 

Resource Advisory Committee will meet 

February 18, 2005, (RAC) in Willits, 

California. Agenda items to be covered 

include: (1) Approval of minutes, (2) 

Public Comment, (3) Sub-committees, 

(4) Discussion/approval of projects, (5) 

Old Business, (6) Matters before the 

group-discussion only, and (7) Next 

agenda and meeting date.

DATES: The meeting will be held on 

February 18, 2005, from 9 a.m. to 12 

noon.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at 

the Mendocino County Museum, 

located at 400 E. Commercial St., 

Willits, California.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Roberta Hurt, Committee Coordinator, 

USDA, Mendocino National Forest, 

Covelo Ranger District, 78150 Covelo 

Road, Covelo CA 95428. (707) 983–

8503; e-mail rhurt@fs.fed.us.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

meeting is open to the public. Persons 

who wish to bring matters to the 

attention of the Committee may file 

written statements with the Committee 

staff by May 18, 2004. Public comment 

will have the opportunity to address the 

committee at the meeting.

Dated: January 24, 2005. 

Blaine Baker, 

Designated Federal Official.

[FR Doc. 05–2030 Filed 2–2–05; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service 

Tehama County Resource Advisory 

Committee

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of meeting.

SUMMARY: The Tehama County Resource 

Advisory Committee (RAC) will meet in 

Red Bluff, California. Agenda items to 

be covered include: (1) Introductions, 

(2) Approval of Minutes, (3) Public 

Comment, (4) Restructure of SubCommittees, (5) Project Proposals, (6) 

Review of Projects Funded to Date, (7) 

General Discussion, (8) County 

Supervisor’s Update, and (9) Next 

Agenda.

DATES: The meeting will be held on 

February 10, 2005 from 9 a.m. and end 

at approximately 12 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at 

the Lincoln Street School, Conference 

Room A, 1135 Lincoln Street, Red Bluff, 

CA. Individuals wishing to speak or 

propose agenda items must send their 

names and proposals to Jim Giachino, 

DFO, 825 N. Humboldt Avenue, 

Willows, CA 95988.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Bobbin Gaddini, Committee 

Coordinator, USDA, Mendocino 

National Forest, Grindstone Ranger 

District, PO Box 164, Elk Creek, CA 

95939. (530) 968–5329; e-mail 

ggaddini@fs.fed.us.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

meeting is open to the public. 

Committee discussion is limited to 

Forest Service staff and Committee 

members. However, persons who wish 

to bring matters to the attention of the 

Committee may file written statements 

with the Committee staff before or after 

the meeting. Public input sessions will 

be provided and individuals who made 

written requests by February 8, 2005 

will have the opportunity to address the 

committee at those sessions.