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

6920 

Vol. 73, No. 25 

Wednesday, February 6, 2008 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Centennial Salvage Timber Sale; 

Caribou-Targhee National Forest, 

Fremont and Clark Counties, ID 

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of withdrawal of the 

Notice of Intent to prepare an 

environmental impact statement. 

SUMMARY: The Forest Supervisor of the 

Caribou-Targhee National Forest gives 

notice of the agency’s intent to 

withdraw the Centennial Salvage 

Timber Sale Environmental Impact 

Statement. The project is being 

withdrawn because the trees proposed 

for harvest are no longer marketable and 

the project, as originally proposed, no 

longer meets resource objectives. 

The original NOI was published in the 

Federal Register on September 9, 2004 

(54627–54628). A revised NOI was 

published on December 1, 2004 (69883). 

DATES: Effective upon the date of 

publication of this notice in the Federal 

Register, this project is withdrawn. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Cathey Hardin, Forester, Ashton-Island 

Park Ranger District, P.O. Box 865, 

Ashton, ID 83420 Telephone: (208) 558– 

7301. 

Individuals who use 

telecommunication devices for the deaf 

(TDD) may call the Federal Information 

Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339 

between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern 

Standard Time, Monday through Friday. 

Dated: January 23, 2008. 

Lawrence A. Timchak, 

Forest Supervisor. 

[FR Doc. 08–514 Filed 2–5–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Rural Utilities Service 

Basin Electric Power Cooperative, Inc.; 

Notice of Intent To Hold Public 

Scoping Meeting and Prepare an 

Environmental Assessment 

AGENCY: Rural Utilities Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of Intent To Hold Public 

Scoping Meeting and Prepare an 

Environmental Assessment (EA). 

SUMMARY: The Rural Utilities Service 

(RUS) an Agency delivering the U.S. 

Department of Agriculture’s Rural 

Development Utilities Programs, 

hereinafter referred to as Rural 

Development and/or Agency, intends to 

hold a public scoping meeting and 

prepare an Environmental Assessment 

(EA) in connection with possible 

impacts related to a project being 

proposed by Basin Electric Power 

Cooperative, Inc. (Basin Electric), of 

Bismarck, North Dakota. The proposal 

consists of the construction and 

operation of a natural gas-fired 

combustion turbine generation facility 

referred to as the Culbertson Unit 1 East 

Side Peaking Project, consisting of a 

single maximum net 100 Megawatt 

(MW) unit, at a site near Culbertson, 

Montana. 

DATES: RUS will conduct the public 

scoping meeting in an open-house 

format on February 26, 2008, from 4 

p.m. to 7 p.m., Mountain Standard 

Time, at the Culbertson American 

Legion, 119 2nd Street, East, Culbertson, 

Montana. 

FOR INFORMATION CONTACT: Richard 

Fristik, Senior Environmental Protection 

Specialist, Water and Environmental 

Programs, Rural Development, Utilities 

Programs, 1400 Independence Ave. SW., 

Mail Stop 1571, Washington DC 20250– 

1571, telephone: (202) 720–5093 or email: richard.fristik@wdc.usda.gov , or 

Kevin L. Solie, Basin Electric Power 

Cooperative, Inc., 1717 East Interstate 

Avenue, Bismarck, ND 58503–0564, 

telephone: (701) 355–5495 or e-mail: 

ksolie@bepc.com. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Basin 

Electric proposes to construct a new 80– 

100 MW, simple-cycle natural gas fired 

turbine less than (50 MW average 

annual output), ancillary facilities and 

systems, a new natural gas pipeline to 

connect to the existing Northern Border 

Pipeline, and necessary equipment to 

allow connection to the Western Area 

Power Administration (WAPA) 

transmission system. Basin Electric is 

requesting RUS to provide financing for 

the proposed project. WAPA will 

construct a new or modify an existing 

electrical substation, and construct up 

to 12 miles of new transmission line to 

facilitate connection of the proposed 

facility to its grid, and as such has 

agreed to be a cooperating agency in 

preparation of the EA. The Montana 

Department of Environmental Quality 

(DEQ) is also a cooperating agency due 

to its responsibilities under the Montana 

Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) and 

for air quality permitting. 

Alternatives to be considered by RUS 

include no action, purchased power, 

load management, renewable energy 

sources, distributed generation, and 

alternative site locations. Comments 

regarding the proposed project may be 

submitted (orally or in writing) at the 

public scoping meeting or in writing 

within 30 days after the February 26, 

2008, scoping meeting to RUS at the 

address provided in this notice. 

A proposal development document— 

Alternative Evaluation and Site 

Selection Study—is available for public 

review at RUS or Basin Electric, at the 

addresses provided in this notice. This 

study is also available at the Culbertson 

Public Library, 202 Broadway, 

Culbertson, MT 59218. 

From information provided in the 

study mentioned above, and using input 

provided by government agencies, 

private organizations, and the public, 

RUS will prepare a Draft EA. The Draft 

EA will be available for review and 

comment for 45 days after distribution. 

A Final EA will then be prepared that 

considers all comments received. The 

Final EA will be available for review 

and comment for 30 days after 

distribution. Following the 30-day 

comment period, RUS will prepare 

either a Finding of No Significant 

Impact (FONSI) or an Environmental 

Impact Statement (EIS). Notices 

announcing the availability of the Draft 

and Final EA and a FONSI, as 

appropriate, will be published in the 

Federal Register and in local 

newspapers. 

Any final action by RUS related to the 

proposed projects will be subject to, and 

contingent upon, compliance with all 

relevant Federal, State and local 


pwalker on PROD1PC71 with NOTICES