[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 166 (Tuesday, August 26, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50301-50302]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-19621]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Sequoia National Forest, Western Divide Ranger District; 
California; Tule River Reservation Protection Project

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: The proposed project is to reduce surface and ladder fuels on 
approximately 1,574 acres by constructing fuel breaks, treating planted 
stands, and prescribed burning between planted stands and fuel breaks. 
The purpose of the project is to respond to a proposal from the Tule 
River Tribal Council under the Tribal Forest Protection Act and to 
reduce the spread of wildland fire starting on the Sequoia National 
Forest or private lands onto the Tule River Indian Reservation.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received 
by Wednesday, September 24, 2008. The draft environmental impact 
statement is expected June 2009 and the final environmental impact 
statement is expectedNovember 2009.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Priscilla Summers, District Ranger, 
Western Divide Ranger District, 32588 Hwy 190, Springville, CA 93265.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Teresa Sue, Planner, Western Divide 
Ranger District, 32588 Hwy 190, Springville, CA 93265.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In July 2004, Congress passed the Tribal 
Forest Protection Act (Act). The Act was in response to devastating 
wildfires that started on Federal lands and crossed onto adjacent 
Tribal lands. The Act provides a tool for tribes to propose work that 
will reduce the threat of fires starting on Federal lands from 
spreading onto trust lands for Indian tribes. The Act allows tribes to 
enter into contracts and agreements with the U.S. Forest Service or 
Bureau of Land Management to accomplish the work.
    In October 2005, the Tule River Tribal Council submitted a project 
proposal to the Forest Supervisor of the Sequoia National Forest under 
the authority of the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004. The Pacific 
Southwest RegionalForester granted authority to work with the Tule 
River Tribal Council on their proposal. This project is the first under 
this authority. Subsequent projects will be analyzed separately.

Purpose and Need for Action

    To respond to the proposal from the Tule River Tribal Council under 
the TribalForest Protection Act and to reduce the risk of wildland fire 
starting on the Sequoia National Forest or private lands from spreading 
onto the Tule RiverIndian Reservation by reducing surface and ladder 
fuels.

Proposed Action

    The proposed action is to reduce surface and ladder fuels on 
approximately 1,574 acres along the northern boundary between the 
Sequoia National Forest,Giant Sequoia National Monument, and the Tule 
River Indian Reservation. The proposed action includes the construction 
of shaded fuel breaks along ridgelines, private land, and roads; the 
reduction of fuels in planted stands by thinning, limbing and removing 
brush; disposal of resulting fuels by pile and burning, jackpot 
burning, or utilizing biomass as commercial and/or personal fuel; and 
prescribed burn between planted stands and shaded fuel breaks.

Responsible Official

    Tina Terrell, Forest Supervisor, Sequoia National Forest, 1839 
South NewcombStreet, Porterville, CA 93257.

Nature of Decision To Be Made

    The decision to be made is whether or not to approve the fuels 
reduction project as described. The decision will not include a Forest 
Plan Amendment.

[[Page 50302]]

Scoping Process

    Public participation will be especially important at several points 
during the analysis. The Forest Service will be seeking information, 
comments, and assistance from Federal, State, and local agencies and 
other individuals or organizations interested in or affected by the 
proposed action.
    The comment period on the proposed action will extend 30 days from 
the date the Notice of Intent is published in the Federal Register.
    The draft environmental impact statement is expected to be filed 
with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and to be available for 
public review by June 2009. EPA will publish a notice of availability 
of the draft EIS in the Federal Register. The comment period on the 
draft EIS will extend 45 days from the date the EPA notice appears in 
the FederalRegister. At that time, copies of the draft EIS will be 
distributed to interested and affected agencies, organizations, and 
members of the public for their review and comment. It is very 
important that those interested in the Tule River Reservation 
Protection Project participate at that time.
    The final EIS is scheduled to be completed in November 2009. In the 
final EIS, the Forest Service is required to respond to substantive 
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 decision. 
Substantive comments are defined as ``comments within the scope of the 
proposed action, specific to the proposed action, and have a direct 
relationship to the proposed action, and include supporting reasons for 
the responsible official to consider'' (36 CFR 215.2). Submission of 
substantive comments is a prerequisite for eligibility to appeal under 
the 36 CFR part 215 regulations.

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

    A draft environmental impact statement will be prepared for 
comment. 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 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 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 (ED. 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 PolicyAct at 40 
CFR 1503.3 in addressing these points.
    Comments received, including the names and addresses of those who 
comment, will be considered part of the public record on this proposal 
and will be available for public inspection.
(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 1508.22; Forest Service Handbook 
1909.15, Section 21).

    Dated: August 18, 2008.
Tina J. Terrell,
Forest Supervisor.
 [FR Doc. E8-19621 Filed 8-25-08; 8:45 am]
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