Monitor/Hot Creek Forest Plan Amendment EIS; Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest; Nye, Eureka and Lander Counties, NV

[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 137 (Monday, July 19, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38623-38624]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-18010]


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                                                Federal Register
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Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 137 / Monday, July 19, 1999 / 
Notices

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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Monitor/Hot Creek Forest Plan Amendment EIS; Humboldt-Toiyabe 
National Forest; Nye, Eureka and Lander Counties, NV

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

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

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SUMMARY: The Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest will prepare an 
environmental impact statement (EIS) to consider amending the Toiyabe 
National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan). The 
amendment will be comprehensive, covering a wide variety of issues 
needed to update the Forest Plan for the Monitor and Hot Creek Mountain 
Ranges.

DECISION TO BE MADE: The Forest Service will decide whether or not to 
amend the Forest Plan for the Monitor and Hot Creek Mountain Ranges of 
the Austin and Tonopah Ranger Districts. The amendment will consider 
improving the management direction of portions of the Forest Plan and 
affirm continuation of other aspects of the Forest Plan's management 
direction for the next 10-15 years. No irreversible or irretrievable 
commitment of resources (site specific actions) will be taken as a 
result of this decision.

DATES: The public is asked to provide any information they believe the 
Forest Service should consider and to submit any issues regarding 
alternatives or potential impacts by October 15, 1999. The agency 
expects to file the draft EIS with the Environmental Protection Agency 
and make it available for public comment in January, 2000. The agency 
expects to file the final EIS in October 2000.

MEETINGS: The Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest will hold several public 
meetings to discuss the proposed Forest Plan amendment. Comments from 
the public, other agencies and tribal councils are welcomed. Dates, 
locations and topics to be discussed for these meetings are: July 8, 
1999, 6:00 to 9:00 pm at the Tonopah Convention Center, Tonopah, NV, 
Topic: Access, Roadless Areas and Transportation Systems; August 19, 
1999, 6:00 to 9:00 pm at the Eureka Opera House, Eureka, NV, Topic: 
Livestock Grazing, Wild Horses and Wildlife; September 9, 1999, 6:00 to 
9:00 pm at the Austin Community Hall, Austin, NV, Topic: Recreation 
Opportunities and Scenic Values; September 30, 1999 6:00 to 9:00 pm at 
the Hadley Community Center, Hadley, NV, Topic: Mining and Associated 
Activities; and October 21, 1999, 6:00 to 9:00 pm at the Hadley 
Community Center, Hadley, NV, Topic: Community Well Being. Additional 
meetings to be held in Reno and Las Vegas will be scheduled for 
October, 1999.

COMMENTS: Written comments on the information presented here should be 
submitted to the Central Nevada Planning Team, Attn. Dave McMorran, 
USDA Forest Service, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, P.O. Box 539, 
Ely NV 89301. Comments should be received by October 15, 1999.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: For additional information contract Dave 
McMorran, Ecosystem Planner, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, P.O. Box 
539, Ely, NV 89301, (775) 289-3031.

RESPONSIBLE OFFICAL: The Regional Forester for the Intermountain Region 
located at 324 25th Street, Odgen, Utah 84401 is the responsible 
official for the action.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The proposed amendment will address 
management of National Forest System lands in the Monitor and Hot Creek 
Mountain Ranges, which includes portions of Nye, Eureka and Lander 
Counties, Nevada. This area is part of the Austin and Tonopah Ranger 
Districts.
    The substantive changes that will be addressed in the amendment of 
the Forest Plan are described in the regulations implementing the 
National Forest Management Act (NFMA). The amendment process begins 
with monitoring and evaluation of Forest Plan implementation (36 CFR 
219.12(k)). It includes public involvement in monitoring and 
identification of opportunities for improvements to improve management.
    This NOI signals the development of an EIS for the amendment of the 
Forest Plan. Based upon monitoring and evaluation results and the 
information obtained in the Analysis of the Management Situation (AMS), 
Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest is proposing to make several 
improvements to the long-term management direction for the Monitor and 
Hot Creek Mountain Ranges. The public is invited to comment on the 
preliminary alternatives which have been identified.

Proposed Action

    The proposed action is to amend the Toiyabe Land and Resource 
Management Plan to improve management direction. The purpose of the 
proposed action is to provide long term management direction for the 
Monitor and Hot Creek Mountain Ranges. The proposed action is needed 
because existing guidance is more than a decade old. That guidance does 
not reflect the substantial additions to the National Forest System in 
the area, the rapidly growing and diversifying population, or the 
advances in science that have occurred over the last decade. Four 
alternatives have been prepared to address the topics outlined below. A 
preferred alternative will be selected during the preparation of the 
draft EIS based on public comments from this scoping process and the 
analysis of environmental impacts of the alternatives.

Amendment Topics

    Based on the analysis of the existing direction, monitoring and 
evaluation of resource conditions, and public comments, the following 
topics have been identified as having a need for change in management 
direction: Heritage Resources, American Indian Religious and Cultural 
Use, Watershed Protection, Species and Ecosystem Viability, Wilderness 
Management, Roadless Areas, Access, Transportation Systems, Recreation, 
Visual Resources, Forest Products Management, Livestock Grazing, Wild 
Horses, Wildlife, and Mining.

Publc Comments on the Draft EIS

    The Draft Environmental Impact Statement is expected to be 
available for public review and comment in January, 2000. The comment 
period on the draft environmental impact statement will be

[[Page 38624]]

at least 90 days from the date the Environmental Protection Agency 
publishes the notice of availability in the Federal Register.
    Comments received in response to this solicitation, including names 
and addresses of those who comment, will be considered part of the 
public record on this proposed action and will be available for public 
inspection. Comments submitted anonymously will be accepted and 
considered. Additionally, pursuant to 7 CFR 1.27(d), any person may 
request the agency to withhold a submission from the public record by 
showing how the Freedom of Information (FOIA) permits such 
confidentiality. Persons requesting such confidentiality should be 
aware that, under the FOIA, confidentiality may be granted in only very 
limited circumstances, such as to protect trade secrets. The Forest 
Service will inform the requester of the agency's decision regarding 
the request for confidentiality, and where the request is denied, the 
agency will return the submission and notify the requester that the 
comments may be resubmitted with or without name and address.
    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. 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). 
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 (E.D. Wis. 1980). Because of these court rulings, 
it is important that those interested in this proposed action 
participate by the close of the comment period so that substantive 
comments are made available to the Forest Service 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 specific and refer to specific 
pages or chapters of the draft statement. Comments may also address the 
adequacy of the draft statement or the merits of the alternatives 
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.

    Dated: July 1, 1999.
Monica Schwalbach,
Acting Forest Supervisor, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest.
[FR Doc. 99-18010 Filed 7-16-99; 8:45 am]
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