[Federal Register: January 2, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 1)]
[Notices]
[Page 71-72]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr02ja09-16]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Bend/Ft. Rock Ranger District; Deschutes National Forest; Oregon;
Kapka Butte Sno-Park Construction
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.
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SUMMARY: The USDA, Forest Service, will prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) on a proposed action to construct a sno-park, designate
motorized and non-motorized over-snow trails to link the parking
facility to existing snowmobile and nordic trail systems, and designate
new over-snow dog-friendly snowshoe and skier trails to enhance
recreational opportunities from the new facility. The proposed sno-park
would be located on National Forest lands between Kapka Butte and the
junction of Forest Road 46 (Cascade Lakes Highway) and Forest Road 45
(Sunriver cutoff). The proposed sno-park area is located about 30 miles
west of Bend, Oregon; it is located in Section 35, Township 18S, Range
9E. The alternatives will include the proposed action, no action, and
additional alternatives that respond to issues generated through the
scoping process. The agency will give notice of the full environmental
analysis and decision making process so interested and affected people
may participate and contribute to the final decision.
DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received
by 30 days following the date that this notice appears in the Federal
Register.
[[Page 72]]
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Shane Jeffries, District Ranger,
Bend/Ft. Rock Ranger District, 1230 NE 3rd St., Suite A-262, Bend, OR
97701.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marv Lang, Project Leader, Bend/Ft.
Rock Ranger District, 1230 NE 3rd St., Suite A-262, Bend, Oregon 97701,
phone (541) 383-4793. E-mail melang@fs.fed.us.
Responsible Official. The responsible official will be Shane
Jeffries, District Ranger, Bend-Fort Rock Ranger District, 1230 NE
Third St., Ste. A-262, Bend, OR 97701.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Purpose and Need. The Deschutes National Forest sees a need to
provide high elevation parking that will enhance a variety of winter
recreation opportunities near Mt. Bachelor. On most weekend and holiday
periods during the wintertime near Mt. Bachelor, it is not unusual to
see parking lots full of vehicles, causing over-flow parking in
inappropriate locations such as chain-up areas. This has been a
progressive condition since the mid-1990s and has reached a point where
it has become a public safety concern. More winter uses, such as
snowshoeing, backcountry skiing and skijoring, have become more popular
in recent years. These newer uses on top of the already high use that
the area near Mt. Bachelor receives have created the congestion that
occurs at all of the sno-parks. A result of the crowded conditions is
inappropriate parking along the Cascade Lake Highway during weekends
and holidays, causing traffic problems for the traveling public,
emergency vehicles, and snow plowing equipment. This persistent
condition demonstrates a need for additional safe parking facilities
that provide access to over snow trail systems during more marginal
snow conditions than the lower elevation sno-parks currently provide.
It's also important that this occurs in a location where regular
snowplowing can also be accomplished in an economically feasible
manner.
Proposed Action. The Forest Service is proposing to build a new
sno-park near Kapka Butte to provide more high elevation parking for
winter recreationists along an established snowplowing route. The
proposed facility would provide for a mix of vehicle parking, including
vehicles towing trailers and some slots designed for smaller vehicles.
The proposed parking facility would include approximately 70 slots for
trailers, and 40 slots for non-trailer vehicles. Trail links to
existing snowmobile and nordic trails would also be provided as well as
new proposed trails for nordic skiing, snowshoeing and skiing with
dogs.
Comment. Public comments about this proposal are requested in order
to assist in identifying issues, determine how to best manage the
resources, and to focus the analysis. Comments received to this notice,
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; however, those who submit anonymous comments will not
have standing to appeal the subsequent decision under 36 CFR parts 215.
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 Act (FOIA) permits such confidentiality.
Persons requesting such confidentiality should be aware that, under
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 within a
specified number of days.
A draft EIS will be filed with the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) and available for public review by Spring 2009. The EPA will
publish a Notice of Availability (NOA) of the draft EIS in the Federal
Register. The final EIS is scheduled to be available Autumn 2009.
The comment period on the draft EIS will be 45 days from the date
the EPA 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
a draft EIS 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 EIS stage but that are not
raised until after completion of the final EIS may be waived or
dismissed by the courts [City of Angoon 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 EIS.
To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues
and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the draft EIS 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 EIS of 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.
In the final EIS, the Forest Service is required to respond to
substantive comments received during the comment period for the draft
EIS. The Forest Service is the lead agency and the responsible official
is the Bend-Fort Rock District Ranger, Deschutes National Forest. The
responsible official will decide where, and whether or not to construct
the sno-park and associated trails. The responsible official will also
decide how to mitigate impacts of these actions and will determine when
and how monitoring of effects will take place.
The Kapka Butte Sno-park Project decision and the reasons for the
decision will be documented in the Record of Decision. That decision
will be subject to Forest Service Appeal Regulations (35 CFR Part 215).
Sean A. Ferrell,
Assistant District Ranger.
[FR Doc. E8-31118 Filed 12-31-08; 8:45 am]
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