[Federal Register: September 11, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 175)]
[Notices]
[Page 51772-51775]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr11se07-26]
========================================================================
Notices
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
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.
========================================================================
[[Page 51772]]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Black Hills National Forest Travel Management Plan
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Forest Service proposes to designate which routes (roads
and trails) on federal lands administered by the Forest Service within
the Black Hills National Forest are open to motorized travel. In so
doing, the agency will comply with requirements of the Forest Service
2005 Travel Management Rule. Some areas were considered for cross-
country travel designation, but no areas are included in this proposal.
As a result of these travel management decisions, the Forest Service
will produce a Motorized Vehicle Use Map (MVUM) depicting those routes
on the Black Hills National Forest that will remain open to motorized
travel. The MVUM will be the primary tool used to determine compliance
and enforcement with motorized vehicle use designations on the ground.
Those existing routes and other user-created routes not designated open
on the MVUM will be legally closed to motorized travel. The decisions
on motorized travel do not include over-snow travel or existing winter-
use recreation.
DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received
by November 9, 2007. The draft environmental impact statement is
expected to be released in April 2008 and the final environmental
impact statement is expected in September 2008.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Travel Management, Black Hills
National Forest, 1019 North 5th Street, Custer, SD 57730. Electronic
comments may be sent to comments-rocky-mountain-black-hills@fs.fed.us,
with ``Travel Management'' in the subject line. Comments must be
readable in Microsoft Word, rich text or pdf formats.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tom Willems, Team Leader, at
twillems@fs.fed.us or (605) 673-9200.
Purpose and Need for Action
The purpose and need for this action is to improve management of
motorized vehicle use on National Forest System lands within the Black
Hills National Forest in accordance with provisions of 36 CFR Parts
212, 251, 261, and 295 Travel Management; Designated Routes and Areas
for Motor Vehicle Use; Final Rule.
Proposed Action
The proposed action is to designate selected roads and trails open
to motorized travel (wheeled vehicles only) on lands administered by
the Black Hills National Forest. Where it is appropriate and necessary,
the designations will also set specific seasons of use and type of use
for those roads and trails. In doing so, the Forest will comply with
requirements of the Forest Service 2005 Travel Management Rule (36 CFR
part 212). Some areas were considered for cross-country travel
designation, but no areas are included in this proposal. As a result of
these travel management decisions, the Black Hills National Forest will
produce a Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM) depicting those routes and areas
on the Forest that will remain open to motorized travel. The MVUM will
be the primary tool used to determine compliance and enforcement with
motorized travel designations on the ground. Those existing Forest
Service routes, as well as other user-created routes, not designated
open on the MVUM will be legally closed to motorized travel.
In order to implement the proposed action, it would be necessary to
amend some existing direction and terminology in the Revised Forest
Plan for the Black Hills National Forest. These changes to Plan
direction would be enduring changes and would apply to this decision
and all subsequent project decisions unless and until further modified.
Proposed travel management-related changes to the 1997 Black Hills
National Forest Revised Land and Resource Management Plan are based on
elements of the travel management rule, public meeting comments,
District and Core Travel Management Team recommendations, Forest
Leadership Team decisions, and the Black Hills National Forest Advisory
Board (NFAB), Travel Management Subcommittee, recommendations. The goal
is to provide a transportation system that is within the Black Hills
National Forest's ability to manage (operate and maintain) and provides
a variety of users with a diverse experience while minimizing impacts
to resources.
The proposed transportation system open to motorized travel under
this proposal would be a total of 3,998 miles. This is a change of 298
miles from the existing condition of approximately 3,700 miles. New
project decisions could change this system without amending the Forest
Plan.
The proposed transportation system was developed with extensive
public input over a period of three years and addresses a variety of
concerns, including access to private lands within the National Forest
boundary, funding, access to the Forest for motorized and non-motorized
recreation, and roads under the jurisdiction of county, state, and
other federal agencies. Specifically, this transportation system would
allow for a balance between various recreational uses of the Forest. It
would provide for various forms of reasonable motorized use on a
designated system of routes.
The proposed transportation system is depicted in detail on the
Black Hills National Forest Travel Management Plan Proposed Action map
(Map) located on the Forest Web site: http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/blackhills/recreation/travel_management/ohv.shtml.
Other existing
routes not shown on this map would not be open to public motorized
travel. New routes would not be created except by written decision of
an authorized Forest Service official. Unauthorized new routes would
not be approved for public motorized travel. If this proposal is
selected for implementation, the information on this map would become
the Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM) required by regulation and agency
policy.
A proposed Off Highway Vehicle (OHV) trail system is a significant
element of the total transportation system in this proposal. It would
accommodate the desire for a mix of
[[Page 51773]]
different motorized recreation uses by a variety of motorized vehicles
including All Terrain Vehicles (ATVs), motorcycles, and full-size off-
road vehicles. The system would provide for a variety of different
uses, including multi-scale looped routes, destination sites, and
challenges such as rock crawling. This proposal follows the
recommendation of the NFAB Travel Subcommittee.
This proposal is preparatory to a system of looped routes at
several scales, with some dead-end routes leading to destination sites
(such as cultural or special activity sites), or portal sites at
municipal boundaries. Some of these loops are single-type use, but the
majority are designated for mixed use. Mixed use is defined as use of a
designated route by both highway legal and non-highway legal motor
vehicles.
The proposed OHV trail system is depicted on the Map. Some roads
and trails on this system are designated to accommodate more than one
type of use. These mixed-use routes are designated on the Map. If this
proposal is selected for implementation, the information on this map
would become the Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM) required by regulation
and agency policy. Only those routes shown on the MVUM would be
authorized for motorized travel.
Under this proposal most of the route mileage would occur on
existing Forest System routes currently open to motorized travel.
However, this proposal also includes construction of short connector
routes and designation of some currently unauthorized routes between
existing Forest System routes.
It is our long-term goal to locate the majority of these designated
routes away from communities and subdivisions. This would help reduce
noise impacts to residents, as well as reduce the occurrence of single
or privileged access by adjacent landowners. However, use on some
routes would probably be audible to those living nearby.
Approximately 2,213 miles of Forest System roads would be
designated for mixed-use, as ``roads open to all vehicles,'' and
considered part of the proposed OHV Trail System. Forest System roads
not considered for mixed-use would be designated as ``roads open to
highway legal vehicles only.'' This would apply to approximately 1,075
miles of Forest Service roads that were not proposed to be part of the
OHV Trail System.
This proposal would allow cross-country motorized game retrieval of
legally harvested downed elk, within 300 feet from the centerline of
specific designated routes, providing resource damage does not occur.
Designated routes would be limited to only those routes located within
management areas where off-route motorized travel is currently allowed
by the Forest Plan. This includes and is limited to routes located
within Management Areas 5.1, 5.1A, 5.3A, and 5.6. Game retrieval would
not be allowed along routes located in management areas that do not
currently allow off-route motorized travel, such as Wilderness, Norbeck
Wildlife Preserve, Research Natural Areas, and Botanical Areas. The
intent of this proposal would be to provide reasonable access to downed
elk that are difficult to move long distances without motorized
assistance. Motorized cross-country retrieval of deer, bighorn sheep,
mountain goats, pronghorn, turkey, and other game animals would not be
allowed under this proposal because these animals are small enough to
retrieve without motorized assistance. This proposal is consistent with
the recommendation of the NFAB Travel Subcommittee, the Rocky Mountain
Region Consistency letter, 36CFR Part 212.51(8)(b), and recommendations
from the South Dakota Department of Game, Fish and Parks. Designated
routes off of which game retrieval would be allowed will be delineated
on the MVUM.
This proposal would allow dispersed camping off designated routes,
in certain areas, under certain conditions. In all cases where allowed,
motorized vehicles would be restricted to within 100 feet for dispersed
camping from the centerline of specific designated routes, using the
most direct route to the camp site. This would allow for reasonable
recreational use of the Forest while minimizing the potential for
resource damage. This proposal follows the recommendation of the NFAB
Travel Subcommittee. Designated routes along which dispersed camping
would be allowed will be shown on the MVUM.
Under this proposal, off-road parking would be allowed along
designated routes under certain conditions. Primary considerations in
designating this policy were user safety and resource protection. Draft
proposed FSM direction would allow parking off designated routes, not
to exceed a distance of one vehicle length.
Public comments by other recreationists and private landowners
during the past three years have identified excessive OHV sound as a
major concern within the Forest. To adequately address these potential
user conflicts in the future, a stationary sound limit of 96 dB(A) is
proposed for OHVs operating on lands administered by the Black Hills
National Forest. The Society of American Engineers (SAE) J1287
stationary sound test procedure will be used for determining compliance
with OHV sound-level standards.
Responsible Official
The Responsible Official is Craig Bobzien, Forest Supervisor, Black
Hills National Forest, 1019 North Street, Custer, SD 57730.
Nature of Decision To Be Made
Based on the purpose and need for the proposed action, the Forest
Supervisor will evaluate the Proposed Action and other alternatives in
order to make the following decisions for the specific National Forest
System lands under his authority:
Whether to designate certain routes as open to the public
for motorized use;
Whether to allow game retrieval; dispersed camping; off-
road parking;
The conditions of any such use, including the allowed
season and/or type of use for those routes open to motorized travel;
Whether to amend the Forest Plan direction for travel
management.
Federal land managers are directed (Executive Order 11644, 36 CFR
212, and 43 CFR 8342.1) to ensure that the use of motorized vehicles
and off-road vehicles will be controlled and directed so as to protect
the resources of those lands, to promote the safety of users, minimize
conflicts among the various uses of the federal lands, and to provide
for public use of routes designated as open.
Public Involvement
Preliminary public involvement was initiated in 2003 in an effort
to familiarize the public and stakeholders throughout the Black Hills
region with the objectives of travel management. Between 2003 and 2007,
the Black Hills National Forest hosted and participated in numerous
public meetings and workshops in Wyoming and South Dakota.
Between 2004 and 2006, the OHV and Travel Management subcommittees
of the Black Hills National Forest Advisory Board conducted a number of
public meetings to solicit general comments on travel management. The
meetings were held in South Dakota and Wyoming to discuss and review
Subcommittee objectives and the current Forest Service national OHV
policy direction, and outline plans for the future. The purpose of
these meetings was to gather input to help develop recommendations for
future OHV policy planning.
The Travel Management subcommittee also distributed a User
[[Page 51774]]
Needs Assessment Questionaire solicit comments from both OHV and non-
OHV users to evaluate the potential for establishing a designated Off-
Highway Vehicle (OHV) trail system on the Black Hills National Forest.
The 559 comments submitted helped the Subcommittee define opportunities
for an OHV trail system and understand potential conflicts with other
users.
The National Off-Highway Vehicle Conservation Council (NOHVCC) in
cooperation with the Black Hills National Forest conducted an OHV Route
Designation Workshop in October 2006 for agency personnel and the
public. The purpose of this workshop was to assist the Forest Service
and the public in effective implementation of the USFS Travel
Management Rule.
Four ``Travelways'' Workshops were conducted by the Forest during
November, 2006. The purpose of these workshops was to gather public
input and ideas for the development of a proposed action. A product
from these workshops was a collection of forest site specific
information from participants after they completed a mapping exercise.
The public was also asked to provide input to the Forest Service on
routes they wanted to remain open and/or those routes that may be in
conflict with other desired conditions sought by the public on National
Forest System lands. This initial public involvement ended in 2007 with
the agency receiving numerous comments on individual routes, a large
number of general comments, and some area-wide comments. This
preliminary public input helped the Forest Service to develop this
proposed action.
Scoping Process
The Forest Service will conduct meetings to solicit comments from
the public and interested parties on this proposal.
The meetings are scheduled from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the following
locations:
Sundance, WY--September 10, 2007 (Monday), Crook County Courthouse, 309
Cleveland Street.
Rapid City, SD--September 11, 2007 (Tuesday), Best Western Ramkota
Hotel (Rushmore Room), 2111 North LaCrosse Street.
Spearfish, SD--September 12, 2007 (Wednesday), Wilbur S. Tretheway
Pavilion, 115 South Canyon Street.
Custer SD--September 13, 2007 (Thursday), Crazy Horse Memorial
(Mountain View Room), Avenue of the Chiefs.
Notices of those meetings and requests for comments have been
published in local newspapers.
Based on comments received as a result of this notice and after the
Forest Service has conducted public meetings and afforded the public
sufficient time to respond to the proposed action, the agency will use
the public scoping comments along with resource related input for the
interdisciplinary team and other agency resource specialists to develop
a set of significant issues to carry forward into the environmental
analysis process.
Preliminary Issues
The agency has received some indications of potential issues from
the initial public involvement process conducted during the last
several years. Those expected issues include:
(1) Resource damage caused by inappropriate types of vehicle use:
(e.g. motorized vehicles in fragile or steep terrain), Proliferation of
routes (e.g. parallel trails or roads, illegal travel off designated
routes), and unrestricted season of use (e.g. routes open to motorized
travel too long into the wet or muddy seasons).
(2) Disturbing or harming wildlife by using routes in important or
critical wildlife habitat areas, too many roads in wildlife habitat
areas, and disturbance to wildlife during critical lifecycle periods.
(3) Concerns about recreational opportunities, including loss of
recreational opportunities when existing routes are closed to motorized
travel, loss of semi-primitive and primitive recreational opportunity
if more routes or areas are open to motorized travel, and how to
appropriately and reasonably accommodate the fast growing number of
motorized users desiring to use federal lands for recreational riding
of OHVs.
(4) Concerns on how the system might be designed to facilitate
effective enforcement.
(5) Safety concerns on routes where multiple vehicle types (e.g.
full-sized trucks and cars, ATVs, motorcycles) are allowed.
The Forest Service recognizes that this list of issues is not
complete and will be further defined and refined as scoping continues.
The Forest service intends to develop a comprehensive list of
significant issues before the full range of alternatives is developed
and the environmental analysis is begun.
Comment Requested
This notice of intent initiates the scoping process which guides
the development of the environmental impact statement for the Black
Hills National Forest Travel Management Plan.
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 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 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 very important that those interested in this proposed action
participate by the close of the 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 Policy Act of
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.
[[Page 51775]]
(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 1508.22; Forest Service Handbook
1909.15, Section 21)
Dated: September 5, 2007.
Dennis Jaeger,
Deputy Forest Supervisor, Black Hills National Forest.
[FR Doc. 07-4427 Filed 9-10-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M