Forest Service, USDA.
Revised Notice of Intent to prepare an environmental impact statement and the resumption of the land management plan revision.
As directed by the National Forest Management Act, the USDA Forest Service is preparing the National Forests in Mississippi (NFsMS) revised land management plan (Forest Plan) and will also prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for this revised plan. This notice briefly describes the background history of NFsMS plan revision process to date, the nature of the decision to be made, the proposed action and need for change, and information concerning public participation. It also provides estimated dates for filing the EIS and the name and address of the responsible agency official and the individuals who can provide additional information. Finally, this notice briefly describes the applicable planning rule and how work done on the plan revision under the 2008 planning rule will be used or modified for completing this plan revision.
The revised Forest Plan will supersede the land and resource management plan previously approved by the Southern Region Regional Forester on September 16, 1985 and as amended seventeen times since original plan approval. This amended Forest Plan will remain in effect until the revised plan takes effect.
Comments concerning the need for change and the proposed action provided in this notice will be most useful in the development of the draft revised plan and draft environmental impact statement if received by May 7, 2010. The agency expects to release a draft revised Forest Plan and draft EIS for formal comment by October, 2010 and a final revised plan and final environmental impact statement by September, 2011.
Send written comments to: Forest Plan Revision, National Forests in Mississippi, 100 West Capitol St., Suite 1141, Jackson, MS 39269. Comments may also be sent via e-mail to
National Forests in Mississippi, Planning Team Leader, Jeff Long, 100 West Capitol Street, Suite 1141, Jackson, MS 39269 (phone 601–965–1600). Electronic mail should include “Forest Plan Revision” in the subject line and sent to:
Individuals who use telecommunication devices for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 800–877–8339 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern Time Monday through Friday.
A Notice of Intent to begin the plan revision process for the NFsMS was first published in the
After initiating the plan revision process at the end of 1999, a series of public meetings were held in 2000 across the State of Mississippi to explain the plan revision process, get input on the issues important to stakeholders, and receive feedback on anticipated plan components. A total of 847 participants attended the 24 open house sessions that were conducted at various libraries, community centers, district offices, and local auditoriums near each of the Mississippi national forests. Over 6,000 individual comments were generated.
Changes in national priorities and funding shifts caused a delay of several years in the revision process. The NFsMS published a revised NOI in the
In July 2005, the NFsMS Forest Plan revision process, which had begun under the 1982 Planning Rule, was transitioned to the 2005 Planning Rule. Notice of adjustment to an ongoing plan revision process was published in the
On March 30, 2007, the Federal District Court for the Northern District of California enjoined the Department from implementing and using the 2005 planning rule until the Agency complied with the court's order regarding the National Environmental Policy Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the Administrative Procedure Act (
Prior to the injunction of the 2005 planning rule, the National Forests in Mississippi had substantially engaged the public in collaboration efforts to develop plan components, completed a draft Comprehensive Evaluation Report, worked with the scientific community on addressing concerns for species viability and sustainability to be addressed in the revised plan, had developed a model for timber suitability and sustainability analysis, and had completed initial drafts of major plan components.
On April 21, 2008 the Forest Service adopted a new planning rule that allowed resumption of the revision process if it conformed to the new planning rule (36 CFR 219.14(b)(3)(ii), 2008). Notification of adjustment for resuming the land management plan revision process under the 36 CFR 219 (2008) rule for the NFsMS was published in the
Preparation of the NFsMS revised plan was underway when the 2008 National Forest System land management planning rule was enjoined on June 30, 2009, by the United States District Court for the Northern District of California (
The responsible official who will approve the Record of Decision is Elizabeth Agpaoa, Regional Forester, USDA Forest Service, Southern Region, 1720 Peachtree Road NW., Atlanta, GA 30309.
The NFsMS is preparing an EIS to revise the current Forest Plan. The EIS process is meant to inform the Regional Forester so that she can decide which alternative best meets the diverse needs of the people while protecting the forest's resources, as required by the National Forest Management Act and the Multiple Use Sustained Yield Act. The Revised Forest Plan will establish management direction for the next 10 to 15 years.
A Forest Plan developed under the 1982 planning rule procedures will make the following primary decisions:
1. Establishment of forest-wide multiple-use goals and objectives (36 CFR 219.11(b));
2. Establishment of forest-wide management requirements (36 CFR 219.13 to 219.27);
3. Establishment of multiple-use prescriptions and associated standards for each management area (36 CFR 219.11(c));
4. Determination of land that is suitable for the production of timber (16 U.S.C. 1604(k) and 36 CFR 219.14);
5. Establishment of the allowable sale quantity for timber within a time frame specified in the plan (36 CFR 219.16);
6. Establishment of monitoring and evaluation requirements (36 CFR 219.11(d));
7. Recommendations concerning roadless areas that Congress could designate as wilderness (36 CFR 219.17); and
It is also important to identify the types of decisions that will not be made within the revised forest plan. Forest Plans typically do not make site-specific decisions but they do establish limitations on what actions may be authorized and what conditions must be met as part of project-level decision-making. The authorization of site-specific activities within a plan area later occurs through project decision-making that must comply with NEPA procedures and must include a determination that the project is consistent with the Forest Plan.
Although the 2008 planning rule is no longer in effect, the information gathered from public collaboration efforts and most of the analysis conducted prior to the court's injunction in June 2009 is still useful for completing the plan revision using the provisions of the 1982 planning regulations. The NFsMS has concluded that the following material developed during the plan revision process to date is appropriate for continued use:
• The inventory of potential wilderness areas that was conducted between 2004 and 2008 is still consistent with the 1982 planning regulations, and will be brought forward into this plan revision process.
• A Comprehensive Evaluation Report was developed under the 2005 and 2008 rule provisions. This analysis has been updated with additional information to meet the requirements of the Analysis of the Management Situation (AMS) provisions of the 1982 rule. The information from this analysis was used to help identify the need for change and the proposed actions that are identified in this notice. Comments received during the scoping process will be used to further update the need for change analysis. Other AMS requirements will also continue to be worked on as the planning process proceeds.
• Information on the life history, threats, habitat needs and population trends of a number of terrestrial and aquatic species contained in the forest planning records for ecosystem and species diversity assessments will continue to be used as a reference in the planning process as appropriate to meet the requirements of the 1982 planning regulations. This is scientific information and is not affected by the change of the planning rule. This
• Public comments previously submitted in writing or recorded at past public meetings relating to the previous plan revision efforts will still be used to help identify issues and concerns and to help identify alternatives to address these issues and concerns.
According to the National Forest Management Act, forest plans are to be revised on a 10 to 15 year cycle. The current forest plan is over 24 years old, and since the forest plan was approved in 1985, there have been changes in economic, social, and ecological conditions, new policies and priorities, and new information based on monitoring and scientific research.
The following issues identify some of the major evolving conditions and shifts in management direction, scientific understanding, and public interests since the 1985 Forest Plan:
• New emphasis on restoring and sustaining a diversity of native ecosystems (particularly restoration of native longleaf pines) instead of focusing on timber commodities production in the 1985 Plan.
• Shift from vegetation management as a means of more efficient timber harvest and production to a tool for carrying out restoration goals while sustaining healthy resilient forests that also supply desired goods and services.
• More emphasis on protecting and promoting habitat for threatened and endangered (T&E) species (especially red-cockaded woodpecker and gopher tortoise).
• Better understanding of the historic role of fire and the need for an aggressive prescribed fire program to maintain fire-dependent native ecosystems, reverse habitat loss for endangered species, reduce fuel hazards, control non-native invasive species, and protect human safety.
• Increasing population and development adjacent to national forest lands are putting growing pressures on conducting effective management practices.
• Growing demand for recreation opportunities, particularly developed recreation sites.
• Need for a more sustainable system of access roads, trails, and bridges.
• Need for addressing the effects of increasing weather disturbances and incorporating strategies for responding to anticipated climate changes in our management practices.
The NFsMS will complete plan revision following the 1982 planning rule procedures. The NFsMS will utilize past plan revision activities and make appropriate adjustments to planning documents and analysis processes to conform to the 1982 planning procedures. Public collaboration on development of this EIS and continued development of a revised Forest Plan will build upon information gathered previously where the NFsMS was in the revision process just prior to the Court injunction issued on the 2008 planning rule on June 30, 2009. The NFsMS had completed development of a draft revised Forest Plan, however the draft plan was not released for public comment prior to the injunction of the 2008 planning rule. Therefore, the NFsMS will not circulate the draft plan prepared under the 2008 procedures for public review and comment; however, appropriate portions will become a starting point for public collaboration on the development of the revised plan under the 1982 procedures.
Several overarching themes have emerged over time in the various efforts to revise the forest plan, which now provide a framework for developing the Proposed Action alternative for this EIS. These themes include:
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Information gathered during this comment period, as well as other feedback, will be used to identify issues that will serve as a focus for developing alternatives to be analyzed in the draft EIS.
The public is invited to provide comments on this NOI, especially regarding the scope of analysis for the items identified under Need for Change and Proposed Action sections above. Additional information is available on the National Forests in Mississippi Web site:
Notice of public meeting times and places will be posted on the above Web site and will also be published in the newspaper of record (legal notice section) for National Forests in Mississippi (Clarion-Ledger—Jackson, Mississippi).
It is important that reviewers provide their comments at such times and in such a way that they are useful to the Agency's preparation of the revised plan and the EIS. Therefore, comments on the proposed action and need for change will be most valuable if received by May 7, 2010 and should clearly articulate the reviewers' concerns. The submission of timely and specific comments can affect a reviewer's ability to participate in subsequent administrative or judicial review. At this time, we anticipate using a pre-decisional objection process for administrative review.
Comments received in response to this solicitation, including the names and addresses of those who comment will be part of the public record for this proposed action. Comments submitted anonymously will be accepted and considered.
16 U.S.C. 1600–1614; 36 CFR 219.35 [74 FR 67073–67074].