Friday, August 17, 2001 Part III Department of Agriculture Forest Service Department of the Interior Bureau of Indian Affairs Bureau of Land Management Fish and Wildlife Service National Park Service Urban Wildland Interface Communities Within the Vicinity of Federal Lands That Are at High Risk From Wildfire; Notice VerDate 11<MAY>2000 17:38 Aug 16, 2001 Jkt 194001 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 4717 Sfmt 4717 E:\FR\FM\17AUN2.SGM pfrm07 PsN: 17AUN2 43384 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 160 / Friday, August 17, 2001 / Notices DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Tribes and was prepared for publication opportunities. Although this State-level by the Secretaries of Agriculture and the flexibility has resulted in some variance Forest Service Interior. The information in the updated among State submissions, the list set out at the end of this notice was Secretaries feel the application of a DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR compiled at the State and/or Tribal level standardized process has resulted in by collaborative interagency groups. As greater nationwide consistency for the Bureau of Indian Affairs a result of this collaborative effort, the revised lists. Secretaries have prepared a more The information contained in the list Bureau of Land Management complete list that better reflects the set out at the end of this notice will be relationship between Federal lands and used by interagency groups of land Fish and Wildlife Service the urban wildland interface problem in managers at the State and/or Tribal level the United States. This annotated list to collaboratively identify priority areas National Park Service supersedes the list published in the within their jurisdictions that would Federal Register on January 4, 2001 (66 benefit from hazard reduction activity. Urban Wildland Interface Communities FR 751). This will ensure that available funding Within the Vicinity of Federal Lands It is important to note that the urban is focused on areas of local importance That Are at High Risk From Wildfire wildland interface is not limited to and where opportunities are most AGENCIES: Forest Service, Department of communities in the vicinity of Federal conducive to reducing risks on a Agriculture; Bureau of Indian Affairs, land. Many States, particularly in the meaningful scale. Bureau of Land Management, Fish and East, submitted revised community lists As described above, the list includes Wildlife Service, and National Park that included all interface communities only those communities in the vicinity Service, Department of the Interior. in their State, regardless of their of lands managed by the Federal relationship to Federal land. These Government, especially the Departments ACTION: Notice. States felt strongly that the full, of Agriculture and the Interior. This list SUMMARY: This notice provides an nationwide scope of the urban wildland is annotated to identify those update to the initial list of urban interface problem must be conveyed. communities around which the wildland interface communities in the Due to the specificity of Congressional Secretaries have ongoing hazardous fuel vicinity of Federal lands that are at high direction, the list set out at the end of reduction treatments or plan to begin risk from wildfire published in the this notice contains only those treatments in FY 2001. These treatments Federal Register on January 4, 2001. communities identified by the States or will be focused primarily on Federal Pursuant to Congressional direction, Tribes as ‘‘in the vicinity of Federal lands in the urban wildland interface this updated list indicates those land.’’ and on nearby tribal and non-Federal communities for which the Secretaries A list of all the interface communities lands where the landowner is a willing have ongoing projects, and this notice submitted by the States and Tribes is participant. All treatments will be identifies reasons why treatments are available from the National Association subject to review for conformance with not planned or ongoing in the remaining of State Foresters (NASF). Please see the applicable laws, as addressed in the communities in FY 2001. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT report accompanying the FY 2001 section above for the NASF website and FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dick Appropriations Act for the Department Bahr, Fire Management Program Center, other contact information. of the Interior and Related Agencies The Federal agencies do not now plan National Park Service, USDI, 3833 S. (Pub. L. 106–291). to publish any subsequent lists in the Of the 11,376 communities contained Development Avenue, Boise, Idaho Federal Register, but the interagency in the revised list, 9,457 communities 83705–5354, (208) 387–5217 (e-mail: teams that developed the list published are near Federal lands managed by the [email protected]); or Janet Anderson with this notice will update the Departments of Agriculture and the Tyler, USDA Forest Service, Attn: Fire community lists in each State as Interior. The remaining 2,007 and Aviation Management, Yates Bldg., necessary. communities are near lands managed by 201 14th Street, SW., Washington, DC Prior to revising the list of other Federal agencies.1 Of the total 20024, (202) 205–1494 (e-mail: communities previously published in 11,376 communities, 9,600 have no [email protected]). Information the Federal Register on January 4, 2001 hazardous fuels reduction treatments specific to individual State listings (66 FR 751), an interagency group at the ongoing or planned for implementation should be directed to the respective national level established a consistent in fiscal year 2001. The primary reasons State Foresters as listed with the process to be used by local land for the lack of treatments around these National Association of State Foresters managers in reviewing each State’s or communities are as follows: (NASF), 444 N. Capitol St., NW., Suite Tribe’s initial community list. This • Planning Requirements: The 540, Washington, DC 20001, or process was designed to lead Federal agencies, working with their electronically from the NASF World interagency groups through an analysis State, Tribal and local partners, must Wide Web/Internet home page at of the communities in their State, accurately assess the level of wildfire http://www.stateforesters.org/ including a description of the risk risk and types and extent of treatments SFlist.html. factors associated with each community required to mitigate this risk. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The initial and identification of Federal lands in Interagency/Tribal groups working at list of urban wildland interface the vicinity of the community. the state level are in the process of communities, published in the Federal The process outlined provided the defining projects that will significantly Register on January 4, 2001 (66 FR 751), flexibility for State teams to use existing reduce the threat of wildfire to the was prepared in accordance with Title community assessment systems when IV of the FY 2001 Appropriations Act those systems met or exceeded the 1 These communities are annotated in the list for the Department of Interior and standardized process. State-level groups with a footnote to indicate that they are generally not in the vicinity of lands managed by agencies of Related Agencies (Pub. L. 106–291). The also retain the right to prioritize the Departments of Agriculture and the Interior for list was compiled from preliminary subsequent hazard reduction efforts which urban wildland interface risk reduction information provided by the States and according to local goals and funds were appropriated in FY 2001. VerDate 11<MAY>2000 17:38 Aug 16, 2001 Jkt 194001 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 4701 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\17AUN2.SGM pfrm07 PsN: 17AUN2 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 160 / Friday, August 17, 2001 / Notices 43385 highest-risk communities, and setting reduction projects around urban For the Department of the Interior. priorities for treatments in FY 2002. wildland interface communities will P. Lynn Scarlett, This collaborative planning process for require a trained and available Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management large, multi-jurisdictional projects, workforce, not only to implement and Budget. potentially affecting many diverse project prescriptions, but also to assist Communities in the vicinity of Federal resource components, cannot be communities with utilization or lands at risk from wildfire completed quickly. The completion of disposal of removed vegetative Federally mandated planning, materials. Pursuant to Congressional Footnote (1) indicates that one or consultation, and environmental direction, the Secretaries will seek to more treatments are planned or ongoing compliance activities for projects engage local workers and businesses in for this community in FY 2001. associated with the large number of implementing these efforts. In many Footnote (2) indicates communities in communities remaining to be addressed the vicinity of Federal lands other than areas, these local resources will need will require significant time and effort. those managed by the Departments of time and assistance in preparing for this The Federal agencies, working with Agriculture and the Interior. opportunity; program effectiveness will their State, Tribal, and local partners, Alcan, AK must accurately assess the level of likely improve over time once stability and trust is built with local partners. Allakaket, AK wildfire risk and types and extent of Anchorage, AK treatments required to mitigate this risk. Federal and State agencies