Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest; Washington; Amendments to the Okanogan and Wenatchee National Forest Land Management Plans

Issuing agencies

Abstract

The Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, is amending the 1989 Okanogan National Forest Land Management Plan and 1990 Wenatchee National Forest Land Management Plan (forest plans). The Forest Service has prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Planning and Management of Domestic Sheep and Goat Grazing Within the Range of Bighorn Sheep Project and a draft Record of Decision that includes a programmatic plan amendment to both forest plans. The plan amendment would add two standards for domestic sheep and goat grazing activities on the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest to both forest plans. This notice is to inform the public that the Okanogan- Wenatchee National Forest is initiating a 60-day period where individuals or entities with specific concerns about the amendments to the forest plans may file objections for Forest Service review prior to the approval of the amendments.

Full Text

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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 204 (Friday, October 23, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 204 (Friday, October 23, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66831-66833]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-21654]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest; Washington; Amendments to the 
Okanogan and Wenatchee National Forest Land Management Plans

AGENCY: Forest Service, Agriculture.

ACTION: Notice of opportunity to object.

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SUMMARY: The Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, is 
amending the 1989 Okanogan National Forest Land Management Plan and 
1990 Wenatchee National Forest Land Management Plan (forest plans). The 
Forest Service has prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement 
(FEIS) for the Planning and Management of Domestic Sheep and Goat 
Grazing Within the Range of Bighorn Sheep Project and a draft Record of 
Decision that includes a programmatic plan amendment to both forest 
plans. The plan amendment would add two standards for domestic sheep 
and goat grazing activities on the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest 
to both

[[Page 66832]]

forest plans. This notice is to inform the public that the Okanogan-
Wenatchee National Forest is initiating a 60-day period where 
individuals or entities with specific concerns about the amendments to 
the forest plans may file objections for Forest Service review prior to 
the approval of the amendments.

DATES: The publication date of the legal notice in the Okanogan-
Wenatchee National Forest newspaper of record, The Wenatchee World, 
initiates the 60-day objection filing period and is the exclusive means 
for calculating the time to file an objection (36 CFR 219.52(c)(5)). An 
electronic copy of the legal notice with the publication date, as well 
as the FEIS, draft record of decision (ROD), and supporting 
documentation, will be posted at <a href="https://www.fs.usda.gov/r06/okanogan-wenatchee/projects/301825">https://www.fs.usda.gov/r06/okanogan-wenatchee/projects/301825</a>.

ADDRESSES: Written objections, including attachments, may be submitted 
via regular mail, private carrier, or hand delivery to: USDA Forest 
Service, Pacific Northwest Region, Attn: Objection Reviewing Officer/
1570 Objections, 1220 SW 3rd Ave., Portland, OR 97204. The office 
business hours for those submitting hand-delivered objections are: 8:00 
a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays. 
Objections may also be submitted electronically by 11:59 p.m. Pacific 
Daylight Time on December 22, 2026 at <a href="https://cara.fs2c.usda.gov/Public/CommentInput?project=NP-4727">https://cara.fs2c.usda.gov/Public/CommentInput?project=NP-4727</a>.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Topolewski, Forest Wildlife 
Program Manager, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f3a0beddb5a0ddbcb8a4aca09b969683b6baa0b386809792dd949c85"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3566781b73661b7a7e626a665d505045707c6675404651541b525a43">[email&#160;protected]</span></a>, 509-664-9376. Individuals 
who use telecommunication devices for the hearing-impaired may call 711 
to reach the Telecommunications Relay Service, 24 hours a day, every 
day of the year, including holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Enterprise Land Management System 
identification number for the project and the associated amendments is 
301825.
    The amendments would add standards BHS 1 and 2 to both the Okanogan 
and Wenatchee Forest Plans. BHS 1 requires maintaining effective 
separation of domestic sheep and bighorn sheep on active grazing 
allotments to reduce the likelihood and risk of disease transmission. 
BHS 2 requires utilizing a risk assessment to inform whether and how 
domestic sheep and goat allotments are stocked or not, according to 
risk of disease transmission between domestic livestock, primarily 
domestic sheep and goats, and bighorn sheep.
    The decision to approve the programmatic amendments to the 1989 
Okanogan National Forest Land Management Plan and 1990 Wenatchee 
National Forest Land Management Plan in association with the Planning 
and Management of Domestic Sheep and Goat Grazing Within the Range of 
Bighorn Sheep Project will be subject to the objection process 
identified in 36 CFR part 219, subpart B (Sec. Sec.  219.50 through 
219.62). Per 36 CFR 219.53, only individuals and entities who have 
submitted substantive formal comments related to the plan amendment 
during the opportunities for public comment may file an objection. 
Objections must be based on previously submitted substantive formal 
comments attributed to the objector unless the objection concerns an 
issue that arose after the opportunities for formal comment.
    A legal notice will be published in the newspaper of record 
starting the 45-day objection period for the project-specific 
amendments per 36 CFR 218.26. Both the 45-day objection period for the 
project-specific amendments and the 60-day objection period for the 
programmatic plan amendments will run concurrently beginning with the 
date of publication of the legal notice and the NOO respectively.

How To File an Objection

    Objections must be submitted to the Reviewing Officer at the 
address shown in the ADDRESSES section of this notice. An objection 
must include the following (36 CFR 219.54(c)):
    (1) The objector's name and address along with a telephone number 
or email address if available. In cases where no identifiable name is 
attached to an objection, the Forest Service will attempt to verify the 
identity of the objector to confirm objection eligibility;
    (2) Signature or other verification of authorship upon request (a 
scanned signature for electronic mail may be filed with the objection);
    (3) Identification of the lead objector when multiple names are 
listed on an objection. The Forest Service will communicate to all 
parties to an objection through the lead objector. Verification of the 
identity of the lead objector must also be provided if requested;
    (4) The name of the plan amendment being objected to, and the name 
and title of the responsible official;
    (5) A statement of the issues and/or parts of the plan amendment to 
which the objection applies;
    (6) A concise statement explaining the objection and suggesting how 
the draft plan decision may be improved. If the objector believes that 
the plan amendment is inconsistent with law, regulation, or policy, an 
explanation should be included;
    (7) A statement that demonstrates the link between the objector's 
prior substantive formal comments and the content of the objection, 
unless the objection concerns an issue that arose after the 
opportunities for formal comment; and
    (8) All documents referenced in the objection (a bibliography is 
not sufficient), except the following need not be provided:
    a. All or any part of a Federal law or regulation,
    b. Forest Service Directive System documents and land management 
plans or other published Forest Service documents,
    c. Documents referenced by the Forest Service in the planning 
documentation related to the proposal subject to objection, and
    d. Formal comments previously provided to the Forest Service by the 
objector during the proposed plan amendment comment period.
    Additionally, objections should be identified as pertaining to the 
``Amendments to the Okanogan and Wenatchee National Forest Land 
Management Plans'', as these are subject to separate processes from 
objections to project activities in the Planning and Management of 
Domestic Sheep and Goat Grazing Within the Range of Bighorn Sheep 
Project. See the legal notice for instructions on how to object to 
project activities. Objectors filing objections on both topics should 
submit these as separate objection letters.
    It is the responsibility of the objector to ensure that the 
Reviewing Officer receives the objection in a timely manner. The 
regulations generally prohibit extending the length of the objection 
filing period (36 CFR 219.56(d)). However, when the time period expires 
on a Saturday, Sunday, or a Federal holiday, the time is extended to 
the end of the next Federal working day (11:59 p.m. for objections 
filed by electronic means such as email) (36 CFR 219.56).

Responsible Official

    The responsible official who will approve the record of decision 
and the amendments to the forest plans is Forest Supervisor Tara 
Umphries, Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, 215 Melody Lane, 
Wenatchee, WA 98801, (509) 664-9200.
    The Regional Forester is the reviewing officer for the amendments 
to the forest plans because the Forest Supervisor is

[[Page 66833]]

the responsible official (36 CFR 219.56(e)).

Lisa Northrop,
Associate Deputy Chief, National Forest System.
[FR Doc. 2026-21654 Filed 10-22-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3411-15-P


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