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.. " ') (\ , dW 'P. ~ :1 '1 .... ,. '.' -3- . -.. . - - - . . . . . - . . When environmental assessments are prepared on proposals that affect Inventory rivers, copies should be aent in a timely fashion to the HCRS field office in your area before a proposed action is taken and while there ia atill time to avoid or mitigate adverse effects. When environ- sental impact atatements are prepsred on proposals that affect Inventory rivers the lead agency should request ECRS and the affected land managing agency to be cooperating agencies as 800n as the Notice of Intent to prepare a? lIS has been published. If HCRS does not respond to your request for assistance within 30 days, you may proceed with completing preparation and circulation of the environmental assessment or lIS as planned. Even where HCRS has been unable to comment on the environmental assessment or Draft lIS, you are atill obligated by the President's directive to "...take care to avoid or mitigate adverse effects on rivers identified in the &ationwide Inventory... " 4. .:'.:. Incorporate avoidance/mitiRation measures into the nrollosed action to maximum extent feasible within the aRency's authority. Any environmental documents prepared on the proposed action should identify the impacts on natural, cultural and recreational values, address the comments submitted by BCRS, and state the avoidance/mitigation measures adopted. Any disagreements will be resolved through existing procedures. For projects requiring environmental impact statements, the record of decision must adopt appropriate avoidancel mitigation measures and a monitoring and enforcement program as required by the CEQ regulations. (40 CFR Sec. 1505.2(c)). . '-- It. Note on the Meanirll! of "Federal Actions" The above procedures are meant to apply to all federal actions that could adversely affect a river in the Nationwide Inventory (see Section 1508.18 of CEQ's NIPA Regulations (40 eFR 1508.18) for the meaning of ''major federal actions"). For actions which are known in advance to - require an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement these procedures would be followed in the normal course of ~~PA compliance. If a federal action would ~ normally require an environmental assessment or .n environmental impact atatement, but could adversely affect a river in the 1'ationl.7ide Inventory, the action should either (1) 'not be "categorically excluded" under agency implementing procedures, or (2) be considered an "extraordinary circumstance" in which a normally excluded action must be aubjected to environmental analysis (see Section 1508.4 of ~~PA Regulations). The above procedures should be used for any proposals (including the evaluation of alternative courses of action) for which the NEPA process is not yet completed. The above procedures should therefore also be . - a~lied to a proposed-modification or supplement to a previously authorized or implemented 'action. '\', . . - ,;'~ ....:~~-.