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-. . . r :"". -t" ,.. '.',:)1 tI ~ MEMORANDU11 To: Files Subject: Response to June 11, 1974, Bureau of Land Management Comment Letter on the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project, Colorado, Draft Environmental Statement 1. Comment - The organization of subject statement into pre-NEPA, post- NEPA under construction and post-NEPA future results in much extraneous and redundant wordage. The sections needs to be tied together so the report will seem less like a collection of ministatements written independently. The environmental impact of dams and reservoirs should be similar regardless of whether or not the construction has been completed, in varying stages of completion, or to be constructed. The present format results in including mitigating measures as related to the "pre-NEPA" phase of the project under environmental impacts. Response: The statement has been reorganized to eliminate much of the duplication. It was organized in this format in an attempt to indicate, as clearly as possible to the reader, the status of con- struction of the individual features as well as the status of construc- tion of the overall Project at the time the National Environmental Policy Act was implemented and at the time of preparation of the state- ment. All actions including those of a mitigatory nature which took place prior to NEPA become a part of the present environment. There- fore, they are treated as impacts and mitigation actions occurring in the pre-NEPA section and in the present Environment Section of this document. 2. Comment - The statement does not evaluate the wilderness/scenic resources in and adjacent to the project area. Although the Bureau of Reclamation intimates that these areas exist -- tlincreased public access...hunting," (VIII-3), "improvement of access. ..summer home complexes," (IV-31), the resources need to be determined, designated and evaluated before the impacts can be understood. . Response: There are no designated wilderness areas adjacent to or in the Project area. The natural and man-made topography and the wilder- ness qualities and scenic resources of the Project area are described in Chapter III. This description includes several photographs and illustrations depicting the scenic and wilderness characteristics of the area. We realize that new and improved access will generally have an adverse impact on the remote and more primitive aspects of the areas. The design and construction of these roads were coordinated with the Forest Service. The final availability of these roads for public use will be determined in cooperation with appropriate Federal and State agencies to preserve as much as possible the wilderness qualities and scenic integrity of the Project area. XI-237