§ 544o. — Savings provisions.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 16USC544o]
TITLE 16--CONSERVATION
CHAPTER 2--NATIONAL FORESTS
SUBCHAPTER II--SCENIC AREAS
Sec. 544o. Savings provisions
(a) Effect on rights of Indians, use of water, rivers and streams,
interstate compacts, existing transmission facilities, hunting
and fishing, forest plans, scenic areas
Nothing in sections 544 to 544p of this title shall--
(1) affect or modify any treaty or other rights of any Indian
tribe;
(2) except as provided in section 13(c), authorize the
appropriation or use of water by any Federal, State, or local
agency, Indian tribe, or any other entity or individual;
(3) except as provided in section 13(c), affect the rights or
jurisdictions of the United States, the States, Indian tribes or
other entities over waters of any river or stream or over any ground
water resource or affect or interfere with transportation activities
on any such river or stream;
(4) except as provided in section 13(c), alter, establish, or
affect the respective rights of the United States, the States,
Indian tribes, or any person with respect to any water or water-
related right;
(5) alter, amend, repeal, interpret, modify, or be in conflict
with any interstate compact made by the States before November 17,
1986;
(6) affect or modify the ability of the Bonneville Power
Administration to operate, maintain, and modify existing
transmission facilities;
(7) affect lands held in trust by the Secretary of the Interior
for Indian tribes or individual members of Indian tribes or other
lands acquired by the Army Corps of Engineers and administered by
the Secretary of the Interior for the benefit of Indian tribes and
individual members of Indian tribes;
(8) affect the laws, rules and regulations pertaining to hunting
and fishing under existing State and Federal laws and Indian
treaties;
(9) require any revision or amendment of any forest plan adopted
pursuant to the National Forest Management Act of 1976 (Act of
October 22, 1976, Public Law 94-588, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1600 et
seq.)); or
(10) establish protective perimeters or buffer zones around the
scenic area or each special management area. The fact that
activities or uses inconsistent with the management directives for
the scenic area or special management areas can be seen or heard
from these areas shall not, of itself, preclude such activities or
uses up to the boundaries of the scenic area or special management
areas.
(b) Improvement of navigation facilities at Bonneville Dam
Except for the offsite disposal of excavation material, nothing in
sections 544 to 544p of this title shall be construed to affect or
modify the responsibility of the United States Army Corps of Engineers
to improve navigation facilities at Bonneville Dam pursuant to Federal
law.
(c) Rights and responsibilities of non-Federal timber land owners
Except for the management, utilization, or disposal of timber
resources of non-Federal lands within the special management areas,
nothing in sections 544 to 544p of this title shall affect the rights
and responsibilities of non-Federal timber land owners under the Oregon
and Washington Forest Practices Acts or any county regulations which
under applicable State law supersede such Acts.
(d) Interstate compacts
Mandatory language in sections 544 to 544p of this title respecting
the powers and responsibilities of the Commission shall be interpreted
as conditions precedent to congressional consent to the interstate
compact described in section 544c of this title.
(e) Failure to establish Columbia River Gorge Commission; responsibility
of Secretary
In the event that the States of Washington and Oregon fail to comply
with the provisions of section 544c of this title, the Secretary shall
not be obligated to take actions which are predicated upon the
establishment of the Commission.
(f) Actions of Secretary as major Federal actions affecting the
environment
(1) Actions by the Secretary pursuant to subsections (f), (g), and
(h) of section 544d of this title; subsections (f), (j), (k), and (l) of
section 544f of this title; section 544g of this title; and subsections
(a) and (b)(2) of section 544h of this title shall neither be considered
major Federal actions significantly affecting the quality of the
environment under section 102 of the National Environmental Policy Act
(42 U.S.C. 4332) nor require the preparation of an environmental
assessment in accordance with that Act [42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.].
(2) Except as provided in paragraph (1) of this subsection, nothing
in sections 544 to 544p of this title shall expand, restrict, or
otherwise alter the duties of the Secretary under the National
Environmental Policy Act.
(Pub. L. 99-663, Sec. 17, Nov. 17, 1986, 100 Stat. 4300.)
References in Text
Section 13(c), referred to in subsec. (a)(2) to (4), is section
13(c) of Pub. L. 99-663, Nov. 17, 1986, 100 Stat. 4294, which amended
section 1274(a) of this title.
The National Forest Management Act of 1976, referred to in subsec.
(a)(9), is Pub. L. 94-588, Oct. 22, 1976, 90 Stat. 2949, as amended,
which enacted sections 472a, 521b, 1600, and 1611 to 1614 of this title,
amended sections 500, 515, 516, 518, 576b, 581h, and 1601 to 1610 of
this title, repealed sections 476, 513, and 514 of this title, and
enacted provisions set out as notes under sections 476, 513, 528, 594-2,
and 1600 of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the
Code, see Short Title of 1976 Amendment note set out under section 1600
of this title and Tables.
The National Environmental Policy Act, referred to in subsec. (f),
probably means the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, Pub. L.
91-190, Jan. 1, 1970, 83 Stat. 852, as amended, which is classified
generally to chapter 55 (Sec. 4321 et seq.) of Title 42, The Public
Health and Welfare. For complete classification of this Act to the Code,
see Short Title note set out under section 4321 of Title 42 and Tables.
Section Referred to in Other Sections
This section is referred to in sections 544 to 544i, 544l to 544n,
544p of this title.
