Notice of Intent To Prepare an Amendment to the White River Field Office Resource Management Plan and Associated Environmental Impact Statement for Oil and Gas Development, Meeker, CO, 34388-34389 [E6-9255]
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rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
34388
Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 114 / Wednesday, June 14, 2006 / Notices
• Mussentuchit Badlands Area—
(58,398 acres) Values of concern include
cultural resources such as prehistoric
quarrying area;
• White-Tailed Prairie Dog
Complex—(9,204 acres) Values of
concern include protection of habitat
and other species dependent on prairie
dog colonies; and
• Lower Muddy Creek Area—(29,854
acres) Values of concern include
outstanding scenery and threatened and
endangered plants.
These four potential ACECs are
considered for designation in
Alternative C of the Price Draft RMP/
EIS. Potential resource use limitations
related to ACEC management of all of
these areas include limitations to OHV
use, leasing for oil and gas, disposal of
mineral materials, and locatable mineral
entry. Additionally, ACEC management
for the Desolation Canyon potential
ACEC would exclude right-of-way
(ROW) grants. The supplemental
information and analysis has been
prepared for public review to facilitate
the inclusion of these four potential
ACECs into the Price RMP/EIS. The
information includes:
• The incorporation of the specific
ACEC proposals, including resource use
limitations, in Chapter 2:
• A description of potential impacts
in Chapter 4;
• A summary of nominations matrix
in Appendix 26; and
• A description of relevant and
important values found in these four
potential ACECs, also in Appendix 26.
Comments, including names and
street addresses of respondents, will be
available for public review at the Price
Field Office during regular business
hours, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday
through Friday, except holidays and
will be subject to disclosure under the
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
They may be published as part of the
EIS and other related documents.
Individual respondents may request
confidentiality. If you wish to withhold
your name or street address from public
review and disclosure under FOIA, you
must state this prominently at the
beginning of your written comment.
Such requests will be honored to the
extent allowed by law. All submissions
from organizations or businesses will be
made available for public inspection in
their entirety. The supplemental
information is available upon request at
the Price Field Office and on the
Internet at the addresses provided
above.
VerDate Aug<31>2005
19:47 Jun 13, 2006
Jkt 208001
Dated: May 26, 2006.
Gene Terland,
Acting State Director.
[FR Doc. E6–9253 Filed 6–13–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–DQ–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[CO–110]
Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Amendment to the White River Field
Office Resource Management Plan and
Associated Environmental Impact
Statement for Oil and Gas
Development, Meeker, CO
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section 102(2)(c)
of the National Environmental Policy
Act of 1969 and the Federal Land Policy
and Management Act of 1976, notice is
hereby given that the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM), White River Field
Office (WRFO) located in Meeker, CO,
will be directing the preparation of a
Resource Management Plan (RMP)
Amendment and associated
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).
The BLM invites the public to
participate in this planning effort.
DATES: The scoping comment period
will commence with the publication of
this notice and will end 45 days after
publication of this notice. Public
meetings will be held during the
scoping comment period in Meeker and
Rifle, Colorado. Comments on the scope
of the EIS, including concerns, issues, or
proposed alternatives that should be
considered, should be submitted in
writing to the address below. The dates
of public meetings to be held in Meeker
and Rifle, Colorado will be announced
through the local media, newsletters,
and WRFO National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) mailing list. The
draft EIS is expected to be available for
public review and comment in
September 2007 and the final EIS is
expected to be available early in 2008.
ADDRESSES: Written comments should
be sent to: Jane Peterson, 73554
Highway 64, Meeker, Colorado 81641.
Written comments, including names
and addresses of respondents, will be
available for public review at the offices
of the BLM White River Field Office,
73554 Highway 64, Meeker, Colorado
81641, during normal working hours
(7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., except holidays).
Submissions from organizations or
businesses will be made available for
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
public inspection in their entirety.
Individuals may request confidentiality
with respect to their name, address, and
phone number. If you wish to have your
name or street address withheld from
public review, or from disclosure under
the Freedom of Information Act, you
must state this prominently at the
beginning of your comment. Such
requests will be honored to the extent
allowed by law. Comment contents will
not be kept confidential. Responses to
the comments will be published as part
of the Proposed Resource Management
Plan/Final Environmental Impact
Statement.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
further information or to have your
name added to our mailing list, contact
Jane Peterson, WRFO Oil and Gas EIS
Project Manager, at (970) 244–3027 or
alternately at (970) 878–3828. E-mail
can be directed to
jane_h_peterson@blm.gov and mail can
be sent to the address above.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The RMP
Amendment proposes to modify the
level of oil and gas development within
the WRFO boundaries above what was
anticipated in the 1997 WRFO RMP.
The EIS will analyze the potential
impacts of increased oil and gas
development on a field office-wide
level. Citizens are requested to help
identify issues or concerns and to
provide input on BLM’s proposed
action. The White River Field Office
(WRFO), Meeker, Colorado, is located in
northwestern Colorado primarily in Rio
Blanco County, with other tracts located
in Garfield and Moffat Counties and
encompasses 1,455,900 acres of BLM
surface estate and 365,000 acres of split
mineral estate. The WRFO is
experiencing unprecedented growth in
the oil and gas energy program. The
Energy Policy and Conservation Act
(EPCA) Reauthorization of 2000 directed
the Department of the Interior to
produce a scientific inventory of oil and
gas resources and reserves underlying
Federal lands. The EPCA-generated
studies of five oil and gas basins
(Montana Thrust Belt, Powder River,
Green River, San Juan/Paradox, and
Uinta/Piceance), completed and
presented to Congress in January, 2003,
identified the Piceance Basin of
Northwest Colorado, in which the
WRFO is located, as one of five subbasins in the continental United States
with large reserves of undeveloped oil
and gas energy potential. As a result of
EPCA, higher oil and gas prices, and
development of interstate transportation
pipelines the WRFO is experiencing an
oil and gas boom. The WRFO Resource
Management Plan (RMP), approved in
E:\FR\FM\14JNN1.SGM
14JNN1
Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 114 / Wednesday, June 14, 2006 / Notices
rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
1997, projected and analyzed a
Reasonable Foreseeable Development
(RFD) scenario of 1,100 oil and gas
wells, with 10 acres of disturbance per
well (including roads and pipelines),
over a 20-year period (approximately 55
wells per year). The RFD projected that
nearly 2/3 of the oil and gas
development activity (or 800 wells)
would take place south of Rangely,
Colorado with the remaining activity
dispersed throughout the remaining
field office area. While this projection
has been fairly accurate for the activity
south of Rangely, the current and
projected oil and gas activity in the
Piceance Basin may soon far exceed the
RFD/EIS impact analysis.
The oil and gas industry has indicated
that the potential exists to develop over
13,000 oil and gas wells in the Piceance
Basin over the next 20 years. The
current WRFO RMP/EIS does not
adequately address this projected level
of oil and gas development. The BLM
has identified some preliminary
planning criteria to guide the
development of the plan. The following
planning criteria have been proposed to
guide the development of the plan, to
avoid unnecessary data collection and
analyses, and to ensure the plan is
tailored to issues. Other criteria may be
identified during the public scoping
process. Proposed planning criteria
include the following:
• The plan will comply with all
applicable laws, regulations and current
policies.
• Broad-based public participation
will be an integral part of the planning
and EIS process.
• The plan will recognize valid
existing rights.
• Environmental protection and
energy production are both desirable
and necessary objectives of sound land
management practices and are not to be
considered mutually exclusive priorities
The BLM will analyze the proposed
action and no action alternatives, as
well as other possible alternatives that
could include alternative approaches to
mitigation measures and/or conditions
of approval for future oil and gas
development in the planning area.
Alternatives will be further defined as
part of the planning process.
Vernon Rholl,
Acting Field Manager.
[FR Doc. E6–9255 Filed 6–13–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 1610–DN–P
VerDate Aug<31>2005
19:47 Jun 13, 2006
Jkt 208001
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[UTU–78568]
Notice of Proposed Reinstatement of
Terminated Oil and Gas Lease, Utah
June 12, 2006.
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: In accordance with Title IV of
the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty
Management Act (Pub. L. 97–451),
Parallel Petroleum Corporation timely
filed a petition for reinstatement of oil
and gas lease UTU78568 for lands in
Uintah County, Utah, and it was
accompanied by all required rentals and
royalties accruing from March 1, 2006,
the date of termination.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Douglas F. Cook, Chief, Branch of Fluid
Minerals at (801) 539–4122.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Lessee has agreed to new lease terms for
rentals and royalties at rates of $5 per
acre and 162⁄3 percent, respectively. The
$500 administrative fee for the lease has
been paid and the lessee has reimbursed
the Bureau of Land Management for the
cost of publishing this notice.
Having met all the requirements for
reinstatement of the lease as set out in
Section 31(d) and (e) of the Mineral
Leasing Act of 1920 (30 U.S.C. 188), the
Bureau of Land Management is
proposing to reinstate lease UTU78568,
effective March 1, 2006, subject to the
original terms and conditions of the
lease and the increased rental and
royalty rates cited above.
Douglas F. Cook,
Chief, Branch of Fluid Minerals.
[FR Doc. E6–9256 Filed 6–13–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–DQ–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[WY–920–1310–EI; WYW147440]
Notice of Proposed Reinstatement of
Terminated Oil and Gas Lease.
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Proposed
Reinstatement of Terminated Oil and
Gas Lease
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: Under the provisions of 30
U.S.C. 188(d) and (e), and 43 CFR
3108.2–3(a) and (b)(1), the Bureau of
Land Management (BLM) received a
PO 00000
Frm 00090
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
34389
petition for reinstatement from Summit
Resources, Inc. for competitive oil and
gas lease WYW147440 for land in
Natrona County, Wyoming. The petition
was filed on time and was accompanied
by all the rentals due since the date the
lease terminated under the law.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Bureau of Land Management, Pamela J.
Lewis, Chief, Branch of Fluid Minerals
Adjudication, at (307) 775–6176.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The lessee
has agreed to the amended lease terms
for rentals and royalties at rates of
$10.00 per acre or fraction thereof, per
year and 162⁄3 percent, respectively. The
lessee has paid the required $500
administrative fee and $166 to
reimburse the Department for the cost of
this Federal Register notice. The lessee
has met all the requirements for
reinstatement of the lease as set out in
sections 31(d) and (e) of the Mineral
Lands Leasing Act of 1920 (30 U.S.C.
188), and the Bureau of Land
Management is proposing to reinstate
lease WYW147440 effective February 1,
2005, under the original terms and
conditions of the lease and the
increased rental and royalty rates cited
above. BLM has not issued a valid lease
affecting the lands.
Pamela J. Lewis,
Chief, Branch of Fluid Minerals Adjudication.
[FR Doc. E6–9248 Filed 6–13–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[WY–920–1310–EI; WYW147439]
Notice of Proposed Reinstatement of
Terminated Oil and Gas Lease
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Proposed
Reinstatement of Terminated Oil and
Gas Lease.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: Under the provisions of 30
U.S.C. 188(d) and (e), and 43 CFR
3108.2–3(a) and (b)(1), the Bureau of
Land Management (BLM) received a
petition for reinstatement from Summit
Resources, Inc. for competitive oil and
gas lease WYW147439 for land in
Natrona County, Wyoming. The petition
was filed on time and was accompanied
by all the rentals due since the date the
lease terminated under the law.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Bureau of Land Management, Pamela J.
Lewis, Chief, Branch of Fluid Minerals
Adjudication, at (307) 775–6176.
E:\FR\FM\14JNN1.SGM
14JNN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 114 (Wednesday, June 14, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34388-34389]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-9255]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[CO-110]
Notice of Intent To Prepare an Amendment to the White River Field
Office Resource Management Plan and Associated Environmental Impact
Statement for Oil and Gas Development, Meeker, CO
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental
Policy Act of 1969 and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of
1976, notice is hereby given that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM),
White River Field Office (WRFO) located in Meeker, CO, will be
directing the preparation of a Resource Management Plan (RMP) Amendment
and associated Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The BLM invites
the public to participate in this planning effort.
DATES: The scoping comment period will commence with the publication of
this notice and will end 45 days after publication of this notice.
Public meetings will be held during the scoping comment period in
Meeker and Rifle, Colorado. Comments on the scope of the EIS, including
concerns, issues, or proposed alternatives that should be considered,
should be submitted in writing to the address below. The dates of
public meetings to be held in Meeker and Rifle, Colorado will be
announced through the local media, newsletters, and WRFO National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) mailing list. The draft EIS is expected
to be available for public review and comment in September 2007 and the
final EIS is expected to be available early in 2008.
ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to: Jane Peterson, 73554
Highway 64, Meeker, Colorado 81641. Written comments, including names
and addresses of respondents, will be available for public review at
the offices of the BLM White River Field Office, 73554 Highway 64,
Meeker, Colorado 81641, during normal working hours (7:30 a.m. to 4:30
p.m., except holidays). Submissions from organizations or businesses
will be made available for public inspection in their entirety.
Individuals may request confidentiality with respect to their name,
address, and phone number. If you wish to have your name or street
address withheld from public review, or from disclosure under the
Freedom of Information Act, you must state this prominently at the
beginning of your comment. Such requests will be honored to the extent
allowed by law. Comment contents will not be kept confidential.
Responses to the comments will be published as part of the Proposed
Resource Management Plan/Final Environmental Impact Statement.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information or to have
your name added to our mailing list, contact Jane Peterson, WRFO Oil
and Gas EIS Project Manager, at (970) 244-3027 or alternately at (970)
878-3828. E-mail can be directed to jane_h_peterson@blm.gov and mail
can be sent to the address above.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The RMP Amendment proposes to modify the
level of oil and gas development within the WRFO boundaries above what
was anticipated in the 1997 WRFO RMP. The EIS will analyze the
potential impacts of increased oil and gas development on a field
office-wide level. Citizens are requested to help identify issues or
concerns and to provide input on BLM's proposed action. The White River
Field Office (WRFO), Meeker, Colorado, is located in northwestern
Colorado primarily in Rio Blanco County, with other tracts located in
Garfield and Moffat Counties and encompasses 1,455,900 acres of BLM
surface estate and 365,000 acres of split mineral estate. The WRFO is
experiencing unprecedented growth in the oil and gas energy program.
The Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) Reauthorization of 2000
directed the Department of the Interior to produce a scientific
inventory of oil and gas resources and reserves underlying Federal
lands. The EPCA-generated studies of five oil and gas basins (Montana
Thrust Belt, Powder River, Green River, San Juan/Paradox, and Uinta/
Piceance), completed and presented to Congress in January, 2003,
identified the Piceance Basin of Northwest Colorado, in which the WRFO
is located, as one of five sub-basins in the continental United States
with large reserves of undeveloped oil and gas energy potential. As a
result of EPCA, higher oil and gas prices, and development of
interstate transportation pipelines the WRFO is experiencing an oil and
gas boom. The WRFO Resource Management Plan (RMP), approved in
[[Page 34389]]
1997, projected and analyzed a Reasonable Foreseeable Development (RFD)
scenario of 1,100 oil and gas wells, with 10 acres of disturbance per
well (including roads and pipelines), over a 20-year period
(approximately 55 wells per year). The RFD projected that nearly 2/3 of
the oil and gas development activity (or 800 wells) would take place
south of Rangely, Colorado with the remaining activity dispersed
throughout the remaining field office area. While this projection has
been fairly accurate for the activity south of Rangely, the current and
projected oil and gas activity in the Piceance Basin may soon far
exceed the RFD/EIS impact analysis.
The oil and gas industry has indicated that the potential exists to
develop over 13,000 oil and gas wells in the Piceance Basin over the
next 20 years. The current WRFO RMP/EIS does not adequately address
this projected level of oil and gas development. The BLM has identified
some preliminary planning criteria to guide the development of the
plan. The following planning criteria have been proposed to guide the
development of the plan, to avoid unnecessary data collection and
analyses, and to ensure the plan is tailored to issues. Other criteria
may be identified during the public scoping process. Proposed planning
criteria include the following:
The plan will comply with all applicable laws, regulations
and current policies.
Broad-based public participation will be an integral part
of the planning and EIS process.
The plan will recognize valid existing rights.
Environmental protection and energy production are both
desirable and necessary objectives of sound land management practices
and are not to be considered mutually exclusive priorities
The BLM will analyze the proposed action and no action
alternatives, as well as other possible alternatives that could include
alternative approaches to mitigation measures and/or conditions of
approval for future oil and gas development in the planning area.
Alternatives will be further defined as part of the planning process.
Vernon Rholl,
Acting Field Manager.
[FR Doc. E6-9255 Filed 6-13-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 1610-DN-P
