Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement and To Initiate Scoping for a Federal Coal Lease Application Filed by Alton Coal Development LLC, Utah, 68834-68835 [E6-20044]
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68834
Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 228 / Tuesday, November 28, 2006 / Notices
representatives or officials of
organizations or businesses, will be
made available for public inspection in
their entirety.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
information on the NEPA aspect of the
project, please call Teri Deakins at 307–
352–0211. For information on coal
leasing, please call Joanna NaraKloepper, Project Leader, at 307–352–
0321.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March
24, 2004, BBCC filed an LBA with the
BLM, to access Federal coal reserves
adjacent to their existing Black Butte
Mine in Sweetwater County, Wyoming.
The LBA tract is approximately 28 miles
southeast of Rock Springs, Wyoming,
and comprises the following public
lands:
ycherry on PROD1PC61 with NOTICES
T. 17 N., R. 101 W., 6th PM, Wyoming
sec. 2: Lots 3, 4, SW1⁄4NW1⁄4;
sec. 4: Lots 1, 2, S1⁄2NE1⁄4, SE1⁄4NW1⁄4,
NE1⁄4SW1⁄4, S1⁄2SW1⁄4, SE1⁄4;
sec. 10: NW1⁄4, N1⁄2SW1⁄4;
T. 18 N., R. 101 W., 6th PM, Wyoming
sec. 34: E1⁄2, E1⁄2NW1⁄4, SW1⁄4.
Containing 1,399.48 acres, more or less.
The Black Butte Coal Mine started
operations in the late 1970s and
continues to operate today. Additional
mineable coal reserves are needed to
meet the growing regional demand for
electricity, including electricity
supplied by the Jim Bridger Power
Plant. BBCC estimates that
approximately 34.6 million tons of inplace coal reserves are present in the
Upper Cretaceous Almond Formation
within the project area.
The Office of Surface Mining
Reclamation Enforcement (OSMRE) is a
cooperating agency in the preparation of
this Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS). If the tract is leased as a
maintenance tract, the new lease must
be incorporated into the existing mining
and reclamation plan for the adjacent
mine. The Secretary of the Interior must
approve the revision to the Mineral
Leasing Act (MLA) mining plan before
the Federal coal can be mined. If the
tract is leased, OSMRE is the Federal
agency that would be responsible for
recommending approval, approval with
conditions, or disapproval of the revised
MLA mining plan to the Secretary of the
Interior.
On January 7, 2005, the BLM
published its Notice of Intent (NOI) to
prepare an EIS for the Pit 14 Coal LBA
(WYW160394) in the Federal Register.
On March 24, 2006, both the BLM and
the EPA published NOAs of the Draft
Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS)
for the Pit 14 Coal LBA project for a 60day comment and review period. Under
the provisions of Federal coal
VerDate Aug<31>2005
15:42 Nov 27, 2006
Jkt 211001
regulations at 43 Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR) 3425.4, a public
hearing was held at 2 p.m. on May 10,
2006, at the BLM Rock Springs Field
Office, Rock Springs, WY. The purpose
of the hearing was to solicit comments
on the DEIS, fair market value, and the
maximum economic recovery of the
Federal coal. Seven comment letters on
the DEIS were received during the
review and comment period, and two
statements were recorded during the
public coal hearing (of which one
statement was subsequently submitted
as a comment letter).
The FEIS analyzes two alternatives in
detail:
1. The Proposed Action. This
alternative analyzes the impacts of
leasing Federal coal and the impacts
associated with surface mining.
2. The No Action Alternative. This
alternative would reject the coal lease
application as submitted.
BLM’s preferred alternative is the
Proposed Action. The Proposed Action
is in conformance with the Green River
Resource Management Plan (1997).
A Record of Decision (ROD) will be
prepared after the close of the comment
period for the FEIS. Comments received
on the FEIS will be considered during
preparation of the ROD.
Dated: September 22, 2006.
Robert A. Bennett,
State Director.
[FR Doc. E6–20045 Filed 11–27–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[UT–110–1320–EL, UTU 081895]
Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Environmental Impact Statement and
To Initiate Scoping for a Federal Coal
Lease Application Filed by Alton Coal
Development LLC, Utah
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare an
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
and to initiate scoping for a Federal Coal
Lease Application (LBA) Fielded by
Alton Coal Development LLC, near
Alton, Utah.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section 102 (2)
(C) of the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended,
the Bureau of Land Management (BLM),
Kanab Field Office announces its intent
to prepare an EIS and is soliciting
public comments regarding issues and
resource information on the potential
PO 00000
Frm 00041
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
impacts of a proposal to primarily
surface mine Federal coal in the vicinity
of Alton, Utah as requested by Alton
coal Development LLC (Alton LLC) in
LBA case number UTU 081895 and in
conformance with the provisions of 43
Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)
3425.1.
This notice initiates the public
scoping process. Comments and
resource information should be
submitted within 90 days of publication
of this notice in the Federal Register.
The BLM will host public scoping
meetings in the following locations:
Alton, Kanab, Panguitch, Cedar City,
and Salt Lake City, Utah. Times and
dates of these meetings will be
announced through the Utah BLM Web
site (https://www.ut.blm.gov), press
releases, local newspapers, and other
media. At the scoping meetings, the
public is invited to submit comments
and resource information, and identify
issues or concerns to be considered in
the LBA process. The BLM will
announce public meetings and other
opportunities to submit comments on
this project at least 15 days prior to the
event.
ADDRESSES: Please submit written
comments or concerns to the BLM
Kanab Field Office, Attn: Keith Rigtrup,
318 North 100 East, Kanab, Utah 84741.
Written comments or resource
information may also be hand-delivered
to the BLM Kanab Field Office or sent
by facsimile to the attention of Keith
Rigtrup at 435–644–4620. Comments
may be sent electronically to
UT_Kanab_Altoncoal@blm.gov; please
put Alton Coal Lease/Keith Rigtrup in
the subject line. Members of the public
may examine documents pertinent to
this proposal by visiting the Kanab Field
Office during its business hours (7:45
a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), Monday through
Friday, except holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Keith Rigtrup, BLM Kanab Field Office,
318 North 100 East, Kanab, Utah 84741
or by telephone at 435–644–4600.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: An
application to lease Federal coal near
the Town of Alton, Utah was filed with
BLM on November 12, 2004, by Alton
LLC. The Utah State Office Solid
Minerals Branch reviewed this lease
application, delineated the boundaries
of the tract, and recommended that the
BLM process it. This LBA is called the
Alton Tract and is currently delineated
to include approximately 46 million
tons of in-place Federal coal underlying
the following lands in Kane County,
Utah:
DATES:
T. 39 S., R. 5 W., SLM, Utah
E:\FR\FM\28NON1.SGM
28NON1
Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 228 / Tuesday, November 28, 2006 / Notices
ycherry on PROD1PC61 with NOTICES
sec. 7, SE1⁄4SW1⁄4, S1⁄2SE1⁄4;
sec. 18, lots 3 and 4, E1⁄2, E1⁄2W1⁄2;
sec. 19, lots 1 through 4, NE1⁄4, E1⁄2W1⁄2,
N1⁄2SE1⁄4, SE1⁄4SE1⁄4;
sec. 20, lots 4 and 5, N1⁄2SW1⁄4;
sec. 30, lots 2 through 4, SW1⁄4NE1⁄4,
SE1⁄4NW1⁄4, E1⁄2SW1⁄4, W1⁄2SE1⁄4;
sec. 31, lots 1 through 3, NE1⁄4, E1⁄2NW1⁄4,
NE1⁄4SW1⁄4, N1⁄2SE1⁄4;
T. 39 S., R. 6 W., SLM, Utah
sec. 12, SW1⁄4, W1⁄2SE1⁄4;
sec. 13, NW1⁄4NE1⁄4, N1⁄2NW1⁄4, SE1⁄4NW1⁄4,
SE1⁄4;
sec. 24, NE1⁄4, N1⁄2NW1⁄4, SE1⁄4NW1⁄4,
E1⁄2SW1⁄4, N1⁄2SE1⁄4, SE1⁄4SE1⁄4;
sec. 25, E1⁄2NE1⁄4, SW1⁄4NE1⁄4, SE1⁄4.
Containing 3,581.27 acres more or less.
The Office of Surface Mining (OSM)
will be a cooperating agency in the
preparation of the EIS.
If the Alton Tract is leased, the OSM
is the Federal agency that would
prepare the documentation for the
Assistant Secretary, Land and Minerals
Management decision to approve,
approve with conditions, or disapprove
the Mining Plan. The BLM will provide
interested parties the opportunity to
submit comments or relevant
information or both. This information
will help BLM identify issues to be
considered in preparing a draft EIS for
the Alton Tract. Specific issues that
have been identified at this time
include: potential impacts in the
vicinity of the tract to city and county
facilities and occupied residences;
livestock grazing, big game herds and
hunting, sage grouse, listed threatened
and endangered species, alluvial valley
floors; potential health issues related to
blasting operations conducted by the
mines to remove overburden and coal;
site-specific and cumulative impacts on
air and water quantity/quality; and the
need to consider the cumulative impacts
of coal leasing decisions combined with
other existing and proposed
development in the affected areas.
The area included within this lease
application was part of a larger area
analyzed in response to a petition filed
under Section 522 of the Surface Mining
Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to
have federal lands declared unsuitable
for all types of surface coal mining
operations. The petition sought to have
the lands declared unsuitable for coal
mining because of impacts to air quality,
visual resources, fish and wildlife
resources, geologic features within
Bryce Canyon National Park, and
hydrology. The petitioners also
questioned whether the lands could be
reclaimed after mining. After an
extensive evaluation, which included
input from the public and a combined
petition evaluation and environmental
impact statement, the Secretary of the
Interior, on December 16, 1980,
VerDate Aug<31>2005
15:42 Nov 27, 2006
Jkt 211001
determined that the coal lands included
in this lease application were not
unsuitable for surface coal mining
operations. The Secretary’s decision is
documented in a secretarial decision
document entitled, ‘‘Petition to
Designate Certain Federal Lands in
Southern Utah Unsuitable for Surface
Coal Mining’’ (OSM Reference No: 79–
5–001).
Alton LLC has applied for a permit
with the State of Utah to mine fee coal
on private lands adjacent to this federal
tract. That permit application is in
progress and this federal tract, if
approved, would be a continuation of
that mining operation.
Your response is important and will
be considered in the EIS process. If you
respond, the BLM will keep you
informed of the availability of
environmental documents that address
impacts that might occur from this
proposal.
Please note that comments and
information submitted regarding this
project including names, electronic mail
addresses, and street addresses of the
respondents will be available for public
review and disclosure at the Kanab
Field Office.
If you comment as a private
individual in your personal capacity,
you may ask us to withhold personal
identifying information from the public.
You must do so prominently in writing
at the beginning of your comments and
must tell us precisely what you want us
to withhold. You also must explain in
detail why releasing that personal
identifying information to the public
would constitute a clearly unwarranted
invasion of privacy. Individuals may
request confidentiality. General
assertions that are not supported by
specific facts will not meet that burden.
We will withhold personal identifying
information from release to the public in
response to your request only where, in
our judgment, you present sufficient
factual justification for our doing so
under current laws, regulations, and
court decisions. Typically,
notwithstanding your request, in all but
the most exceptional circumstances, we
will release to the public all of the
personal identifying information that
you submit.
If you comment as or on behalf of an
organization or business, we will release
your comments to the public in their
entirety, including all personal
identifying information. We will not
consider a request from an organization
or business, or anyone commenting on
behalf of an organization or business,
that we withhold any personal
PO 00000
Frm 00042
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
68835
identifying information from release to
the public.
Rex Smart,
Kanab Field Manager.
[FR Doc. E6–20044 Filed 11–27–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–$$–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[WY–957–07–1910–BJ–5RKC]
Notice of Filing of Plats of Survey,
Wyoming
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of filing of plats of
survey, Wyoming.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) is scheduled to file
the plat of survey of the lands described
below thirty (30) calendar days from the
date of this publication in the BLM
Wyoming State Office, Cheyenne,
Wyoming.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Bureau of Land Management, 5353
Yellowstone Road, P.O. Box 1828,
Cheyenne, Wyoming 82003.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
survey was executed at the request of
the Bureau of Indian Affairs and is
necessary for the management of these
lands. The lands surveyed are:
The plat and field notes representing
the dependent resurvey of a portion of
the subdivisional lines and the survey of
the subdivision of section 22, and the
metes and bounds surveys of Parcels A
and B, section 22, Township 42 North,
Range 95 West, of the Sixth Principal
Meridian, Wyoming, was accepted
November 9, 2006.
The plat and field notes representing
the dependent resurvey of a portion of
the south boundary of the Wind River
Indian Reservation and subdivisional
lines, and the survey of the subdivision
of section 20, and the metes and bounds
survey of certain lots in section 20,
Township 2 South, Range 1 West, Wind
River Meridian, Wyoming, was accepted
November 9, 2006.
The plat and field notes representing
the dependent survey of portions of the
north boundary, subdivisional lines,
subdivision of sections and certain
tracts, and the survey of the subdivision
of section 11, and the metes and bounds
surveys of certain parcels, Township 3
North, Range 2 East, of the Wind River
Meridian, Wyoming, was accepted
November 17, 2006.
E:\FR\FM\28NON1.SGM
28NON1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 228 (Tuesday, November 28, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68834-68835]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-20044]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[UT-110-1320-EL, UTU 081895]
Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement and
To Initiate Scoping for a Federal Coal Lease Application Filed by Alton
Coal Development LLC, Utah
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) and to initiate scoping for a Federal Coal Lease Application
(LBA) Fielded by Alton Coal Development LLC, near Alton, Utah.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section 102 (2) (C) of the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, the Bureau of Land Management
(BLM), Kanab Field Office announces its intent to prepare an EIS and is
soliciting public comments regarding issues and resource information on
the potential impacts of a proposal to primarily surface mine Federal
coal in the vicinity of Alton, Utah as requested by Alton coal
Development LLC (Alton LLC) in LBA case number UTU 081895 and in
conformance with the provisions of 43 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)
3425.1.
DATES: This notice initiates the public scoping process. Comments and
resource information should be submitted within 90 days of publication
of this notice in the Federal Register. The BLM will host public
scoping meetings in the following locations: Alton, Kanab, Panguitch,
Cedar City, and Salt Lake City, Utah. Times and dates of these meetings
will be announced through the Utah BLM Web site (https://
www.ut.blm.gov), press releases, local newspapers, and other media. At
the scoping meetings, the public is invited to submit comments and
resource information, and identify issues or concerns to be considered
in the LBA process. The BLM will announce public meetings and other
opportunities to submit comments on this project at least 15 days prior
to the event.
ADDRESSES: Please submit written comments or concerns to the BLM Kanab
Field Office, Attn: Keith Rigtrup, 318 North 100 East, Kanab, Utah
84741. Written comments or resource information may also be hand-
delivered to the BLM Kanab Field Office or sent by facsimile to the
attention of Keith Rigtrup at 435-644-4620. Comments may be sent
electronically to UT--Kanab--Altoncoal@blm.gov; please put Alton Coal
Lease/Keith Rigtrup in the subject line. Members of the public may
examine documents pertinent to this proposal by visiting the Kanab
Field Office during its business hours (7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), Monday
through Friday, except holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Keith Rigtrup, BLM Kanab Field Office,
318 North 100 East, Kanab, Utah 84741 or by telephone at 435-644-4600.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: An application to lease Federal coal near
the Town of Alton, Utah was filed with BLM on November 12, 2004, by
Alton LLC. The Utah State Office Solid Minerals Branch reviewed this
lease application, delineated the boundaries of the tract, and
recommended that the BLM process it. This LBA is called the Alton Tract
and is currently delineated to include approximately 46 million tons of
in-place Federal coal underlying the following lands in Kane County,
Utah:
T. 39 S., R. 5 W., SLM, Utah
[[Page 68835]]
sec. 7, SE\1/4\SW\1/4\, S\1/2\SE\1/4\;
sec. 18, lots 3 and 4, E\1/2\, E\1/2\W\1/2\;
sec. 19, lots 1 through 4, NE\1/4\, E\1/2\W\1/2\, N\1/2\SE\1/4\,
SE\1/4\SE\1/4\;
sec. 20, lots 4 and 5, N\1/2\SW\1/4\;
sec. 30, lots 2 through 4, SW\1/4\NE\1/4\, SE\1/4\NW\1/4\, E\1/
2\SW\1/4\, W\1/2\SE\1/4\;
sec. 31, lots 1 through 3, NE\1/4\, E\1/2\NW\1/4\, NE\1/4\SW\1/
4\, N\1/2\SE\1/4\;
T. 39 S., R. 6 W., SLM, Utah
sec. 12, SW\1/4\, W\1/2\SE\1/4\;
sec. 13, NW\1/4\NE\1/4\, N\1/2\NW\1/4\, SE\1/4\NW\1/4\, SE\1/4\;
sec. 24, NE\1/4\, N\1/2\NW\1/4\, SE\1/4\NW\1/4\, E\1/2\SW\1/4\,
N\1/2\SE\1/4\, SE\1/4\SE\1/4\;
sec. 25, E\1/2\NE\1/4\, SW\1/4\NE\1/4\, SE\1/4\.
Containing 3,581.27 acres more or less.
The Office of Surface Mining (OSM) will be a cooperating agency in
the preparation of the EIS.
If the Alton Tract is leased, the OSM is the Federal agency that
would prepare the documentation for the Assistant Secretary, Land and
Minerals Management decision to approve, approve with conditions, or
disapprove the Mining Plan. The BLM will provide interested parties the
opportunity to submit comments or relevant information or both. This
information will help BLM identify issues to be considered in preparing
a draft EIS for the Alton Tract. Specific issues that have been
identified at this time include: potential impacts in the vicinity of
the tract to city and county facilities and occupied residences;
livestock grazing, big game herds and hunting, sage grouse, listed
threatened and endangered species, alluvial valley floors; potential
health issues related to blasting operations conducted by the mines to
remove overburden and coal; site-specific and cumulative impacts on air
and water quantity/quality; and the need to consider the cumulative
impacts of coal leasing decisions combined with other existing and
proposed development in the affected areas.
The area included within this lease application was part of a
larger area analyzed in response to a petition filed under Section 522
of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to have
federal lands declared unsuitable for all types of surface coal mining
operations. The petition sought to have the lands declared unsuitable
for coal mining because of impacts to air quality, visual resources,
fish and wildlife resources, geologic features within Bryce Canyon
National Park, and hydrology. The petitioners also questioned whether
the lands could be reclaimed after mining. After an extensive
evaluation, which included input from the public and a combined
petition evaluation and environmental impact statement, the Secretary
of the Interior, on December 16, 1980, determined that the coal lands
included in this lease application were not unsuitable for surface coal
mining operations. The Secretary's decision is documented in a
secretarial decision document entitled, ``Petition to Designate Certain
Federal Lands in Southern Utah Unsuitable for Surface Coal Mining''
(OSM Reference No: 79-5-001).
Alton LLC has applied for a permit with the State of Utah to mine
fee coal on private lands adjacent to this federal tract. That permit
application is in progress and this federal tract, if approved, would
be a continuation of that mining operation.
Your response is important and will be considered in the EIS
process. If you respond, the BLM will keep you informed of the
availability of environmental documents that address impacts that might
occur from this proposal.
Please note that comments and information submitted regarding this
project including names, electronic mail addresses, and street
addresses of the respondents will be available for public review and
disclosure at the Kanab Field Office.
If you comment as a private individual in your personal capacity,
you may ask us to withhold personal identifying information from the
public. You must do so prominently in writing at the beginning of your
comments and must tell us precisely what you want us to withhold. You
also must explain in detail why releasing that personal identifying
information to the public would constitute a clearly unwarranted
invasion of privacy. Individuals may request confidentiality. General
assertions that are not supported by specific facts will not meet that
burden.
We will withhold personal identifying information from release to
the public in response to your request only where, in our judgment, you
present sufficient factual justification for our doing so under current
laws, regulations, and court decisions. Typically, notwithstanding your
request, in all but the most exceptional circumstances, we will release
to the public all of the personal identifying information that you
submit.
If you comment as or on behalf of an organization or business, we
will release your comments to the public in their entirety, including
all personal identifying information. We will not consider a request
from an organization or business, or anyone commenting on behalf of an
organization or business, that we withhold any personal identifying
information from release to the public.
Rex Smart,
Kanab Field Manager.
[FR Doc. E6-20044 Filed 11-27-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-$$-P
