Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Buckman Water Diversion Project, Santa Fe County, New Mexico, 26643-26644 [07-2303]
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 90 / Thursday, May 10, 2007 / Notices
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Lake Champlain Sea Lamprey Control
Alternatives Workgroup
AGENCY:
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Notice of meeting.
Bureau of Land Management
SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (Service), announce a
meeting of the Lake Champlain Sea
Lamprey Control Alternatives
Workgroup (Workgroup). The
Workgroup’s purpose is to provide, in
an advisory capacity, recommendations
and advice on research and
implementation of sea lamprey control
techniques alternative to lampricide that
are technically feasible, cost effective,
and environmentally safe. The primary
objective of the meeting will be to
discuss potential focus research
initiatives that may enhance alternative
sea lamprey control techniques. The
meeting is open to the public.
The Lake Champlain Sea
Lamprey Control Alternatives
Workgroup will meet on Monday, June
4, 2007, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
DATES:
The meeting will be held at
the State University of New York,
Valcour Educational Conference Center,
3712 Route 9—Lakeshore, Plattsburgh,
NY 12901.
ADDRESSES:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Dave Tilton, Designated Federal Officer,
Lake Champlain Sea Lamprey Control
Alternatives Workgroup, Lake
Champlain Fish and Wildlife Resources
Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
11 Lincoln Street, Essex Junction, VT
05452 (U.S. mail); 802–872–0629
(telephone); or Dave_Tilton@fws.gov
(electronic mail).
We
publish this notice under section
10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory
Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.). The
Workgroup’s specific responsibilities
are to provide advice regarding the
implementation of sea lamprey control
methods alternative to lampricides, to
recommend priorities for research to be
conducted by cooperating organizations
and demonstration projects to be
developed and funded by State and
Federal agencies, and to assist Federal
and State agencies with the
coordination of alternative sea lamprey
control research to advance the state of
the science in Lake Champlain and the
Great Lakes.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION:
Dated: April 25, 2007.
Linda Repasky,
Acting Regional Director, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, Hadley, Massachusetts.
[FR Doc. E7–8989 Filed 5–9–07; 8:45 am]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Notice of Availability of the Final
Environmental Impact Statement
(FEIS) for the Buckman Water
Diversion Project, Santa Fe County,
New Mexico
AGENCIES: Bureau of Land Management,
Interior and Forest Service, Department
of Agriculture.
ACTION: Notice of Availability.
SUMMARY: In accordance with the
National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (NEPA), as amended, (Pub. L. 91–
190, 43 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) the Bureau
of Land Management (BLM), Taos Field
Office and USDA Forest Service (Forest
Service), Santa Fe National Forest,
announce the availability of the FEIS for
the Buckman Water Diversion Project.
The FEIS analyzes the environmental
consequences of a proposal to divert
water from the Rio Grande.
DATES: The Buckman Water Diversion
Project FEIS will be available for review
and comment for 30 calendar days
starting on the date the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) publishes the
Notice of Availability (NOA) in the
Federal Register. The BLM and Forest
Service can best utilize your comments
and resource information submissions
within that 30-day comment period.
ADDRESSES: Comments on the FEIS may
be submitted as follows:
1. Electronic comments may be
submitted at
NM_Comments@nm.blm.gov. Please do
not use special characters or
attachments, as the BLM e-mail security
system may not accept them.
2. Written comments may be mailed
or delivered to the BLM at: Buckman
Water Diversion Project FEIS, Project
Manager, Bureau of Land Management,
Taos Field Office, 226 Cruz Alta Rd.,
Taos, NM 87571.
The BLM will only accept comments
on the Buckman Water Diversion Project
FEIS if they are submitted using one of
the methods described above. To be
given consideration, all FEIS comment
submittals must include the
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26643
commenter’s name and address. Before
including your address, phone number,
e-mail address, or other personal
identifying information in your
comment, you should be aware that
your entire comment—including your
personal identifying information—may
be made publicly available at any time.
While you can ask us to withhold your
personal identifying information from
public review, we cannot guarantee that
we will be able to do so. Our practice
is to make comments available for
public review at the BLM—Taos Field
Office during business hours (7:45 a.m.
to 4:30 p.m.), Monday through Friday,
except for Federal holidays. Copies of
the FEIS have been sent to affected
Federal, State, and local government
agencies, Tribal governments, and
interested parties. The document will be
available electronically at the following
Web site: https://www.blm.gov/nm.
Copies of the FEIS will also be
available at the following locations:
• Bureau of Land Management, New
Mexico State Office, 1474 Rodeo Road,
Santa Fe, NM 87505.
• Bureau of Land Management, Taos
Field Office, 226 Cruz Alta Rd., Taos,
NM 87571.
• Forest Service, Santa Fe National
Forest, 1474 Rodeo Road, Santa Fe, NM
87505.
• Forest Service, Espanola Ranger
District, 1710 North Riverside Dr.,
Espanola, NM 87533.
• City of Santa Fe, Sangre de Cristo
Water Division, 801 West San Mateo,
Santa Fe, NM 87504.
• Santa Fe County, Utilities
Department, 205 Montezuma Ave.,
Santa Fe, NM 87501.
• USDI Bureau of Reclamation, 555
Broadway Ave. Albuquerque NM 87102.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.
Sher Churchill, Bureau of Land
Management, Planning and
Environmental Coordinator, Taos Field
Office, 226 Cruz Alta Rd., Taos, NM
87571 or Mr. Sanford Hurlocker, Forest
Service, District Ranger, Espanola
Ranger District, P.O. Box 3307,
Espanola, NM 87533. Ms. Churchill and
Mr. Hurlocker can be reached by
telephone at 505.751.4725 and
505.753.7331, respectively. Requests for
information may be submitted
electronically at https://www.blm.gov/
nm.
The
project area is located northwest of
Santa Fe, New Mexico. If authorized,
the project would be predominantly
located on public lands administered by
the Bureau of Land Management and the
Forest Service; a relatively small portion
of the project facilities would be located
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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26644
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 90 / Thursday, May 10, 2007 / Notices
on private lands and Bureau of Land
Management lands leased to the City of
Santa Fe. The Forest Service and Bureau
of Land Management are joint lead
agencies for this project; the Department
of Interior Bureau of Reclamation
(contributing funds), City of Santa Fe,
and Santa Fe County are cooperating
agencies. The City of Santa Fe, Santa Fe
County, and Las Companas Limited
Partnership are the ‘‘Project
Applicants.’’ The proposed Buckman
Water Diversion Project is designed to
address the immediate need for a
sustainable means of accessing water
supplies for the Project Applicants.
Most of the water would be derived
from the San Juan-Chama Project, a U.S.
Bureau of Reclamation inter-basin
transfer project. The remainder would
be ‘‘native’’ water rights owned by the
Project Applicants, and diverted from
the Rio Grande. The Project Applicants
propose to construct and operate a
surface water diversion facility at the
Rio Grande near the western terminus of
Buckman Road located within the Santa
Fe National Forest, near the existing
Buckman Well Field. The water would
be pumped to the Santa Fe vicinity,
where it would serve municipal and
community water supply customers.
The Buckman Water Diversion is
proposed to be constructed with the
capacity necessary to meet the near-term
need for water, based on physical,
technical, and environmental
limitations. The proposed project has an
independent use from the long-term
water management strategy being
undertaken by the City and the County.
On July 22, 2002, the BLM and Forest
Service published a Notice of Intent to
prepare an EIS for the Buckman Water
Diversion Project in the Federal
Register. Scoping meetings were held in
August and September 2002. Issues and
concerns identified during scoping and
throughout the NEPA process were
addressed in the Draft EIS. On
December 17, 2004, the BLM and Forest
Service published the Notice of
Availability of the Draft EIS for this
project in the Federal Register. The 60day comment period ended on February
14, 2005. Thirteen (13) comments were
received from individuals,
organizations, and agencies. Specific
comment responses are provided in the
FEIS, and issues and concerns raised
during the review and prior to
completion of the FEIS are addressed in
the FEIS.
The Buckman Water Diversion Project
FEIS provides detailed analyses of the
No Action Alternative, the Proposed
Action, and several alternatives. The No
Action Alternative would result in the
agencies not authorizing permits for the
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15:04 May 09, 2007
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construction and operation of a water
diversion and associated infrastructure.
The Proposed Action includes a
diversion structure at the Rio Grande;
water transmission facilities, including
pumps and booster station buildings,
water tanks, settling ponds and pipes;
water treatment facilities; electric power
improvements; and road improvements
necessary to build and operate the
facilities. While analyzing the Proposed
Action, it was determined that there
were alternatives for different
infrastructure, and the effects of these
alternatives were analyzed for possible
inclusion in a composite preferred
alternative. Therefore, three sediment
facility alternatives, two raw water
pipeline alternatives, three treated water
pipeline alternatives, and two power
upgrade alternatives were analyzed in
detail. The FEIS discloses details of
these infrastructural alternatives and the
environmental consequences of
implementing them.
The BLM’s and Forest Service’s
Preferred Alternative is to authorize
rights-of-way and easements to the
Applicants so that they may construct,
operate, and maintain the road
improvements and major facilities and
their locations as described in the
Proposed Action, plus one of the
alternatives for each of the following:
the sediment facility, the raw water
pipeline, the treated water pipeline, and
the power upgrade facility. The
Preferred Alternative also includes
mitigation and monitoring requirements
to protect resources. The Preferred
Alternative will avoid disturbance to the
historic Buckman town site, minimize
visual impacts on viewers from White
Rock Overlook and along Buckman
Road, and avoid creating new utility
corridors. The alternatives, including
the agencies’ Preferred Alternative,
conform to existing laws and
regulations, and provide for resource
protection.
In compliance with Section 7(c) of the
Endangered Species Act, as amended,
the FEIS includes a biological
assessment for the purpose of
identifying endangered or threatened
species, which may be affected by the
Preferred Alternative. A Biological
Opinion is forthcoming and will be
included in the formulation of the final
decision.
Dated: March 12, 2007.
Sam Des Georges,
BLM–Taos Field Office Manager.
Daniel J. Jiron,
Santa Fe National Forest, Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 07–2303 Filed 5–9–07; 8:45 am]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[AZ–910–0777–XP–241A]
State of Arizona Resource Advisory
Council Meeting
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Arizona Resource Advisory
Council Meeting notice.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: In accordance with the
Federal Land Policy and Management
Act and the Federal Advisory
Committee Act of 1972, the U.S.
Department of the Interior, Bureau of
Land Management, Arizona Resource
Advisory Council (RAC), will meet on
June 8, 2007, in Phoenix, Arizona, at the
Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
National Training Center located at 9828
North 31st Avenue in Phoenix from 8
a.m. and conclude at 4:30 p.m. Morning
agenda items include: Review of the
March 8, 2007, Meeting Minutes for
RAC and RRAC business; BLM State
Director’s Update on Statewide Issues;
Presentations on Proposed Tri-State
Shooting Range and Arizona Water
Rights; RAC Questions on BLM Field
Managers Rangeland Resource Team
Proposals; and, Reports by RAC
Working Groups. A public comment
period will be provided at 11:30 a.m. on
June 8, 2007, for any interested publics
who wish to address the Council on
BLM programs and business.
Under the Federal Recreation
Enhancement Act, the RAC has been
designated the Recreation Resource
Advisory Council (RRAC), and has the
authority to review all BLM and Forest
Service (FS) recreation fee proposals in
Arizona. The afternoon meeting agenda
on June 8, will include discussion and
review of the Recreation Enhancement
Act (REA) Working Group Report,
updated 4th Quarter Schedule of Fiscal
Year 2007 BLM and FS recreation fee
proposals, and two FS fee proposals in
Arizona:
(1) Alto Pit OHV Use Area (Prescott
National Forest): Ten minutes from
downtown Prescott, and 2 hours from
Phoenix and Flagstaff, this fee proposal
would add a campground fee at a rate
of $10 per night per campsite for single
sites and $20 per night for a double site.
Improvements include 10 single family
sites and one double family site, three
toilets, picnic tables, fire rings, loading
and unloading area, 9 miles of internal
designated trail system, additional
external connection trails, 20 acres of
designated cross county area, children’s
OHV play area, and year-round on site
host.
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 90 (Thursday, May 10, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26643-26644]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 07-2303]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact
Statement (FEIS) for the Buckman Water Diversion Project, Santa Fe
County, New Mexico
AGENCIES: Bureau of Land Management, Interior and Forest Service,
Department of Agriculture.
ACTION: Notice of Availability.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (NEPA), as amended, (Pub. L. 91-190, 43 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) the
Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Taos Field Office and USDA Forest
Service (Forest Service), Santa Fe National Forest, announce the
availability of the FEIS for the Buckman Water Diversion Project. The
FEIS analyzes the environmental consequences of a proposal to divert
water from the Rio Grande.
DATES: The Buckman Water Diversion Project FEIS will be available for
review and comment for 30 calendar days starting on the date the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) publishes the Notice of
Availability (NOA) in the Federal Register. The BLM and Forest Service
can best utilize your comments and resource information submissions
within that 30-day comment period.
ADDRESSES: Comments on the FEIS may be submitted as follows:
1. Electronic comments may be submitted at NM--Comments@nm.blm.gov.
Please do not use special characters or attachments, as the BLM e-mail
security system may not accept them.
2. Written comments may be mailed or delivered to the BLM at:
Buckman Water Diversion Project FEIS, Project Manager, Bureau of Land
Management, Taos Field Office, 226 Cruz Alta Rd., Taos, NM 87571.
The BLM will only accept comments on the Buckman Water Diversion
Project FEIS if they are submitted using one of the methods described
above. To be given consideration, all FEIS comment submittals must
include the commenter's name and address. Before including your
address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying
information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire
comment--including your personal identifying information--may be made
publicly available at any time. While you can ask us to withhold your
personal identifying information from public review, we cannot
guarantee that we will be able to do so. Our practice is to make
comments available for public review at the BLM--Taos Field Office
during business hours (7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), Monday through Friday,
except for Federal holidays. Copies of the FEIS have been sent to
affected Federal, State, and local government agencies, Tribal
governments, and interested parties. The document will be available
electronically at the following Web site: https://www.blm.gov/nm.
Copies of the FEIS will also be available at the following
locations:
Bureau of Land Management, New Mexico State Office, 1474
Rodeo Road, Santa Fe, NM 87505.
Bureau of Land Management, Taos Field Office, 226 Cruz
Alta Rd., Taos, NM 87571.
Forest Service, Santa Fe National Forest, 1474 Rodeo Road,
Santa Fe, NM 87505.
Forest Service, Espanola Ranger District, 1710 North
Riverside Dr., Espanola, NM 87533.
City of Santa Fe, Sangre de Cristo Water Division, 801
West San Mateo, Santa Fe, NM 87504.
Santa Fe County, Utilities Department, 205 Montezuma Ave.,
Santa Fe, NM 87501.
USDI Bureau of Reclamation, 555 Broadway Ave. Albuquerque
NM 87102.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Sher Churchill, Bureau of Land
Management, Planning and Environmental Coordinator, Taos Field Office,
226 Cruz Alta Rd., Taos, NM 87571 or Mr. Sanford Hurlocker, Forest
Service, District Ranger, Espanola Ranger District, P.O. Box 3307,
Espanola, NM 87533. Ms. Churchill and Mr. Hurlocker can be reached by
telephone at 505.751.4725 and 505.753.7331, respectively. Requests for
information may be submitted electronically at https://www.blm.gov/nm.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The project area is located northwest of
Santa Fe, New Mexico. If authorized, the project would be predominantly
located on public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management
and the Forest Service; a relatively small portion of the project
facilities would be located
[[Page 26644]]
on private lands and Bureau of Land Management lands leased to the City
of Santa Fe. The Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management are joint
lead agencies for this project; the Department of Interior Bureau of
Reclamation (contributing funds), City of Santa Fe, and Santa Fe County
are cooperating agencies. The City of Santa Fe, Santa Fe County, and
Las Companas Limited Partnership are the ``Project Applicants.'' The
proposed Buckman Water Diversion Project is designed to address the
immediate need for a sustainable means of accessing water supplies for
the Project Applicants. Most of the water would be derived from the San
Juan-Chama Project, a U.S. Bureau of Reclamation inter-basin transfer
project. The remainder would be ``native'' water rights owned by the
Project Applicants, and diverted from the Rio Grande. The Project
Applicants propose to construct and operate a surface water diversion
facility at the Rio Grande near the western terminus of Buckman Road
located within the Santa Fe National Forest, near the existing Buckman
Well Field. The water would be pumped to the Santa Fe vicinity, where
it would serve municipal and community water supply customers. The
Buckman Water Diversion is proposed to be constructed with the capacity
necessary to meet the near-term need for water, based on physical,
technical, and environmental limitations. The proposed project has an
independent use from the long-term water management strategy being
undertaken by the City and the County.
On July 22, 2002, the BLM and Forest Service published a Notice of
Intent to prepare an EIS for the Buckman Water Diversion Project in the
Federal Register. Scoping meetings were held in August and September
2002. Issues and concerns identified during scoping and throughout the
NEPA process were addressed in the Draft EIS. On December 17, 2004, the
BLM and Forest Service published the Notice of Availability of the
Draft EIS for this project in the Federal Register. The 60-day comment
period ended on February 14, 2005. Thirteen (13) comments were received
from individuals, organizations, and agencies. Specific comment
responses are provided in the FEIS, and issues and concerns raised
during the review and prior to completion of the FEIS are addressed in
the FEIS.
The Buckman Water Diversion Project FEIS provides detailed analyses
of the No Action Alternative, the Proposed Action, and several
alternatives. The No Action Alternative would result in the agencies
not authorizing permits for the construction and operation of a water
diversion and associated infrastructure. The Proposed Action includes a
diversion structure at the Rio Grande; water transmission facilities,
including pumps and booster station buildings, water tanks, settling
ponds and pipes; water treatment facilities; electric power
improvements; and road improvements necessary to build and operate the
facilities. While analyzing the Proposed Action, it was determined that
there were alternatives for different infrastructure, and the effects
of these alternatives were analyzed for possible inclusion in a
composite preferred alternative. Therefore, three sediment facility
alternatives, two raw water pipeline alternatives, three treated water
pipeline alternatives, and two power upgrade alternatives were analyzed
in detail. The FEIS discloses details of these infrastructural
alternatives and the environmental consequences of implementing them.
The BLM's and Forest Service's Preferred Alternative is to
authorize rights-of-way and easements to the Applicants so that they
may construct, operate, and maintain the road improvements and major
facilities and their locations as described in the Proposed Action,
plus one of the alternatives for each of the following: the sediment
facility, the raw water pipeline, the treated water pipeline, and the
power upgrade facility. The Preferred Alternative also includes
mitigation and monitoring requirements to protect resources. The
Preferred Alternative will avoid disturbance to the historic Buckman
town site, minimize visual impacts on viewers from White Rock Overlook
and along Buckman Road, and avoid creating new utility corridors. The
alternatives, including the agencies' Preferred Alternative, conform to
existing laws and regulations, and provide for resource protection.
In compliance with Section 7(c) of the Endangered Species Act, as
amended, the FEIS includes a biological assessment for the purpose of
identifying endangered or threatened species, which may be affected by
the Preferred Alternative. A Biological Opinion is forthcoming and will
be included in the formulation of the final decision.
Dated: March 12, 2007.
Sam Des Georges,
BLM-Taos Field Office Manager.
Daniel J. Jiron,
Santa Fe National Forest, Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 07-2303 Filed 5-9-07; 8:45 am]
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