Notice of Intent to Prepare a Joint Environmental Impact Statement and Final Staff Assessment, and Amend the California Desert Conservation Area Plan; California, 62671-62672 [E7-21762]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
• Bureau of Land Management
• Land Management Bureau

[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 214 (Tuesday, November 6, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62671-62672]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-21762]



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[CACA 48668; CA-690-07-5101-ER-B240]


Notice of Intent to Prepare a Joint Environmental Impact 
Statement and Final Staff Assessment, and Amend the California Desert 
Conservation Area Plan; California

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969 (NEPA), as amended, and the California Environmental Quality Act 
(CEQA), the Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management 
(BLM), together with the California Energy Commission (CA EC), intend 
to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement/Final Staff Assessment 
(EIS/FSA), on the impacts of the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating 
System (Ivanpah SEGS), consisting of three concentrating solar-powered 
steam/electricity generating plants and related facilities, and a 
proposed land use plan amendment to the 1980 California Desert 
Conservation Area (CDCA) Plan, as amended. The Ivanpah SEGS is proposed 
by Solar Partners I, LLC; Solar Partners, II, LLC; Solar Partners IV, 
LLC; Solar Partners VIII,LLC; collectively the Applicants. The 
Applicants have requested a right-of-way (ROW) for each of three solar 
power plants and a ROW for related shared facilities on approximately 
3,400 contiguous acres of public lands in San Bernardino County, 
approximately 4.5 miles southwest of Primm, Nevada. The EIS will 
analyze the site-specific impacts to the environment from the proposed 
grant of the ROWs and amend the CDCA Plan to permit this site-specific 
use of the CDCA. The CA EC is the lead State of California agency for 
the licensing of thermal power plants over 50 MW and compliance with 
the requirements of CEQA.

DATES: This notice initiates the public participation and scoping 
processes for the EIS. A public scoping period of at least 30 days and 
at least one public meeting will be announced through the local news 
media, newspapers, and BLM's Web page (https://www.ca.blm.gov/needles). 
During the public scoping period the BLM will solicit public comment on 
issues, concerns and opportunities that should be considered in the 
analysis of the proposed action. The BLM expects to hold at least one 
public meeting and information about that meeting will be announced 
through the local news media, newspapers and BLM Web site (https://
www.ca.blm.gov/needles) at least 15 days prior to the event. Comments 
on issues, potential impacts, or suggestions for additional 
alternatives may also be submitted in writing to the address listed 
below. In order to be included in the Draft EIS all comments must be 
received prior to the close of the scoping period or 15 days after the 
last public meeting, whichever is later. Additional opportunities for 
public participation and formal comment will occur when the Draft EIS/
Preliminary Staff Assessment is issued.

ADDRESSES: Comments and other correspondence should be sent to the BLM 
Needles Office, attention George R. Meckfessel, Planning and 
Environmental Coordinator, Needles Field Office, 1303 South U.S. 
Highway 95, Needles, California, 92363-4228, or by fax at (760) 326-
7099 or by e-mail at 690@ca.blm.gov attention Ivanpah SEGS. Documents 
pertinent to this proposal, including comments of respondents, will be 
available for public review at the BLM Needles Field Office during 
regular business hours of 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
excluding holidays. Before including your address, telephone 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 in your comment to withhold your personal 
identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we 
will be able to do so. All submissions from organizations, businesses, 
and from individuals identifying themselves as representatives or 
officials of organizations or businesses will be made available for 
public inspection in their entirety.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information and/or to have 
your name added to our mailing list, contact George R. Meckfessel, 
Planning and Environmental Coordinator, Needles Field Office, 1303 
South U.S. Highway 95, Needles, California 92363-4228, (760) 326-7008, 
fax (760) 326-7099, or e-mail George--Meckfessel@ca.blm.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Solar Partners I, LLC, Solar Partners II, 
LLC, Solar Partners IV, LLC and Solar Partners VIII, LLC have applied 
for individual ROWs on public lands to develop three solar thermal 
power plants and related shared facilities in close proximity on 
approximately 3,400 acres. The proposed projects would be constructed 
in three phases, as follows, 100 mega-watts (MW) (Ivanpah 1), 100 MW 
(Ivanpah 2) and 200 MW (Ivanpah 3). The site is located in Townships 16 
and 17 North, Range 14 East, San Bernardino Meridian, and is 
approximately 4.5 miles southwest of Primm, Nevada. It is anticipated 
that the energy output of the plants will serve California and assist 
the state in meeting its renewable energy portfolio standards and 
goals. These concentrating solar plants would utilize distributed power 
tower and heliostat (mirror) technology, in which heliostat fields 
focus solar energy on power tower receivers near the center of each 
heliostat array. The total 400 MW project would incorporate 13 power 
towers and approximately 272,000 heliostats (each is 7 square meters in 
size). Each of the three proposed plants would have an individual power 
block with steam turbine, an air-cooled condenser, switchyard, and a 
generation tie-line. The three plants would share access roads, two 
groundwater wells and water lines, an administrative/maintenance 
complex, a new substation, and a new 5.3 mile natural gas pipeline. The 
shared facilities would be constructed in the first phase. The plants 
would be interconnected to the Southern California Edison (SCE) grid by 
SCE through upgrades to SCE's 115 kV line passing through the site and 
a new substation. The three plants would take approximately 4 years to 
construct, and are expected to operate at last 50 years. Construction 
of the project is anticipated to begin in the first quarter of 2009, 
with construction being completed in the last quarter of 2012.
    BLM will consider approval of the proposed Project in a manner that 
avoid or reduces impacts to public lands. This action responds to 
federal law and BLM's policy allowing the use of public lands for 
renewable energy, specifically section 211 of the Energy Policy Act of 
2005 (119 Stat. 594, 660) and BLM's Solar Energy Development Policy, 
which was issued on April 4, 2007, and established a framework to 
process applications for ROWs and directs the BLM to be responsive to 
solar energy project applicants while protecting the environment. The 
CDCA Plan and the Federal Land Policy Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA) 
both recognize that the CDCA will be managed for multiple uses, 
including solar energy.
    BLM must take into consideration state law when granting ROWs. 
Current California state laws and policy require the increased use of 
renewable energy and established the California Renewable Portfolio 
Standard Program, under which the percentage of electricity generated 
by publicly owned

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utilities in California must increase to 20% by 2010 and 33% by 2017.
    The site selection study for the proposed solar plants and related 
facilities was conducted in 2006-07. Several sites were identified as 
being suitable for this form of concentrating solar technology. The 
EIS/FSA will describe and analyze the proposed project as proposed and 
will include: (1) BLM measures to avoid, minimize, or mitigate impacts 
on the environment; (2) A smaller plant alternative; (3) The ``No 
Action'' alternative (no new solar power generation facility); and (4) 
Alternative site locations for constructing and operating Ivanpah SEGS. 
Through public scoping BLM expects to identify various issues, 
potential impacts and mitigation measures. As proposed, the solar 
plants have been sited to take advantage of high solarity, to be 
located in areas identified in the CDCA Plan as suitable for wind and 
solar development, and to avoid special status species habitat. The 
plants are dry-cooled to reduce water consumption and would be located 
near existing gas and electric transmission facilities to reduce land 
disturbance. BLM has identified a potential list of issues that will 
need to be addressed in this analysis including but not limited to: Air 
quality; social and economic impacts, including impacts to the public 
from traffic; ground and surface water quantity and quality impacts; 
plant and animal species including special status species; cultural 
resources; visual resource impacts; and land tenure adjustment (grazing 
and mining). If approved, these solar energy projects on public lands 
would be authorized in accordance with the FLMPA and the federal 
regulations at Title 43 Code of Federal Regulations 2800.

(Authority: 43 CFR part 1712 and 43 CFR Part 1761).

    Dated: October 31, 2007.
J. Anthony Danna,
Deputy State Director, Natural Resources (CA-930).
 [FR Doc. E7-21762 Filed 11-5-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-40-P