Truckee River Operating Agreement, California and Nevada, 4614-4615 [E8-1324]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 17 (Friday, January 25, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4614-4615]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-1324]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR


Truckee River Operating Agreement, California and Nevada

AGENCY: Department of the Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability for a Final Environmental Impact 
Statement/ Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR).

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as 
amended, (NEPA) and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), 
the U.S. Department of the Interior (Interior) and California 
Department of Water Resources (DWR), as co-lead agencies, have jointly 
prepared a Final EIS/EIR for the Truckee River Operating Agreement 
(TROA) which would implement section 205(a) of the Truckee-Carson-
Pyramid Lake Water Rights Settlement Act of 1990, Title II of Public 
Law 101-618 (Settlement Act). The Final EIS/EIR has evaluated the 
proposed action (TROA Alternative), Local Water Supply Alternative, and 
No Action Alternative. Implementation of the proposed action would not 
result in any significant adverse environmental effects. A Notice of 
Availability of the Revised Draft EIS/EIR was published in the Federal 
Register on August 25, 2004 (69 FR 52303). The public review period on 
the Revised Draft EIS/EIR initially ended on October 29, 2004, but was 
extended to December 30, 2004.

DATES: No Federal or State decision will be made on the proposed action 
until a minimum of 30 days after the release of the Final EIS/EIR. 
After this 30-day period, Interior and DWR will complete their 
respective Record of Decision (ROD) and Notice of Determination (NOD). 
The ROD and NOD will identify the action to be implemented.

ADDRESSES: A copy of the Final EIS/EIR (compact disk or bound) may be 
obtained by writing to Kenneth Parr, Bureau of Reclamation 
(Reclamation), 705 North Plaza St., Rm. 320, Carson City, NV 89701 or 
by calling Reclamation at 800-742-9474 (enter 26) or 775-882-3436 or 
DWR at 916-651-0746. The Final EIS/EIR is also accessible from the 
following Web site: https://www.usbr.gov/mp/troa/. See SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section for locations where the Final EIS/EIR is available 
for public review.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kenneth Parr, Reclamation, telephone 
775-882-3436, TDD 775-882-3436, fax 775-882-7592, e-mail: 
kparr@mp.usbr.gov; or Michael Cooney, DWR, telephone 916-651-0746, fax 
916-651-0766, e-mail: mikec@water.ca.gov. Information is also available 
at the Bureau of Reclamation Web site: https://www.usbr.gov/mp/troa/.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Copies of the Final EIS/EIR are available 
for public review at:
     California Department of Water Resources, Central District 
Office, 901 P St., Suite 313B, Sacramento, CA 95814.
     Bureau of Reclamation, Public Affairs Office, 2800 Cottage 
Way, Sacramento, CA 95825.
     Bureau of Reclamation, 705 North Plaza Street, Carson 
City, NV 89701.
     Fish and Wildlife Service, 1340 Financial Blvd, Rm. 234, 
Reno, NV 89502.
     Natural Resources Library, U.S. Department of the 
Interior, 1849 C Street NW., Main Interior Building, Washington, DC 
20240-0001.
     At various county libraries; please call 800-742-9474 
(enter 26) for locations.

TROA Background

    Section 205(a) of the Settlement Act directs the Secretary of the 
Interior (Secretary), in conjunction with others, to negotiate an 
operating agreement governing operation of Federal Truckee River 
reservoirs and other specified matters. Interior, U.S. Department of 
Justice, States of California and Nevada, Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, 
Sierra Pacific Power Company, Truckee Meadows Water Authority, and 
other entities in California and Nevada completed a negotiated 
agreement (i.e., Negotiated TROA) in February 2007. The Negotiated TROA 
is available as an appendix to the Final EIS/EIR or viewed at https://
www.usbr.gov/mp/troa/.
    TROA would, in part, (1) enhance conditions for the threatened 
Lahontan cutthroat trout and endangered cui-ui in the Truckee River 
basin; (2) increase municipal and industrial (M&I) drought protection 
for Truckee Meadows (Reno-Sparks metropolitan area); (3) improve 
Truckee River water quality downstream from Sparks, Nevada; and (4) 
enhance instream flows and recreational opportunities in the Truckee 
River basin. At the time TROA takes effect, the Settlement Act provides 
that a permanent allocation between California and Nevada of water in 
the Lake Tahoe, Truckee River, and Carson River basins will also take 
effect. Allocation of those waters has been a long-standing issue 
between the two States; implementation of TROA resolves that issue. In 
addition, Section 205 of the Settlement Act requires that TROA, among 
other things, implement the provisions of the Preliminary Settlement 
Agreement as modified by the Ratification Agreement (PSA) and ensure 
that water is stored in and released from Federal Truckee River 
reservoirs to satisfy the exercise of water rights in conformance with 
the Orr Ditch decree and Truckee River General Electric decree. PSA is 
a 1989 agreement between Sierra Pacific Power Company and the Pyramid 
Lake Paiute Tribe to change the operation of Federal reservoirs and 
Sierra Pacific's exercise of its Truckee River water rights to (1) 
improve spawning conditions for threatened and endangered fish species 
(cui-ui and Lahontan cutthroat trout) and (2) provide additional M&I 
water for Truckee Meadows during drought situations. Sierra Pacific's 
obligations and associated water rights have since been assigned to the 
Truckee Meadows Water Authority (TMWA).
    Before TROA can be approved by the Secretary and the State of 
California, potential environmental effects of the agreement must be 
analyzed pursuant to NEPA and CEQA. Accordingly, Interior and DWR have 
jointly prepared a Final EIS/EIR for that purpose. A Draft EIS/EIR 
based on an earlier draft agreement was initially prepared and released 
for public review in February 1998. Subsequently, ongoing negotiations 
substantially modified the proposed

[[Page 4615]]

agreement, resulting in the preparation of a Revised Draft EIS/EIR 
released in August 2004. The Final EIS/EIR contains responses to 
comments received on the Revised Draft EIS/EIR.

Current Activities

    Following agreement to the Negotiated TROA in February 2007 by the 
negotiators, a Final EIS/EIR was completed. The Negotiated TROA is 
available as an appendix to the Final EIS/EIR or viewed at https://
www.usbr.gov/mp/troa/. The Final EIS/EIR considers current conditions 
as well as three alternatives: (1) No Action Alternative (current 
reservoir management in the future, without TROA); (2) Local Water 
Supply Alternative (current reservoir management in the future with 
modified water sources, without TROA); and (3) TROA (changed reservoir 
management in the future). Section 205 of the Settlement Act also 
requires that TROA, once approved, be issued as a Federal Regulation. A 
draft regulation is being prepared for publication in the Federal 
Register at a later date. The Secretary cannot sign TROA until a ROD 
has been completed. The State of California cannot sign TROA until it 
has considered and certified a Final EIS/EIR. These and other steps, 
including approval by the Orr Ditch and Truckee River General Electric 
courts, must be completed before TROA may be implemented.

Description of Alternatives

    The TROA Alternative is identified in the Final EIS/EIR as the 
preferred and environmentally superior alternative.
    No Action Alternative (No Action). Under No Action, Truckee River 
reservoir operations would remain unchanged from current operations and 
would be consistent with existing court decrees, agreements, and 
regulations that currently govern surface water management (i.e., 
operating reservoirs in the Truckee River and Lake Tahoe basins and 
maintaining current minimum instream flows) in the Truckee River basin. 
TMWA's existing programs for surface water rights acquisition and 
groundwater pumping for M&I use would continue. Groundwater pumping and 
water conservation in Truckee Meadows, however, would satisfy a greater 
proportion of projected future M&I demand than under current 
conditions. Groundwater pumping in California would also increase to 
satisfy a greater projected future M&I demand.
    Local Water Supply Alternative (LWSA). All elements of Truckee 
River reservoir operations, river flow management, Truckee River 
hydroelectric plant operations, minimum reservoir releases, reservoir 
spill and precautionary release criteria, and water exportation from 
the upper Truckee River basin and Lake Tahoe basin under LWSA would be 
the same as described under No Action. The principal differences 
between LWSA and No Action would be the source of water used for M&I 
purposes, extent of water conservation, implementation of a groundwater 
recharge program in Truckee Meadows, and assumptions regarding 
governmental decisions concerning approval of new water supply 
proposals.
    TROA Alternative (TROA). TROA would modify existing operations of 
all designated reservoirs to enhance coordination and flexibility while 
ensuring that existing water rights are served and flood control and 
dam safety requirements are met. TROA would incorporate, modify, or 
replace various provisions of the Truckee River Agreement (TRA) and the 
Tahoe-Prosser Exchange Agreement (TPEA). As negotiated, TROA would 
supersede all requirements of any agreements concerning the operation 
of all reservoirs, including those of TRA and TPEA, and would become 
the sole operating agreement for all designated reservoirs.
    All reservoirs would continue to be operated under TROA for the 
same purposes as under current operations and with most of the same 
reservoir storage priorities as under No Action and LWSA. The 
Settlement Act requires that TROA ensure that water is stored in and 
released from Truckee River reservoirs to satisfy the exercise of water 
rights in conformance with the Orr Ditch decree and Truckee River 
General Electric decree, except for those rights that are voluntarily 
relinquished by the parties to the PSA, or by any other persons or 
entities, or which are transferred pursuant to State law.
    The primary difference between TROA and the other alternatives is 
that TROA would provide opportunities for storing and managing various 
categories of credit water, not provided for in current operations. 
Signatories to TROA generally would be allowed to accumulate credit 
water in storage by retaining or capturing water in a reservoir that 
would have otherwise been released from storage or passed through the 
reservoir to serve their respective downstream water right (e.g., 
retaining Floriston Rate water that would have been released to serve 
an Orr Ditch decree water right). In cases with a change in the place 
or type of use, such storage could take place only after a transfer in 
accordance with applicable State water law. Once accumulated, credit 
water would be classified by category with a record kept of its 
storage, exchange, and release. Credit water generally would be 
retained in storage or exchanged among the reservoirs until needed and 
released to satisfy its beneficial use. The Interim Storage Agreement 
(negotiated in accordance with section 205(b)(3) of the Settlement Act) 
would be terminated and new storage agreements between the Bureau of 
Reclamation and TROA signatories desiring to store credit water would 
be required.
    In addition to credit water, TROA also establishes criteria for new 
wells in the Truckee River Basin in California to minimize short-term 
reduction in stream flow, provides for the implementation of the 
interstate allocation between California and Nevada, provides for the 
settlement of litigation, establishes a habitat restoration fund for 
the Truckee River, and establishes more strict conditions and approval 
requirements for pumping or siphoning water from Lake Tahoe, among 
other benefits.

    Dated: January 9, 2008.
Willie R. Taylor,
Director, Office of Environmental Policy and Compliance.
 [FR Doc. E8-1324 Filed 1-24-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MN-P