Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Continued Operation of the Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Test Site and Off-Site Locations in the State of Nevada, 36691-36694 [E9-17751]
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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 141 / Friday, July 24, 2009 / Notices
Each meeting is scheduled for 6–8
p.m. with an open-house format, during
which attendees are invited to speak
one-on-one with agency and Project
representatives. Project presentations
will be given at 6:15 and 7:30 p.m.
Attendees are welcome to come and go
at their convenience throughout the
meeting.
The purpose of the scoping meetings
is to provide information about the
proposed Project, review Project maps,
answer questions, and take written
comments from interested parties. All
meeting locations are handicappedaccessible. Anyone needing special
accommodations should contact Ms.
Barger to make arrangements.
The public will have the opportunity
to provide written comments at the
public scoping meetings, or send them
to Western by fax, e-mail, or U.S. Postal
Service mail. To help define the scope
of the EIS, comments should be received
by Western no later than August 28,
2009.
Dated: July 15, 2009.
Timothy J. Meeks,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. E9–17700 Filed 7–23–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
National Nuclear Security
Administration
Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Environmental Impact Statement for
the Continued Operation of the
Department of Energy/National Nuclear
Security Administration Nevada Test
Site and Off-Site Locations in the State
of Nevada
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
AGENCY: U.S. Department of Energy’s
National Nuclear Security
Administration.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an
environmental impact statement and
conduct public scoping meetings.
SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of
1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et
seq.), the Council on Environmental
Quality (CEQ) and the U.S. Department
of Energy (DOE) regulations
implementing NEPA (40 CFR Parts
1500–1508 and 10 CFR Part 1021,
respectively), the National Nuclear
Security Administration (NNSA), a
semi-autonomous agency within DOE,
announces its intention to prepare a
site-wide environmental impact
statement (SWEIS) (DOE/EIS–0426) for
the continued operation of DOE/NNSA
activities at the Nevada Test Site (NTS)
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and certain off-site locations (the
Remote Sensing Laboratory at Nellis Air
Force Base, Las Vegas, Nevada, the
DOE/NNSA campus in North Las Vegas,
and the Nevada Test and Training Range
(NTTR) including activities at the
Tonopah Test Range (TTR)) in the State
of Nevada. The purpose of this notice is
to invite individuals, organizations, and
government agencies and entities to
participate in developing the scope of
the SWEIS.
The new SWEIS will consider a No
Action Alternative, which is to continue
current operations through
implementation of the 1996 Record of
Decision (ROD) (61 FR 65551; 12/13/
96), and subsequent decisions. Three
action alternatives proposed for
consideration in the SWEIS would be
compared to the No Action Alternative.
The three action alternatives would
differ by either their type or level of ongoing operations and may include
proposals for new operations or the
reduction or elimination of certain
operations.
DATES: NNSA invites comments on the
scope of this SWEIS. The public scoping
period starts with the publication of this
notice in the Federal Register and will
continue through October 16, 2009.
NNSA will consider all comments
defining the scope of the SWEIS
received or postmarked by this date.
Comments received or postmarked after
this date will be considered to the
extent practicable. NNSA will conduct
public scoping meetings in Las Vegas,
Tonopah and Pahrump, Nevada and St.
George, Utah scheduled as follows:
• Thursday, September 10, 2009—2–4
p.m. and 6–8 p.m.
Frank H. Rogers Science &
Technology Building, Desert
Research Institute, 755 East
Flamingo Road, Las Vegas, NV.
• Monday, September 14, 2009—5:30–
7:30 p.m.
Bob Ruud Community Center, 150
North Highway 160, Pahrump, NV.
• Wednesday, September 16, 2009—
5:30–7:30 p.m.
Tonopah Convention Center, 301
Brougher Ave., Tonopah, NV.
• Friday, September 18, 2009—5:30–
7:30 p.m.
Holiday Inn Conference Center, 850
South Bluff Street, St. George, Utah.
These scoping meetings will provide
the public with an opportunity to
present comments, ask questions, and
discuss issues with NNSA officials
regarding the SWEIS. Preparation of the
SWEIS will require participation of
other Federal agencies. As bordering
land managers, the USAF and BLM have
an inherent interest in activities at the
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36691
Nevada Test Site (NTS). The DHS and
DTRA are tenant organizations with
ongoing and future operations at the
NTS: Therefore requests for cooperating
agency participation will be extended to
the DOE, Department of Defense, U.S.
Air Force (USAF) and the Defense
Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), the
Department of Homeland Security
(DHS), and the Department of the
Interior, Bureau of Land Management
(BLM.)
ADDRESSES: To submit comments on the
scope of the SWEIS, questions about the
document or scoping meetings, or to be
included on the document distribution
list, please contact: Linda M. Cohn,
NNSA Nevada Site Office, SWEIS
Document Manager, P.O. Box 98518, Las
Vegas, Nevada 89193–8518; telephone
(702) 295–0077; fax (702) 295–5300; or
e-mail address: nepa@nv.doe.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
general information about the DOE
NEPA process, please contact: Carol M.
Borgstrom, Director, Office of NEPA
Policy and Compliance (GC–20), U.S.
Department of Energy, 1000
Independence Avenue, SW.,
Washington, DC 20585; e-mail:
askNEPA@hq.doe.gov; telephone: 202–
586–4600, or leave a message at 1–800–
472–2756; or fax: 202–586–7031. Please
note that U.S. Postal Service deliveries
to the Washington, DC office may be
delayed by security screening.
Additional information regarding DOE
NEPA activities is available on the
Internet through the NEPA Web site at
https://www.gc.energy.gov/nepa.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The NTS occupies about 1,375 square
miles (3,561 square kilometers) in
southern Nevada, and is surrounded on
three sides by the U.S. Air Force Nevada
Test and Training Range (NTTR)
(formerly the Nellis Air Force Range)
and the Desert National Wildlife Refuge.
The fourth boundary is shared with the
Bureau of Land Management. The
Nevada Site Office (NSO) operations are
managed and performed for DOE/NNSA
under contract by a management and
operating contractor (currently National
Security Technologies, LLC) which
teams with personnel from Lawrence
Livermore National Laboratory, Los
Alamos National Laboratory, and Sandia
National Laboratories as well as other
governmental entities to perform NTS
mission-related activities. NTS is a
multi-disciplinary, multi-purpose
facility primarily engaged in work that
supports national security, homeland
security initiatives, waste management,
environmental restoration, and defense
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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 141 / Friday, July 24, 2009 / Notices
and non-defense research and
development programs (R&D) for DOE/
NNSA and other government entities.
Historically, the primary DOE/NNSA
mission work conducted at NTS was
nuclear weapons testing. Since the
moratorium on nuclear testing began in
October 1992, NTS has been maintained
in a state of readiness to conduct
underground nuclear tests, if so directed
by the President. It also conducts highhazard experiments involving nuclear
material and high explosives (HE);
provides the capability to process and
dispose of a damaged nuclear weapon or
improvised nuclear device; and
conducts non-nuclear experiments,
hydrodynamic testing, and HE testing.
Nuclear stockpile stewardship activities
at the NTS include conducting dynamic
plutonium experiments that provide
technical information to maintain the
safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear
weapons stockpile, and conducting
research and training on nuclear
safeguards, criticality safety, and
emergency response. Special Nuclear
Materials are also stored at the NTS.
Also, in accordance with the amended
1996 NTS EIS (DOE/EIS–0243) ROD,
NNSA continues to receive low-level
and mixed low-level radioactive waste
for disposal at NTS. Sandia National
Laboratories, a DOE/NNSA contractor,
operates the Tonopah Test Range (TTR)
near Tonopah, Nevada for flight testing
of gravity weapons (including R&D and
testing of nuclear weapons components
and delivery systems) in support of
DOE/NNSA mission requirements.
The 1996 NTS EIS examined existing
and potential impacts to the
environment from ongoing and
anticipated future DOE/NNSA
operations conducted over
approximately a 10-year period of time
at NTS and at off-site locations in the
State of Nevada, such as portions of the
NTTR including the TTR. NSO’s
remediation efforts have been
completed at Project Shoal and the
Central Nevada Test Area.
The four alternatives analyzed in the
1996 NTS EIS were: (1) The No Action
Alternative, to continue to operate at the
level maintained in the previous 5
years; (2) Discontinue Operations; (3)
Expanded Use, and (4) Alternative Use
of Withdrawn Lands. DOE’s ROD
implemented Alternative 3, Expanded
Use, plus the public educational
activities of Alternative 4, Alternative
Use of Withdrawn Lands. This ROD also
selected the continuation of low-level
and mixed low-level waste management
activities as described in the No Action
Alternative until decisions on the Waste
Management Programmatic
Environmental Impact Statement for
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Managing Treatment, Storage, and
Disposal of Radioactive and Hazardous
Waste (Waste Management PEIS) (DOE/
EIS–0200) could be made. DOE issued
its decisions on the Waste Management
PEIS in a February 2000 ROD that
included an amendment to the 1996
NTS EIS ROD. That February 2000 ROD
announced DOE’s decision to
implement low-level and mixed lowlevel waste management activities in
accordance with the Expanded Use
Alternative of the 1996 NTS EIS.
In July 2002, DOE/NNSA completed a
5-year review of the 1996 NTS EIS with
the preparation of a Supplement
Analysis (SA) (DOE/EIS–0243–SA–01),
pursuant to DOE’s regulatory
requirement to evaluate site-wide NEPA
documents at least every 5 years (10
CFR 1021.330) to determine the
adequacy of an existing EIS. Based on
the 2002 Supplement Analysis for the
Final Environmental Impact Statement
for the Nevada Test Site and Off-Site
Locations in the State of Nevada (DOE/
EIS–0243–SA–01), DOE/NNSA
determined that there were no
substantial changes to the actions or
impacts evaluated in the NTS EIS, and
there were no significant new
circumstances or information relevant to
environmental concerns. Thus, the
existing NTS EIS was adequate and
neither a supplemental EIS or a new EIS
was required.
In 2003, NNSA prepared a
Supplement Analysis entitled
Supplement Analysis for the Final
Environmental Impact Statement for the
Nevada Test Site and Off-Site Locations
in the State of Nevada to Address the
Increase in Activities Associated with
the National Center for Combating
Terrorism & Counterterrorism Training
& Related Activities (DOE–EIS–0243–
SA–02) to determine whether an
anticipated increase in national security
projects after the terrorist attacks of
September 11, 2001, required further
NEPA analysis. This analysis covered
military training/exercises, and testing,
evaluation, and development of
technology for multiple Federal
government agencies. Based upon this
review, DOE/NNSA determined that the
proposed increase in activities would
not result in substantial changes to the
NTS EIS or the ROD, and there were no
significant new circumstances or
information relevant to environmental
concerns. Thus, neither a supplemental
EIS nor a new EIS was required.
More recently, in 2007, DOE/NNSA
initiated its second comprehensive 5year review of the 1996 NTS EIS and
prepared a SA entitled Draft
Supplement Analysis for the Final
Environmental Impact Statement for the
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Nevada Test Site and Off-Site Locations
in the State of Nevada (DOE–EIS–0243–
SA–03) which evaluated whether the
1996 NTS EIS continued to remain
adequate for ongoing and reasonably
foreseeable activities. This document
was issued for public review and
comment in April 2008. Based upon
consideration of comments received on
this draft SA regarding potential
changes to the NTS program work
scope, the DOE/NNSA decided to
prepare a new SWEIS for the Continued
Operation of the NTS and Off-Site
Locations in the State of Nevada for the
10-year period commencing 2010.
Purpose and Need
The purpose and need for agency
action is to continue the operation of
NTS to provide support for DOE’s core
missions as directed by the Congress
and the President. NTS has a long
history of supporting national security
objectives through the conduct of
underground nuclear tests and other
nuclear and non-nuclear activities.
Since October 1992, there has been a
moratorium on underground nuclear
testing. Thus, the present mission of the
DOE at NTS is to maintain a readiness
to conduct tests. In addition, NTS
supports DOE national security related
research, development, and testing
programs, and DOE’s waste
management/disposal activities. NTS
also provides opportunities for various
environmental research projects.
Alternatives for the SWEIS
In accordance with applicable DOE
and CEQ NEPA regulations, the No
Action Alternative will be analyzed in
the SWEIS and will form the baseline
for the action alternatives analyzed in
the document. In this case, the No
Action Alternative will be the continued
implementation of the 1996 NTS EIS
ROD, and the amendment to the ROD
for the NTS (65 FR 10061 at 10065) at
DOE/NNSA sites in Nevada over the
next 10 years. Additionally, the No
Action Alternative will also include the
implementation of other decisions
supported by separate NEPA analyses
completed since the issuance of the
final 1996 NTS EIS, including: the Final
Environmental Impact Statement for the
Proposed Relocation of Technical Area
18 Capabilities and Materials at Los
Alamos National Laboratory (DOE/EIS–
319) and ROD (67 FR 79906); and the
Final Complex Transformation
Supplemental Programmatic
Environmental Impact Statement (DOE/
EIS–0235–S4) and its RODs (73 FR
77644 and 73 FR 77656) and the Waste
Management PEIS and ROD (65 FR
10061). The No Action Alternative will
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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 141 / Friday, July 24, 2009 / Notices
also include actions analyzed in eight
environmental assessments and their
associated Findings of No Significant
Impacts, as well as actions categorically
excluded from the need for preparation
of either an EA or an EIS. These various
documents are identified in the 2008
draft SA. Copies of these documents can
be reviewed at the DOE/NNSA Public
Reading Rooms at 755 E. Flamingo, Las
Vegas, Nevada, and 100 North Stewart
Street, Carson City, Nevada, and public
libraries in St. George, Utah; and
Tonopah and Pahrump, Nevada; and on
the internet at: https://
www.gc.energy.gov/nepa.
Three action alternatives will be
considered in the SWEIS: Expanded
Operations, Reduced Operations, and
Renewable Energy Operations. All three
of these alternatives will be compared to
the No Action Alternative level of
operations. The Expanded Operations
Alternative will consider a greater
proportion of reasonably foreseeable
new work from other Federal
organizations as identified by
cooperating agencies. This work will
relate to nonproliferation and
counterterrorism, experiments, research,
development and testing. Such
expansion could include developing test
beds for concept testing of sensors,
mitigation strategies and weapons
effectiveness. The Reduced Operations
alternative will consider an overall
reduction in the level of operations and
closure of specific buildings and
structures. The Renewable Energy
Operations Alternative will consider
renewable energy R&D and the potential
deployment of those technologies on the
NTS. Any new facilities/activities,
regardless of which alternative they are
associated with, will be included in the
analysis if they are reasonably
foreseeable (i.e., proposed within the
next 10 years).
This SWEIS will analyze potential
impacts resulting from reasonably
foreseeable operations and compare
these impacts to those projected in the
No-Action Alternative. The SWEIS will
analyze projected impacts anticipated
from operating the NTS and certain offsite locations in the State of Nevada at
the current level with some modified
work now being proposed at certain
facilities, such as the Radiological and
Nuclear Test Evaluation Center and the
Non-Proliferation Test and Evaluation
Center. Examples of newly proposed
actions at NTS include development of
enhanced national security programs to
include increased homeland security
activities in sensor development and
testing, and chemical and biological
simulant releases, as well as stockpile
stewardship activities.
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Direct and indirect, as well as
unavoidable and irreversible and
irretrievable impacts to the environment
of the NTS and off-site locations in the
State of Nevada will be identified and
analyzed in the SWEIS. In addition,
updated modeling and analysis will be
conducted of potential migration of
contaminants in the groundwater from
historic nuclear testing on the NTS.
Where appropriate, mitigation strategies
will also be analyzed in the SWEIS.
Further, an updated evaluation of NTS
operational and transportation accident
analyses, and a new assessment of
cumulative impacts of DOE/NNSA
operations in Nevada will also be
included. DOE/NNSA plans to prepare
the SWEIS as an unclassified document
with a classified appendix. The
classified information will not be
available for public review; however, it
will be considered in the decisionmaking process of the SWEIS. DOE/
NNSA intends to re-evaluate the range
of reasonable alternatives following
public scoping.
Preliminary Identification of
Environmental Issues
DOE/NNSA proposes to address the
issues listed below when considering
the potential impacts of each
alternative. This list is presented to
facilitate public comment during the
scoping period and will be revisited as
DOE/NNSA considers all scoping
comments. It is not intended to be
comprehensive, nor to imply any
predetermination of impacts.
• Potential effects on the public
health from exposure to hazardous
materials under routine and credible
accident scenarios;
• Impacts on surface and
groundwater, and on water use and
quality;
• Impacts on air quality and noise;
• Impacts on plants and animals, and
their habitats, including species that are
Federal- or state-listed as threatened or
endangered, or of special concern;
• Impacts on geology and soil;
• Impacts on cultural resources such
as Native American sites, historic
mining and ranching, and Cold War
structures;
• Socioeconomic impacts on
potentially affected communities and
disproportionately high and adverse
impacts to minority and low-income
populations;
• Potential impacts on land use.
• Pollution prevention and waste
management practices and activities;
• Unavoidable adverse impacts and
irreversible and irretrievable
commitments of resources;
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36693
• Potential cumulative environmental
effects of past, present, and reasonably
foreseeable future actions;
• Potential impacts of intentional
destructive acts, including sabotage and
terrorism.
SWEIS Process and Invitation To
Comment
The SWEIS scoping process provides
an opportunity for the public to assist
the DOE/NNSA in determining issues.
Four public scoping meetings will be
held as noted under DATES in this
Notice. The purpose of scoping
meetings is to provide attendees an
opportunity to present comments, ask
questions, and discuss concerns
regarding the SWEIS with DOE/NNSA
officials. Comments and
recommendations can also be mailed to
Linda M. Cohn as noted in this Notice
under ADDRESSES. The SWEIS scoping
meetings will use a format to facilitate
dialogue between DOE/NNSA and the
public and will provide individuals the
opportunity to give written or oral
statements. DOE/NNSA welcomes
specific comments or suggestions on the
SWEIS process. The SWEIS will
describe the potential environmental
impacts of each alternative by using
available data where possible and
obtaining additional data where
necessary. Copies of written comments
and transcripts of oral comments
provided to DOE/NNSA during the
scoping period will be available at the
DOE Public Reading Room at 755 E.
Flamingo, Las Vegas, Nevada, and
public libraries in St. George, Utah;
Tonopah and Pahrump, Nevada; and on
the Internet at https://www.nv.doe.gov/
library/publications/environmental.
After the close of the public scoping
period, DOE/NNSA will begin
developing the draft SWEIS. DOE/
NNSA expects to issue the draft SWEIS
for public review in mid-2010. Public
comments on the draft SWEIS will be
received for at least 60 days following
publication of the Environmental
Protection Agency’s Notice of
Availability in the Federal Register. The
Notice of Availability, along with
notices placed in local newspapers, will
provide dates and locations for public
hearings on the draft SWEIS and the
deadline for comments on the draft
document. Persons who submit
comments with a mailing address
during the scoping process will receive
a copy of the draft SWEIS. Other
persons who would like to receive a
copy of the document for review when
it is issued should notify Linda M. Cohn
at one of the addresses provided
previously. DOE/NNSA will include all
comments received on the draft SWEIS,
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and responses to those comments in the
final SWEIS. Issuance of the final
SWEIS is currently scheduled for mid2011.
Issued in Washington, DC, this 21st day of
July 2009.
Thomas P. D’Agostino,
Administrator, National Nuclear Security
Administration.
[FR Doc. E9–17751 Filed 7–23–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Docket No. CP09–110–000]
Mississippi Hub, LLC; Notice of
Availability of the Environmental
Assessment for the Proposed
Mississippi Hub Expansion Project
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
July 17, 2009.
The staff of the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (FERC or
Commission) has prepared an
environmental assessment (EA) of the
Mississippi Hub, LLC (MS HUB)
Expansion Project, proposed in the
above referenced docket. MS HUB
requests authorization to modify its
previously-authorized salt cavern
natural gas storage facility in Simpson
County, Mississippi and construct and
operate new natural gas pipeline
facilities in Simpson, Jefferson Davis,
and Covington Counties, Mississippi.
The EA was prepared to satisfy the
requirements of the National
Environmental Policy Act. The FERC
staff concludes that approval of the
proposed project, with appropriate
mitigating measures, would not
constitute a major federal action
significantly affecting the quality of the
human environment.
The EA assesses the potential
environmental effects of the MS HUB
Expansion Project (project), involving
the following construction activities:
• Increasing the working natural gas
storage capacity of two previouslyauthorized solution-mined salt storage
caverns from 6.0 billion cubic feet (Bcf)
to 7.5 Bcf in each cavern;
• Equipment modifications at the
Natural Gas Handling Facility Site,
including installation of 15,800
horsepower of additional compression;
• Construction of 22.6 miles of 30inch-diameter pipeline and 14.2 miles
of 24-inch-diameter pipeline, collocated
in a single pipeline corridor;
• Aboveground tie-in and metering
facilities at proposed pipeline
interconnects with the Southeast
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Supply Header (SESH) pipeline and the
Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line
Corporation (Transco) pipeline; and
• Various ancillary facilities.
The purpose of the project is to
expand MS HUB’s high deliverability
natural gas storage facility and create
new interconnects with the SESH and
Transco pipeline systems. The MS HUB
Expansion Project would increase the
total working gas capacity of the facility
from 12 Bcf to 15 Bcf, and increase MS
HUB’s natural gas withdrawal and
injection capabilities.
The EA has been placed in the public
files of the FERC. A limited number of
copies of the EA are available for
distribution and public inspection at:
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,
Public Reference Room, 888 First Street,
NE., Room 2A, Washington, DC 20426,
(202) 502–8371.
Copies of the EA have been mailed to
federal, state, and local agencies;
interested groups and individuals;
newspapers and libraries in the project
area; and parties to this proceeding.
Any person wishing to comment on
the EA may do so. To ensure
consideration prior to a Commission
decision on the proposal, it is important
that we receive your comments before
the date specified below.
Your comments should focus on the
potential environmental effects,
reasonable alternatives, and measures to
avoid or lessen environmental impacts.
The more specific your comments, the
more useful they will be. To ensure that
your comments are timely and properly
recorded, please send in your comments
so that they will be received in
Washington, DC on or before August 17,
2009.
For your convenience, there are three
methods in which you can use to submit
your comments to the Commission. In
all instances please reference the project
docket number (CP09–110–000) with
your submission. The Commission
encourages electronic filing of
comments and has dedicated eFiling
expert staff available to assist you at
202–502–8258 or efiling@ferc.gov.
(1) You may file your comments
electronically by using the Quick
Comment feature, which is located on
the Commission’s internet Web site at
https://www.ferc.gov under the link to
Documents and Filings. A Quick
Comment is an easy method for
interested persons to submit text-only
comments on a project;
(2) You may file your comments
electronically by using the eFiling
feature, which is located on the
Commission’s internet Web site at
https://www.ferc.gov under the link to
Documents and Filings. eFiling involves
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preparing your submission in the same
manner as you would if filing on paper,
and then saving the file on your
computer’s hard drive. You will attach
that file as your submission. New
eFiling users must first create an
account by clicking on ‘‘Sign up’’ or
‘‘eRegister.’’ You will be asked to select
the type of filing you are making. A
comment on a particular project is
considered a ‘‘Comment on a Filing;’’ or
(3) You may file your comments via
mail to the Commission by sending an
original and two copies of your letter to:
Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, 888
First St., NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC
20426;
Label one copy of the comments for
the attention of Gas Branch 3, PJ11.3.
Mail your comments promptly, so that
they will be received in Washington, DC
on or before August 17, 2009.
Comments will be considered by the
Commission but will not serve to make
the commentor a party to the
proceeding. Any person seeking to
become a party to the proceeding must
file a motion to intervene pursuant to
Rule 214 of the Commission’s Rules of
Practice and Procedures (18 Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR) 385.214)1.
Only intervenors have the right to seek
rehearing of the Commission’s decision.
Affected landowners and parties with
environmental concerns may be granted
intervenor status upon showing good
cause by stating that they have a clear
and direct interest in this proceeding
which would not be adequately
represented by any other parties. You do
not need intervenor status to have your
comments considered.
Additional information about the
project is available from the
Commission’s Office of External Affairs,
at 1–866–208–FERC (3372) or on the
FERC Internet Web site (https://
www.ferc.gov) using the eLibrary link.
Click on the eLibrary link, click on
‘‘General Search’’ and enter the docket
number excluding the last three digits in
the Docket Number field (i.e. CP09–
110). Be sure you have selected an
appropriate date range. For assistance,
please contact FERC Online Support at
FercOnlineSupport@ferc.gov or toll free
at 1–866–208–3676, or for TTY, contact
(202) 502–8659. The eLibrary link also
provides access to the texts of formal
documents issued by the Commission,
such as orders, notices, and
rulemakings.
In addition, the Commission now
offers a free service called eSubscription
1 Interventions may also be filed electronically via
the Internet in lieu of paper. See the previous
discussion on filing comments electronically.
E:\FR\FM\24JYN1.SGM
24JYN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 141 (Friday, July 24, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36691-36694]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-17751]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
National Nuclear Security Administration
Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for
the Continued Operation of the Department of Energy/National Nuclear
Security Administration Nevada Test Site and Off-Site Locations in the
State of Nevada
AGENCY: U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security
Administration.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement
and conduct public scoping meetings.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of
1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Council on Environmental
Quality (CEQ) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) regulations
implementing NEPA (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508 and 10 CFR Part 1021,
respectively), the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), a
semi-autonomous agency within DOE, announces its intention to prepare a
site-wide environmental impact statement (SWEIS) (DOE/EIS-0426) for the
continued operation of DOE/NNSA activities at the Nevada Test Site
(NTS) and certain off-site locations (the Remote Sensing Laboratory at
Nellis Air Force Base, Las Vegas, Nevada, the DOE/NNSA campus in North
Las Vegas, and the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR) including
activities at the Tonopah Test Range (TTR)) in the State of Nevada. The
purpose of this notice is to invite individuals, organizations, and
government agencies and entities to participate in developing the scope
of the SWEIS.
The new SWEIS will consider a No Action Alternative, which is to
continue current operations through implementation of the 1996 Record
of Decision (ROD) (61 FR 65551; 12/13/96), and subsequent decisions.
Three action alternatives proposed for consideration in the SWEIS would
be compared to the No Action Alternative. The three action alternatives
would differ by either their type or level of on-going operations and
may include proposals for new operations or the reduction or
elimination of certain operations.
DATES: NNSA invites comments on the scope of this SWEIS. The public
scoping period starts with the publication of this notice in the
Federal Register and will continue through October 16, 2009. NNSA will
consider all comments defining the scope of the SWEIS received or
postmarked by this date. Comments received or postmarked after this
date will be considered to the extent practicable. NNSA will conduct
public scoping meetings in Las Vegas, Tonopah and Pahrump, Nevada and
St. George, Utah scheduled as follows:
Thursday, September 10, 2009--2-4 p.m. and 6-8 p.m.
Frank H. Rogers Science & Technology Building, Desert Research
Institute, 755 East Flamingo Road, Las Vegas, NV.
Monday, September 14, 2009--5:30-7:30 p.m.
Bob Ruud Community Center, 150 North Highway 160, Pahrump, NV.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009--5:30-7:30 p.m.
Tonopah Convention Center, 301 Brougher Ave., Tonopah, NV.
Friday, September 18, 2009--5:30-7:30 p.m.
Holiday Inn Conference Center, 850 South Bluff Street, St. George,
Utah.
These scoping meetings will provide the public with an opportunity
to present comments, ask questions, and discuss issues with NNSA
officials regarding the SWEIS. Preparation of the SWEIS will require
participation of other Federal agencies. As bordering land managers,
the USAF and BLM have an inherent interest in activities at the Nevada
Test Site (NTS). The DHS and DTRA are tenant organizations with ongoing
and future operations at the NTS: Therefore requests for cooperating
agency participation will be extended to the DOE, Department of
Defense, U.S. Air Force (USAF) and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency
(DTRA), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Department
of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM.)
ADDRESSES: To submit comments on the scope of the SWEIS, questions
about the document or scoping meetings, or to be included on the
document distribution list, please contact: Linda M. Cohn, NNSA Nevada
Site Office, SWEIS Document Manager, P.O. Box 98518, Las Vegas, Nevada
89193-8518; telephone (702) 295-0077; fax (702) 295-5300; or e-mail
address: nepa@nv.doe.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information about the DOE
NEPA process, please contact: Carol M. Borgstrom, Director, Office of
NEPA Policy and Compliance (GC-20), U.S. Department of Energy, 1000
Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585; e-mail:
askNEPA@hq.doe.gov; telephone: 202-586-4600, or leave a message at 1-
800-472-2756; or fax: 202-586-7031. Please note that U.S. Postal
Service deliveries to the Washington, DC office may be delayed by
security screening. Additional information regarding DOE NEPA
activities is available on the Internet through the NEPA Web site at
https://www.gc.energy.gov/nepa.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The NTS occupies about 1,375 square miles (3,561 square kilometers)
in southern Nevada, and is surrounded on three sides by the U.S. Air
Force Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR) (formerly the Nellis Air
Force Range) and the Desert National Wildlife Refuge. The fourth
boundary is shared with the Bureau of Land Management. The Nevada Site
Office (NSO) operations are managed and performed for DOE/NNSA under
contract by a management and operating contractor (currently National
Security Technologies, LLC) which teams with personnel from Lawrence
Livermore National Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, and
Sandia National Laboratories as well as other governmental entities to
perform NTS mission-related activities. NTS is a multi-disciplinary,
multi-purpose facility primarily engaged in work that supports national
security, homeland security initiatives, waste management,
environmental restoration, and defense
[[Page 36692]]
and non-defense research and development programs (R&D) for DOE/NNSA
and other government entities. Historically, the primary DOE/NNSA
mission work conducted at NTS was nuclear weapons testing. Since the
moratorium on nuclear testing began in October 1992, NTS has been
maintained in a state of readiness to conduct underground nuclear
tests, if so directed by the President. It also conducts high-hazard
experiments involving nuclear material and high explosives (HE);
provides the capability to process and dispose of a damaged nuclear
weapon or improvised nuclear device; and conducts non-nuclear
experiments, hydrodynamic testing, and HE testing. Nuclear stockpile
stewardship activities at the NTS include conducting dynamic plutonium
experiments that provide technical information to maintain the safety
and reliability of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile, and conducting
research and training on nuclear safeguards, criticality safety, and
emergency response. Special Nuclear Materials are also stored at the
NTS. Also, in accordance with the amended 1996 NTS EIS (DOE/EIS-0243)
ROD, NNSA continues to receive low-level and mixed low-level
radioactive waste for disposal at NTS. Sandia National Laboratories, a
DOE/NNSA contractor, operates the Tonopah Test Range (TTR) near
Tonopah, Nevada for flight testing of gravity weapons (including R&D
and testing of nuclear weapons components and delivery systems) in
support of DOE/NNSA mission requirements.
The 1996 NTS EIS examined existing and potential impacts to the
environment from ongoing and anticipated future DOE/NNSA operations
conducted over approximately a 10-year period of time at NTS and at
off-site locations in the State of Nevada, such as portions of the NTTR
including the TTR. NSO's remediation efforts have been completed at
Project Shoal and the Central Nevada Test Area.
The four alternatives analyzed in the 1996 NTS EIS were: (1) The No
Action Alternative, to continue to operate at the level maintained in
the previous 5 years; (2) Discontinue Operations; (3) Expanded Use, and
(4) Alternative Use of Withdrawn Lands. DOE's ROD implemented
Alternative 3, Expanded Use, plus the public educational activities of
Alternative 4, Alternative Use of Withdrawn Lands. This ROD also
selected the continuation of low-level and mixed low-level waste
management activities as described in the No Action Alternative until
decisions on the Waste Management Programmatic Environmental Impact
Statement for Managing Treatment, Storage, and Disposal of Radioactive
and Hazardous Waste (Waste Management PEIS) (DOE/EIS-0200) could be
made. DOE issued its decisions on the Waste Management PEIS in a
February 2000 ROD that included an amendment to the 1996 NTS EIS ROD.
That February 2000 ROD announced DOE's decision to implement low-level
and mixed low-level waste management activities in accordance with the
Expanded Use Alternative of the 1996 NTS EIS.
In July 2002, DOE/NNSA completed a 5-year review of the 1996 NTS
EIS with the preparation of a Supplement Analysis (SA) (DOE/EIS-0243-
SA-01), pursuant to DOE's regulatory requirement to evaluate site-wide
NEPA documents at least every 5 years (10 CFR 1021.330) to determine
the adequacy of an existing EIS. Based on the 2002 Supplement Analysis
for the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Nevada Test Site
and Off-Site Locations in the State of Nevada (DOE/EIS-0243-SA-01),
DOE/NNSA determined that there were no substantial changes to the
actions or impacts evaluated in the NTS EIS, and there were no
significant new circumstances or information relevant to environmental
concerns. Thus, the existing NTS EIS was adequate and neither a
supplemental EIS or a new EIS was required.
In 2003, NNSA prepared a Supplement Analysis entitled Supplement
Analysis for the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Nevada
Test Site and Off-Site Locations in the State of Nevada to Address the
Increase in Activities Associated with the National Center for
Combating Terrorism & Counterterrorism Training & Related Activities
(DOE-EIS-0243-SA-02) to determine whether an anticipated increase in
national security projects after the terrorist attacks of September 11,
2001, required further NEPA analysis. This analysis covered military
training/exercises, and testing, evaluation, and development of
technology for multiple Federal government agencies. Based upon this
review, DOE/NNSA determined that the proposed increase in activities
would not result in substantial changes to the NTS EIS or the ROD, and
there were no significant new circumstances or information relevant to
environmental concerns. Thus, neither a supplemental EIS nor a new EIS
was required.
More recently, in 2007, DOE/NNSA initiated its second comprehensive
5-year review of the 1996 NTS EIS and prepared a SA entitled Draft
Supplement Analysis for the Final Environmental Impact Statement for
the Nevada Test Site and Off-Site Locations in the State of Nevada
(DOE-EIS-0243-SA-03) which evaluated whether the 1996 NTS EIS continued
to remain adequate for ongoing and reasonably foreseeable activities.
This document was issued for public review and comment in April 2008.
Based upon consideration of comments received on this draft SA
regarding potential changes to the NTS program work scope, the DOE/NNSA
decided to prepare a new SWEIS for the Continued Operation of the NTS
and Off-Site Locations in the State of Nevada for the 10-year period
commencing 2010.
Purpose and Need
The purpose and need for agency action is to continue the operation
of NTS to provide support for DOE's core missions as directed by the
Congress and the President. NTS has a long history of supporting
national security objectives through the conduct of underground nuclear
tests and other nuclear and non-nuclear activities. Since October 1992,
there has been a moratorium on underground nuclear testing. Thus, the
present mission of the DOE at NTS is to maintain a readiness to conduct
tests. In addition, NTS supports DOE national security related
research, development, and testing programs, and DOE's waste
management/disposal activities. NTS also provides opportunities for
various environmental research projects.
Alternatives for the SWEIS
In accordance with applicable DOE and CEQ NEPA regulations, the No
Action Alternative will be analyzed in the SWEIS and will form the
baseline for the action alternatives analyzed in the document. In this
case, the No Action Alternative will be the continued implementation of
the 1996 NTS EIS ROD, and the amendment to the ROD for the NTS (65 FR
10061 at 10065) at DOE/NNSA sites in Nevada over the next 10 years.
Additionally, the No Action Alternative will also include the
implementation of other decisions supported by separate NEPA analyses
completed since the issuance of the final 1996 NTS EIS, including: the
Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Relocation of
Technical Area 18 Capabilities and Materials at Los Alamos National
Laboratory (DOE/EIS-319) and ROD (67 FR 79906); and the Final Complex
Transformation Supplemental Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement
(DOE/EIS-0235-S4) and its RODs (73 FR 77644 and 73 FR 77656) and the
Waste Management PEIS and ROD (65 FR 10061). The No Action Alternative
will
[[Page 36693]]
also include actions analyzed in eight environmental assessments and
their associated Findings of No Significant Impacts, as well as actions
categorically excluded from the need for preparation of either an EA or
an EIS. These various documents are identified in the 2008 draft SA.
Copies of these documents can be reviewed at the DOE/NNSA Public
Reading Rooms at 755 E. Flamingo, Las Vegas, Nevada, and 100 North
Stewart Street, Carson City, Nevada, and public libraries in St.
George, Utah; and Tonopah and Pahrump, Nevada; and on the internet at:
https://www.gc.energy.gov/nepa.
Three action alternatives will be considered in the SWEIS: Expanded
Operations, Reduced Operations, and Renewable Energy Operations. All
three of these alternatives will be compared to the No Action
Alternative level of operations. The Expanded Operations Alternative
will consider a greater proportion of reasonably foreseeable new work
from other Federal organizations as identified by cooperating agencies.
This work will relate to nonproliferation and counterterrorism,
experiments, research, development and testing. Such expansion could
include developing test beds for concept testing of sensors, mitigation
strategies and weapons effectiveness. The Reduced Operations
alternative will consider an overall reduction in the level of
operations and closure of specific buildings and structures. The
Renewable Energy Operations Alternative will consider renewable energy
R&D and the potential deployment of those technologies on the NTS. Any
new facilities/activities, regardless of which alternative they are
associated with, will be included in the analysis if they are
reasonably foreseeable (i.e., proposed within the next 10 years).
This SWEIS will analyze potential impacts resulting from reasonably
foreseeable operations and compare these impacts to those projected in
the No-Action Alternative. The SWEIS will analyze projected impacts
anticipated from operating the NTS and certain off-site locations in
the State of Nevada at the current level with some modified work now
being proposed at certain facilities, such as the Radiological and
Nuclear Test Evaluation Center and the Non-Proliferation Test and
Evaluation Center. Examples of newly proposed actions at NTS include
development of enhanced national security programs to include increased
homeland security activities in sensor development and testing, and
chemical and biological simulant releases, as well as stockpile
stewardship activities.
Direct and indirect, as well as unavoidable and irreversible and
irretrievable impacts to the environment of the NTS and off-site
locations in the State of Nevada will be identified and analyzed in the
SWEIS. In addition, updated modeling and analysis will be conducted of
potential migration of contaminants in the groundwater from historic
nuclear testing on the NTS. Where appropriate, mitigation strategies
will also be analyzed in the SWEIS. Further, an updated evaluation of
NTS operational and transportation accident analyses, and a new
assessment of cumulative impacts of DOE/NNSA operations in Nevada will
also be included. DOE/NNSA plans to prepare the SWEIS as an
unclassified document with a classified appendix. The classified
information will not be available for public review; however, it will
be considered in the decision-making process of the SWEIS. DOE/NNSA
intends to re-evaluate the range of reasonable alternatives following
public scoping.
Preliminary Identification of Environmental Issues
DOE/NNSA proposes to address the issues listed below when
considering the potential impacts of each alternative. This list is
presented to facilitate public comment during the scoping period and
will be revisited as DOE/NNSA considers all scoping comments. It is not
intended to be comprehensive, nor to imply any predetermination of
impacts.
Potential effects on the public health from exposure to
hazardous materials under routine and credible accident scenarios;
Impacts on surface and groundwater, and on water use and
quality;
Impacts on air quality and noise;
Impacts on plants and animals, and their habitats,
including species that are Federal- or state-listed as threatened or
endangered, or of special concern;
Impacts on geology and soil;
Impacts on cultural resources such as Native American
sites, historic mining and ranching, and Cold War structures;
Socioeconomic impacts on potentially affected communities
and disproportionately high and adverse impacts to minority and low-
income populations;
Potential impacts on land use.
Pollution prevention and waste management practices and
activities;
Unavoidable adverse impacts and irreversible and
irretrievable commitments of resources;
Potential cumulative environmental effects of past,
present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions;
Potential impacts of intentional destructive acts,
including sabotage and terrorism.
SWEIS Process and Invitation To Comment
The SWEIS scoping process provides an opportunity for the public to
assist the DOE/NNSA in determining issues. Four public scoping meetings
will be held as noted under DATES in this Notice. The purpose of
scoping meetings is to provide attendees an opportunity to present
comments, ask questions, and discuss concerns regarding the SWEIS with
DOE/NNSA officials. Comments and recommendations can also be mailed to
Linda M. Cohn as noted in this Notice under ADDRESSES. The SWEIS
scoping meetings will use a format to facilitate dialogue between DOE/
NNSA and the public and will provide individuals the opportunity to
give written or oral statements. DOE/NNSA welcomes specific comments or
suggestions on the SWEIS process. The SWEIS will describe the potential
environmental impacts of each alternative by using available data where
possible and obtaining additional data where necessary. Copies of
written comments and transcripts of oral comments provided to DOE/NNSA
during the scoping period will be available at the DOE Public Reading
Room at 755 E. Flamingo, Las Vegas, Nevada, and public libraries in St.
George, Utah; Tonopah and Pahrump, Nevada; and on the Internet at
https://www.nv.doe.gov/library/publications/environmental.
After the close of the public scoping period, DOE/NNSA will begin
developing the draft SWEIS. DOE/NNSA expects to issue the draft SWEIS
for public review in mid-2010. Public comments on the draft SWEIS will
be received for at least 60 days following publication of the
Environmental Protection Agency's Notice of Availability in the Federal
Register. The Notice of Availability, along with notices placed in
local newspapers, will provide dates and locations for public hearings
on the draft SWEIS and the deadline for comments on the draft document.
Persons who submit comments with a mailing address during the scoping
process will receive a copy of the draft SWEIS. Other persons who would
like to receive a copy of the document for review when it is issued
should notify Linda M. Cohn at one of the addresses provided
previously. DOE/NNSA will include all comments received on the draft
SWEIS,
[[Page 36694]]
and responses to those comments in the final SWEIS. Issuance of the
final SWEIS is currently scheduled for mid-2011.
Issued in Washington, DC, this 21st day of July 2009.
Thomas P. D'Agostino,
Administrator, National Nuclear Security Administration.
[FR Doc. E9-17751 Filed 7-23-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
