Environmental Assessment Prepared for Proposed Cape Wind Energy Project in Nantucket Sound, Offshore Massachusetts, 23798-23799 [2010-10486]

Download as PDF 23798 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 85 / Tuesday, May 4, 2010 / Notices (2) the accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this collection of information; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents. Please note that the comments submitted in response to this notice are a matter of public record. 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 OMB in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that it will be done. To comply with the public process, we hereby publish this Federal Register notice announcing that we will submit this IC to OMB for approval. The notice provides the required 60-day public comment period. USGS Information Collection Clearance Officer: Phadrea D. Ponds, 970–226–9445. effective upon publication of this notice, includes certain adjacent real property situated in Newton County, Missouri legally described as: Thirty acres squarely off the South side of the Southwest Quarter of the Southeast Quarter (SW1⁄4 SE1⁄4) of Section 7, Township 26 North, Range 31 West, 5th P.M., Newton County, Missouri. Dated: April 27, 2010. Bruce K. Quirk, Land Remote Sensing Program Coordinator. SUMMARY: The MMS, in accordance with regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), announces the availability of an EA and FONNSI for the Cape Wind Energy Project proposed for Nantucket Sound, offshore Massachusetts. On January 16, 2009, the MMS announced the release of the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Cape Wind Energy Project. The FEIS assessed the physical, biological, and social/human impacts of the proposed project and 13 alternatives, including a no-action alternative (i.e., the project is not built), and proposed mitigation. The MMS prepared this EA to determine whether MMS needs to supplement the FEIS for the Cape Wind Energy Project by examining whether there are ‘‘substantial changes in the proposed action that are relevant to environmental concerns’’ or whether ‘‘there are significant new circumstances or information relevant to environmental concerns and bearing on the proposed action or its impacts’’ that either were not fully discussed or did not exist at the time the FEIS was prepared (40 CFR 1502.9). The MMS reviewed information obtained from the scientific/technical literature, government reports and actions, intergovernmental coordination and communications, required consultations, comments made during [FR Doc. 2010–10374 Filed 5–3–10; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4311–AM–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR National Park Service Boundary Revision at George Washington Carver National Monument National Park Service, Interior. Announcement of boundary revision. AGENCY: mstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with NOTICES ACTION: SUMMARY: This notice announces a revision of the boundary of George Washington Carver National Monument, Newton County, Missouri, to include adjacent land donated by the Carver Birthplace Association. The boundary revision is authorized by the Act of July 14, 1943, 57 Stat. 563, (16 U.S.C. 450aa). FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James R. Heaney, Superintendent, George Washington Carver National Monument, 5646 Carver Road, Diamond, Missouri 64840, or by telephone: 417–325–4151. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is hereby provided that the boundaries of George Washington Carver National Monument are revised. This revision, VerDate Mar<15>2010 18:58 May 03, 2010 Jkt 220001 Dated: April 21, 2010. Ernest Quintana, Regional Director, Midwest Region, National Park Service. [FR Doc. 2010–10329 Filed 5–3–10; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4312–BB–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Minerals Management Service Environmental Assessment Prepared for Proposed Cape Wind Energy Project in Nantucket Sound, Offshore Massachusetts AGENCY: Minerals Management Service (MMS), Interior. ACTION: Notice of Availability of an Environmental Assessment (EA) and Finding of No New Significant Impact (FONNSI) PO 00000 Frm 00135 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 the FEIS comment period, and comments received during the 30-day comment period after the initial circulation of this EA on March 8, 2010. This included the information discussed in the January 13, 2010, MMS Documentation of Section 106 Finding of Adverse Effect (Revised Finding), contained in the comments received during the 30-day period offered after the Revised Finding was circulated, and the information contained in the April 2, 2010, comment by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation. The MMS has determined that there is no new information that would necessitate a re-analysis of the range of the alternatives or the kinds, levels, or locations of the impacts of the Proposed Action on socioeconomic conditions or biologic, physical, or cultural resources. The analyses, potential impacts, and conclusions detailed in the FEIS remain valid. Therefore, the MMS has concluded that a supplemental EIS is not required. The EA and FONNSI are available at https://www.mms.gov/ offshore/RenewableEnergy/ CapeWind.htm. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James F. Bennett, Chief, Environmental Assessment Branch, Minerals Management Service, 381 Elden Street MS–4042, Herndon, Virginia 20170. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In November 2001, Cape Wind Associates, LLC, applied for a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) under the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 to construct a wind power facility on Horseshoe Shoal in Nantucket Sound, offshore Massachusetts. Following the passage of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct) and associated amendments to the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA), the Department of the Interior was given statutory authority to issue leases, easements, and rights-of-way for renewable energy projects on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). Accordingly, Cape Wind Associates, LLC, submitted an application to the MMS in 2005 to construct, operate, and eventually decommission an offshore wind power facility on Horseshoe Shoal in Nantucket Sound. The project calls for 130, 3.6 megawatt (MW) wind turbine generators, each with a maximum blade height of 440 feet, to be arranged in a grid pattern in 25 square miles of Nantucket Sound, offshore Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, and Nantucket Island. With a maximum electric output of 468 MW and an average anticipated output of 182 MW, the facility is projected to generate up to three- E:\FR\FM\04MYN1.SGM 04MYN1 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 85 / Tuesday, May 4, 2010 / Notices quarters of the Cape and Islands’ electricity needs. Each of the 130 wind turbine generators would generate electricity independently. Solid dielectric submarine inner-array cables (33 kilovolt) from each wind turbine generator would interconnect within the array and terminate on an electrical service platform, which would serve as the common interconnection point for all of the wind turbines. The proposed submarine transmission cable system (115 kilovolt) from the electric service platform to the landfall location in Yarmouth would be approximately 12.5 miles in length (7.6 miles of which falls within Massachusetts’ territory). Nantucket Sound is a roughly triangular body of water generally bound by Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, and Nantucket Island. Open bodies of water include Vineyard Sound to the West and the Atlantic Ocean to the East and the South. Nantucket Sound encompasses between 500 and 600 square miles of ocean, most of which lies above the OCS. The Cape Wind Energy Project would be located completely on the OCS, except for the transmission cables, which would run through Massachusetts’ territory to shore. For reference, the northernmost turbines would be approximately 5.2 miles (8.4 km) from Point Gammon on the mainland; the southernmost turbines would be approximately 11 miles (17.7 km) from Nantucket Island (Great Point); and the westernmost turbines would be approximately 5.5 miles (8.9 km) from the island of Martha’s Vineyard (Cape Poge). Dated: April 28, 2010. Chris C. Oynes, Associate Director for Offshore Energy and Minerals Management. [FR Doc. 2010–10486 Filed 5–3–10; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4310–MR–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR National Park Service Notice of Intent to Repatriate a Cultural Item: Rochester Museum & Science Center, Rochester, NY AGENCY: mstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with NOTICES ACTION: National Park Service, Interior. Notice. Notice is here given in accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), 25 U.S.C. 3005, of the intent to repatriate one cultural item in the possession of the Rochester Museum & Science Center, Rochester, NY, that meets the definitions of ‘‘sacred object’’ VerDate Mar<15>2010 18:58 May 03, 2010 Jkt 220001 and object of ‘‘cultural patrimony’’ under 25 U.S.C. 3001. This notice is published as part of the National Park Service’s administrative responsibilities under NAGPRA, 25 U.S.C. 3003(d)(3). The determinations in this notice are the sole responsibility of the museum, institution, or Federal agency that has control of the cultural item. The National Park Service is not responsible for the determinations in this notice. In 1982, the museum acquired a small red stone medicine face (82.54.1). It appears to be a contemporary piece and was donated to the museum by Mrs. Beverly Anderson, Rochester, NY. Original museum documentation stated that this medicine face could only be generally affiliated with the ‘‘Iroquois.’’ Oral evidence presented during consultation with representatives of the Haudenosaunee Standing Committee on Burial Rules and Regulations, as well as historical and anthropological scholarly materials, support the fact that the Onondaga Nation is the Keeper of the Central Fire of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, and as such has the responsibility within the Haudenosaunee Confederacy to bring back national cultural patrimony and sacred objects that are affiliated with the ‘‘Iroquois’’ generally, and to return those objects to their rightful communities. Therefore, it is the understanding of all the Haudenosaunee Confederacy Nations that any medicine faces affiliated generally as ‘‘Iroquois’’ are affiliated with the Onondaga Nation. In the course of consultations with members of the Onondaga Nation, it was shown that any individual who carved a medicine face and alienated it to a third party that in turn donated it to the Rochester Museum & Science Center did not have the authority to do so. Furthermore, Onondaga Nation traditional religious leaders have identified this medicine face as being needed for the practice of traditional Native American religions by presentday adherents. Based on consultation with NAGPRA representatives from the Onondaga Nation and other Haudenosaunee and nonHaudenosaunee consultants, the museum has determined that the medicine faces are both sacred objects and objects of cultural patrimony. Accordingly, museum documentation, consultation and oral evidence show that this medicine face is a sacred object and an object of cultural patrimony, and that the medicine face can be culturally affiliated to the Onondaga Nation of New York on behalf of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy (also known as the Iroquois Confederacy or PO 00000 Frm 00136 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 9990 23799 Six Nations, which includes the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, and Tuscarora Nations that are in part represented by the following Federally-recognized tribes: Cayuga Nation of New York; Oneida Nation of New York; Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin; Onondaga Nation of New York; Seneca Nation of New York; Seneca-Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma; Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe, New York; Tonawanda Band of Seneca Indians of New York; and Tuscarora Nation of New York). Officials of the Rochester Museum & Science Center have determined, that pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(3)(C), the one cultural item described above is a specific ceremonial object needed by traditional Native American religious leaders for the practice of traditional Native American religions by their present-day adherents. Officials of the Rochester Museum & Science Center have also determined that, pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(3)(D), the one cultural item described above has an ongoing historical, traditional, or cultural importance central to the Native American group or culture itself, rather than property owned by an individual. Lastly, officials of the Rochester Museum & Science Center have determined that, pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(2), there is a relationship of shared group identity that can be reasonably traced between the sacred object/object of cultural patrimony and the Onondaga Nation of New York. Representatives of any other Indian Nation or tribe that believes itself to be culturally affiliated with the sacred object/object of cultural patrimony should contact Adele DeRosa, Rochester Museum & Science Center, Rochester, NY 14607, telephone (585) 271–4552, ext 302, before June 3, 2010. Repatriation of the sacred object/object of cultural patrimony to the Onondaga Nation of New York may proceed after that date if no additional claimants come forward. The Rochester Museum & Science Center is responsible for notifying the Onondaga Nation of New York that this notice has been published. Dated: April 27, 2010. David Tarler, Acting Manager, National NAGPRA Program. [FR Doc. 2010–10364 Filed 5–3–10; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4312–50–S E:\FR\FM\04MYN1.SGM 04MYN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 85 (Tuesday, May 4, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23798-23799]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-10486]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service


Environmental Assessment Prepared for Proposed Cape Wind Energy 
Project in Nantucket Sound, Offshore Massachusetts

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service (MMS), Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability of an Environmental Assessment (EA) and 
Finding of No New Significant Impact (FONNSI)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The MMS, in accordance with regulations implementing the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), announces the availability of 
an EA and FONNSI for the Cape Wind Energy Project proposed for 
Nantucket Sound, offshore Massachusetts. On January 16, 2009, the MMS 
announced the release of the Final Environmental Impact Statement 
(FEIS) for the Cape Wind Energy Project. The FEIS assessed the 
physical, biological, and social/human impacts of the proposed project 
and 13 alternatives, including a no-action alternative (i.e., the 
project is not built), and proposed mitigation.
    The MMS prepared this EA to determine whether MMS needs to 
supplement the FEIS for the Cape Wind Energy Project by examining 
whether there are ``substantial changes in the proposed action that are 
relevant to environmental concerns'' or whether ``there are significant 
new circumstances or information relevant to environmental concerns and 
bearing on the proposed action or its impacts'' that either were not 
fully discussed or did not exist at the time the FEIS was prepared (40 
CFR 1502.9). The MMS reviewed information obtained from the scientific/
technical literature, government reports and actions, intergovernmental 
coordination and communications, required consultations, comments made 
during the FEIS comment period, and comments received during the 30-day 
comment period after the initial circulation of this EA on March 8, 
2010. This included the information discussed in the January 13, 2010, 
MMS Documentation of Section 106 Finding of Adverse Effect (Revised 
Finding), contained in the comments received during the 30-day period 
offered after the Revised Finding was circulated, and the information 
contained in the April 2, 2010, comment by the Advisory Council on 
Historic Preservation.
    The MMS has determined that there is no new information that would 
necessitate a re-analysis of the range of the alternatives or the 
kinds, levels, or locations of the impacts of the Proposed Action on 
socioeconomic conditions or biologic, physical, or cultural resources. 
The analyses, potential impacts, and conclusions detailed in the FEIS 
remain valid. Therefore, the MMS has concluded that a supplemental EIS 
is not required. The EA and FONNSI are available at https://www.mms.gov/offshore/RenewableEnergy/CapeWind.htm.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James F. Bennett, Chief, Environmental 
Assessment Branch, Minerals Management Service, 381 Elden Street MS-
4042, Herndon, Virginia 20170.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In November 2001, Cape Wind Associates, LLC, 
applied for a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) 
under the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 to construct a wind power 
facility on Horseshoe Shoal in Nantucket Sound, offshore Massachusetts. 
Following the passage of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct) and 
associated amendments to the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA), 
the Department of the Interior was given statutory authority to issue 
leases, easements, and rights-of-way for renewable energy projects on 
the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). Accordingly, Cape Wind Associates, 
LLC, submitted an application to the MMS in 2005 to construct, operate, 
and eventually decommission an offshore wind power facility on 
Horseshoe Shoal in Nantucket Sound.
    The project calls for 130, 3.6 megawatt (MW) wind turbine 
generators, each with a maximum blade height of 440 feet, to be 
arranged in a grid pattern in 25 square miles of Nantucket Sound, 
offshore Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, and Nantucket Island. With a 
maximum electric output of 468 MW and an average anticipated output of 
182 MW, the facility is projected to generate up to three-

[[Page 23799]]

quarters of the Cape and Islands' electricity needs. Each of the 130 
wind turbine generators would generate electricity independently. Solid 
dielectric submarine inner-array cables (33 kilovolt) from each wind 
turbine generator would interconnect within the array and terminate on 
an electrical service platform, which would serve as the common 
interconnection point for all of the wind turbines. The proposed 
submarine transmission cable system (115 kilovolt) from the electric 
service platform to the landfall location in Yarmouth would be 
approximately 12.5 miles in length (7.6 miles of which falls within 
Massachusetts' territory).
    Nantucket Sound is a roughly triangular body of water generally 
bound by Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, and Nantucket Island. Open bodies 
of water include Vineyard Sound to the West and the Atlantic Ocean to 
the East and the South. Nantucket Sound encompasses between 500 and 600 
square miles of ocean, most of which lies above the OCS. The Cape Wind 
Energy Project would be located completely on the OCS, except for the 
transmission cables, which would run through Massachusetts' territory 
to shore. For reference, the northernmost turbines would be 
approximately 5.2 miles (8.4 km) from Point Gammon on the mainland; the 
southernmost turbines would be approximately 11 miles (17.7 km) from 
Nantucket Island (Great Point); and the westernmost turbines would be 
approximately 5.5 miles (8.9 km) from the island of Martha's Vineyard 
(Cape Poge).

    Dated: April 28, 2010.
Chris C. Oynes,
Associate Director for Offshore Energy and Minerals Management.
[FR Doc. 2010-10486 Filed 5-3-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P
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