Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Over the River Art Project, Colorado, 45614-45615 [2011-19092]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
• Bureau of Land Management

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 146 (Friday, July 29, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45614-45615]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-19092]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLCOF02000 L71220000.EA0000 LVTFC09C6050]


Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact 
Statement for the Proposed Over the River Art Project, Colorado

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969, as amended, and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 
1976, as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared a 
Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Proposed Over the 
River Art Project (Over the River Final EIS) and by this notice is 
announcing its availability and the initiation of the 30-day 
availability period.

DATES: The publication of the BLM's Notice of Availability of this 
Final EIS in the Federal Register initiates a 30-day public 
availability period. The Final EIS will be available to the public 
until August 29, 2011. While the availability period is not a formal 
public comment period, BLM may receive comments on the Final EIS which 
may be addressed in the Record of Decision.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the Over the River Final EIS are available for 
public inspection at the BLM Royal Gorge Field Office. See the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for additional public inspection 
addresses. Interested persons may also review the Final EIS at the 
following Web site: https://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/rgfo/planning/otr.html.
    Any written comments related to the Over the River Final EIS may be 
submitted by any of the following methods:
     Web site comment form: https://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/rgfo/planning/otr.html.
     E-mail: co_otr_comments@blm.gov.
     Fax: (719) 269-8599.
     Mail: BLM Royal Gorge Field Office, Over the River 
Comments, 3028 E. Main St., Ca[ntilde]on City, Colorado 81212.
    Please write ``OTR Comments'' in the subject line of comments that 
are e-mailed or faxed.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Vincent Hooper, Over the River 
Project Manager, at the Royal Gorge Field Office (see ADDRESSES section 
above); telephone (719) 269-8555; e-mail co_otr_comments@blm.gov. 
Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call 
the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 to 
contact the above individual during normal business hours. The FIRS is 
available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to leave a message or question 
with the above individual. You will receive a reply during normal 
business hours.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The OTR Corporation, formed by the artists 
Christo and Jeanne-Claude, proposes to install a work of art, known as 
Over the River, on Federal, state, and private lands adjacent to the 
Arkansas River between the cities of Salida and Ca[ntilde]on City in 
Colorado. Following an estimated 2-year construction period, the 
exhibit is proposed for a 2-week display and viewing period in early 
August 2014. The proposed art exhibit involves the installation of 
approximately 900 porous, semi-transparent fabric panels, which would 
be suspended 8 to 25 feet above the water for a total distance of 
approximately 5.9 miles at eight locations. The panels would be 
supported by approximately 1,270 steel cables and a series of steel 
anchor transition frames. More than 9,000 steel anchors would be 
drilled along and into the banks of the Arkansas River to support the 
panels. At the end of the 2-week exhibition period, the system of 
cables and anchors and other above-ground materials would be removed 
over an estimated 3-month period. The artists would be responsible for 
restoring the river corridor according to the standards defined by 
permitting and approval authorities. More than 300,000 people are 
expected to visit the Arkansas River canyon during the 2-week 
exhibition period. The proposed art exhibit is a no-fee visitor event. 
As proposed, the project would be located primarily on Federal lands 
administered by the BLM Royal Gorge Field Office, but would also be 
located on lands owned or managed by the Colorado State Land Board 
(SLB), Union Pacific Railroad, and private landowners; lands leased by 
the Colorado Division of Wildlife (CDOW); and lands owned or 
cooperatively managed by Colorado State Parks in the Arkansas 
Headwaters Recreation Area. The Colorado Department of Transportation 
(CDOT) and Colorado State Patrol have jurisdiction for activities along 
U.S. Highway 50. The majority of the project area is within Fremont 
County; however, a small portion at the western end of the project is 
within Chaffee County. Approximately 80 percent of the area in the 
proposed project would be located in the Arkansas Canyonlands Area of 
Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC), a BLM-designated area that 
recognizes the need for recreation use as well as protection for the 
river corridor's scenic values.
    The Final EIS identifies 7 alternatives (including a no action 
alternative) that vary by panel length, transportation, visitor 
management, and timing considerations. The action alternatives were 
also developed to consider and compare configurations of public lands 
that could be made available for artistic panel placement as well as 
construction and logistics.
    The BLM Royal Gorge Field Office is the lead Federal agency 
responsible for preparing the EIS and complying with the requirements 
of NEPA and other applicable laws and regulations. Multiple cooperating 
agencies and permitting authorities have participated and provided 
input in the development of the Over the River Final EIS, including 
CDOT, Chaffee and Fremont Counties, and the Colorado Department of 
Natural Resources (DNR), which includes CDOW, Colorado State Parks, and 
SLB.
    Over the River was informally proposed by the artists Christo and 
Jeanne-Claude in 1996. Based on OTR Corporation's verbal proposal, the 
BLM began an Environmental Assessment (EA) and initiated an informal 
scoping period through 8 public meetings held in communities within the 
proposed project area from April 1997 to October 2000. OTR Corp. re-
approached the BLM about the proposed project in August 2005. 
Additional EA-level scoping occurred in January and February 2006. On 
May 24, 2006, the BLM also hosted interagency meetings with CDOT, DNR, 
Fremont County, Chaffee County, and Colorado State Patrol to discuss 
and understand the public comments and questions. The scoping comments 
led to a Notice of Intent which published in the Federal Register on 
June 19, 2006 (71 FR 35289), announcing the intent to prepare an EIS. 
The decision to prepare an EIS was based on several factors, including 
a specific request from the applicants, the

[[Page 45615]]

increasing complexity of the project, the level of controversy related 
to the project, and the level of public involvement during the scoping 
process.
    On July 16, 2010, the Notice of Availability for the Draft EIS was 
published in the Federal Register (75 FR 41517) and a 45-day Draft EIS 
public comment period began. During this time, the BLM hosted 4 public 
meetings in Ca[ntilde]on City, Cotopaxi, Salida, and Denver, Colorado. 
Based on public comments received, the BLM extended the comment period 
by 15 days, ending on September 14, 2010. The responses to comments are 
presented in the Over the River Final EIS.
    Public comments focused on concerns with emergency response and 
safety, cleanup and restoration, impacts to the special values of the 
Arkansas Canyonlands ACEC, wildlife, threatened and endangered species, 
recreation, transportation, and socioeconomics. These comments have 
been addressed within the range of alternatives in the Final EIS where 
applicable.
    Additional Final EIS Inspection Addresses: Additional copies of the 
Over the River Final EIS are available at the BLM Colorado State 
Office, 2850 Youngfield Street, Lakewood, Colorado; Ca[ntilde]on City 
Public Library, 516 Macon Ave., Ca[ntilde]on City, Colorado; Salida 
Regional Library, 405 E. Street, Salida, Colorado; Arkansas Headwaters 
Recreation Area office, 307 West Sackett Ave., Salida, Colorado; Denver 
Public Library, 10 W. Fourteenth Ave. Parkway, Denver, Colorado; and 
the Cotopaxi Store, 20204 U.S. Highway 50, Cotopaxi, Colorado.
    Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or 
other personal identifying information in your comment on the Final 
EIS, 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.

     Authority: 40 CFR 1506.6 and 1506.10.

Helen M. Hankins,
Colorado State Director.
[FR Doc. 2011-19092 Filed 7-28-11; 8:45 am]
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