Notice of Availability of the Desert Harvest Solar Project Final Environmental Impact Statement, Riverside County, CA and the Proposed California Desert Conservation Area Plan Amendment, 67662-67663 [2012-27627]

Download as PDF 67662 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 219 / Tuesday, November 13, 2012 / Notices DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLCAD06000 L51010000.FX0000.LVRWB12B4920 CACA 49491] Notice of Availability of the Desert Harvest Solar Project Final Environmental Impact Statement, Riverside County, CA and the Proposed California Desert Conservation Area Plan Amendment Bureau of Land Management, Interior. ACTION: Notice. AGENCY: 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 Proposed California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) Plan Amendment and Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Desert Harvest Solar Project and by this notice is announcing its availability. SUMMARY: BLM planning regulations state that any person who meets the conditions as described in the regulations may protest the BLM’s Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment. A person who meets the conditions and files a protest must file the protest within 30 days of the date that the Environmental Protection Agency publishes its notice in the Federal Register. DATES: Copies of the Desert Harvest Solar Project Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment and Final EIS have been sent to affected Federal, State, and local government agencies and to other stakeholders, including tribal governments and interested parties. Copies of the Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment and Final EIS are available for public inspection at the BLM California Desert District Office, 22835 Calle San Juan de Los Lagos, Moreno Valley, CA 92553 and at the BLM Palm Springs South Coast Field Office at 1201 Bird Center Drive, Palm Springs, CA 92262. Interested persons may also review the Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment/Final EIS on the Internet at https://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/ palmsprings/Solar_Projects/ Desert_Harvest_Solar_Project.html. However, all protests must be in writing and mailed to one of the following addresses: Regular Mail: BLM Director (210), Attention: Brenda Williams, P.O. Box 71383, Washington, DC 20024–1383. srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with ADDRESSES: VerDate Mar<15>2010 17:08 Nov 09, 2012 Jkt 229001 Overnight Mail: BLM Director (210), Attention: Brenda Williams, 20 M Street SE., Room 2134LM, Washington, DC 20003. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Frank McMenimen, Project Manager, telephone 760–833–7150; address BLM Palm Springs South Coast Field Office at 1201 Bird Center Drive, Palm Springs, CA 92262; email fmcmenimen@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 applicant, EDF Renewable Resources (formally enXco), has requested a rightof-way authorization to construct, operate, maintain, and decommission a solar photovoltaic electricity generating facility with a proposed output of 150 megawatts and a project footprint of approximately 1,208 acres. The proposed project would be located on BLM-administered lands in Riverside County 6 miles north of the rural community of Desert Center, California. The overall site layout and generalized land uses include a substation, an administration building, operations and maintenance facilities, a transmission line, and temporary construction lay down areas. The project’s 230-kilovolt (kV) generation interconnection transmission (gen-tie) line could either be via the First Solar Desert Sunlight 230-kV gen-tie (as a shared facility), or could be a separate facility located on private and BLM-administered lands and would connect to a planned 230- to 500-kV substation (referred to as the Red Bluff Substation). The Red Bluff Substation would connect the project to the Southern California Edison regional transmission grid. If approved, construction would begin in late 2013 and would take 9–12 months to complete. On September 15, 2011, the BLM published a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an EIS in the Federal Register (76 FR 57073). Publication of the NOI began a 30-day scoping period which ended on October 17, 2011. Public Scoping Meetings were held on October 3 and 6, 2011. Scoping comments were accepted until October 21, 2011. The BLM considered these comments in developing the Draft EIS. On April 13, 2012, the BLM published a Notice of Availability for the Draft EIS and CDCA Plan Amendment in the PO 00000 Frm 00036 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 Federal Register. The 90-day public comment period for the Draft EIS ended on July 17, 2012. During the public review period, the BLM hosted two public meetings on May 14, 2012, to solicit input, in Desert Center, CA and Joshua Tree, CA. Comments on the Draft CDCA Plan Amendment/Draft EIS received from the public and internal BLM review were considered and incorporated as appropriate into the Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment and Final EIS. Public comments resulted in the addition of clarifying text, but did not significantly change the analysis or analyzed alternatives. The Final EIS considers four no action/no development alternatives, four solar facility development alternatives, and four transmission line alternatives. These alternatives are: No Action/No Development alternatives: • Alternative 1: No Action (No Plan Amendment) • Alternative 2: No Project Alternative (with Plan Amendent to Find the Site Suitable for Solar) • Alternative 3: No Project Alternative (with Plan Amendment to Find the Site Unsuitable for Solar) • Alternative A: No Gen-Tie Generation Plant Development Alternatives: • Alternative 4: Proposed Solar Project • Alternative 5: Solar Project Excluding Wildlife Habitat Management Area (WHMA) • Alternative 6: Reduced Footprint Solar Project • Alternative 7: High-Profile Reduced Footprint Solar Project Transmission Line Alternatives: • Alternative B: Proposed Gen-Tie (Shared Towers with Desert Sunlight Project) • Alternative C: Separate Transmission Towers within the Same Right-ofWay as the Desert Sunlight Project • Alternative D: Cross-Valley Alignment • Alternative E: New Cross-Valley Alignment. The BLM will select one transmission line alternative and one generation plant alternative. The BLM has identified Alternative 7 as the preferred alternative for the generation plan and Alternative B as the preferred alternative for the transmission line. Instructions for filing a protest with the BLM Director regarding the Desert Harvest Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment may be found in the ‘‘Dear Reader’’ Letter of the Final EIS and at 43 CFR 1610.5–2. All protests must be in writing and mailed to the appropriate address, which you can find in the ADDRESSES section above. E:\FR\FM\13NON1.SGM 13NON1 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 219 / Tuesday, November 13, 2012 / Notices Emailed and faxed protests will not be accepted as valid protests unless the protesting party also provides the original letter by either regular or overnight mail postmarked by the close of the protest period. Under these conditions, the BLM will consider the emailed or faxed protest as an advance copy and it will receive full consideration. If you wish to provide the BLM with such advance notification, please direct faxed protests to the attention of the BLM protest coordinator at 202–245–0028, and emails to Brenda_HudgensWilliams@blm.gov. Before including your phone number, email address, or other personal identifying information in your protest, you should be aware that your entire protest—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your protest 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, 40 CFR 1506.10, 43 CFR 1610.2; 43 CFR 1610.5. Thomas Pogacnik, Deputy State Director, California. [FR Doc. 2012–27627 Filed 11–8–12; 4:15 pm] BILLING CODE 4310–40–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLWO320000 L13100000 PP0000 LXSIOSHL0000] Notice of Availability of the Proposed Land Use Plan Amendments for Allocation of Oil Shale and Tar Sands Resources on Lands Administered by the Bureau of Land Management in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming and Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement Bureau of Land Management, Interior. ACTION: Notice of availability. AGENCY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA), and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, as amended (FLPMA), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared the Proposed Resource Management Plan (RMP) Amendments for Allocation of Oil Shale and Tar Sands Resources on Lands Administered by the BLM in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming and Final Programmatic Environmental Impact srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with SUMMARY: VerDate Mar<15>2010 17:08 Nov 09, 2012 Jkt 229001 Statement (EIS) and by this notice is announcing their availability. Under the Proposed Plan, approximately 676,967 acres would be open for application for future leasing and development of oil shale, and approximately 129,567 acres would be open for potential tar sands leasing and development. DATES: BLM planning regulations state that any person who meets the conditions as described in the regulations may protest the BLM’s Proposed RMP/Final EIS. A person who meets the conditions and files a protest must file the protest within 30 days of the date that the Environmental Protection Agency publishes its Notice of Availability (NOA) in the Federal Register. Copies of the Proposed RMP/Final EIS have been sent to affected Federal, State, and local government agencies and to other stakeholders, including tribal governments. Copies of the Proposed RMP/Final EIS are available for public inspection at the BLM office locations listed in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this notice. Interested persons may also review the Proposed RMP/Final EIS at the following Web site: https:// ostseis.anl.gov. All protests must be in writing and mailed to one of the following addresses: Regular Mail: BLM Director (210), Attention: Brenda Williams, P.O. Box 71383, Washington, DC 20024–1383. Overnight Mail: BLM Director (210), Attention: Brenda Williams, 20 M Street SE., Room 2134LM, Washington, DC 20003. Publication of the NOA for the Proposed RMP/Final EIS does not trigger a formal comment period. The BLM, however, may choose to review any comments submitted following publication of the NOA and use them to inform the agency’s Record of Decision (ROD). Those individuals wishing to submit comments are asked to do so through the Oil Shale and Tar Sands Programmatic EIS project Web site (https://ostseis.anl.gov). Individuals should note that the BLM will consider comments only to the extent practicable and will not respond to comments individually. ADDRESSES: FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT: Sherri Thompson, BLM Oil Shale and Tar Sands Resources Programmatic EIS Project Manager, by telephone: 303– 239–3758; mail: BLM Colorado Office, 2850 Youngfield Street, Lakewood, Colorado 80215; or email: sthompso@blm.gov. Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf PO 00000 Frm 00037 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 67663 (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 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: Copies of the Proposed RMP/Final EIS are available for public inspection at the following BLM office locations: Colorado State Office, 2850 Youngfield Street, Lakewood, Colorado 80215. Northwest District Office, 2815 H Road, Grand Junction, Colorado 81506. Colorado River Valley Field Office, 2300 River Frontage Road, Silt, Colorado 81652. White River Field Office, 220 East Market Street, Meeker, Colorado 81641. Utah State Office, 440 West 200 South, Suite 500, Salt Lake City, Utah 84101. Green River District Office, 170 South 500 East, Vernal Utah 84078. Price Field Office, 125 South 600 West, Price, Utah 84501. Color Country District Office, 176 East D.L. Sargent Drive, Cedar City, Utah 84721. Richfield Field Office, 150 East 900 North, Richfield, Utah 84701. Canyon Country District Office, 82 East Dogwood, Moab, Utah 84532. Monticello Field Office, 365 North Main, Monticello, Utah 84535. Wyoming State Office, 5353 Yellowstone Road, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82009. High Desert District Office, 280 Highway 191 North, Rock Springs, Wyoming 82901. Kemmerer Field Office, 312 Highway 189 North, Kemmerer, Wyoming 83101. Rawlins Field Office, 1300 North Third, Rawlins, Wyoming 82301. In September 2008, pursuant to Section 369 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, FLPMA, and NEPA, the BLM issued a Proposed Plan Amendments/ Final Oil Shale and Tar Sands (OSTS) Programmatic EIS analyzing the environmental and socioeconomic impacts of amending 12 land use plans to designate public lands administered by the BLM as available for commercial leasing for oil shale or tar sands development. The planning area lies within the Green River Formation in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. The November 17, 2008, ROD that followed this Programmatic EIS adopted the proposed land use amendments reflecting the allocation decisions analyzed in the 2008 OSTS Programmatic EIS. These land allocation E:\FR\FM\13NON1.SGM 13NON1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 219 (Tuesday, November 13, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67662-67663]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-27627]



[[Page 67662]]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLCAD06000 L51010000.FX0000.LVRWB12B4920 CACA 49491]


Notice of Availability of the Desert Harvest Solar Project Final 
Environmental Impact Statement, Riverside County, CA and the Proposed 
California Desert Conservation Area Plan Amendment

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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

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 
Proposed California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) Plan Amendment and 
Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Desert Harvest Solar 
Project and by this notice is announcing its availability.

DATES: BLM planning regulations state that any person who meets the 
conditions as described in the regulations may protest the BLM's 
Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment. A person who meets the conditions and 
files a protest must file the protest within 30 days of the date that 
the Environmental Protection Agency publishes its notice in the Federal 
Register.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the Desert Harvest Solar Project Proposed CDCA 
Plan Amendment and Final EIS have been sent to affected Federal, State, 
and local government agencies and to other stakeholders, including 
tribal governments and interested parties. Copies of the Proposed CDCA 
Plan Amendment and Final EIS are available for public inspection at the 
BLM California Desert District Office, 22835 Calle San Juan de Los 
Lagos, Moreno Valley, CA 92553 and at the BLM Palm Springs South Coast 
Field Office at 1201 Bird Center Drive, Palm Springs, CA 92262. 
Interested persons may also review the Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment/
Final EIS on the Internet at https://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/palmsprings/Solar_Projects/Desert_Harvest_Solar_Project.html. 
However, all protests must be in writing and mailed to one of the 
following addresses:
    Regular Mail: BLM Director (210), Attention: Brenda Williams, P.O. 
Box 71383, Washington, DC 20024-1383.
    Overnight Mail: BLM Director (210), Attention: Brenda Williams, 20 
M Street SE., Room 2134LM, Washington, DC 20003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Frank McMenimen, Project Manager, 
telephone 760-833-7150; address BLM Palm Springs South Coast Field 
Office at 1201 Bird Center Drive, Palm Springs, CA 92262; email 
fmcmenimen@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 applicant, EDF Renewable Resources 
(formally enXco), has requested a right-of-way authorization to 
construct, operate, maintain, and decommission a solar photovoltaic 
electricity generating facility with a proposed output of 150 megawatts 
and a project footprint of approximately 1,208 acres. The proposed 
project would be located on BLM-administered lands in Riverside County 
6 miles north of the rural community of Desert Center, California. The 
overall site layout and generalized land uses include a substation, an 
administration building, operations and maintenance facilities, a 
transmission line, and temporary construction lay down areas. The 
project's 230-kilovolt (kV) generation interconnection transmission 
(gen-tie) line could either be via the First Solar Desert Sunlight 230-
kV gen-tie (as a shared facility), or could be a separate facility 
located on private and BLM-administered lands and would connect to a 
planned 230- to 500-kV substation (referred to as the Red Bluff 
Substation). The Red Bluff Substation would connect the project to the 
Southern California Edison regional transmission grid. If approved, 
construction would begin in late 2013 and would take 9-12 months to 
complete.
    On September 15, 2011, the BLM published a Notice of Intent (NOI) 
to prepare an EIS in the Federal Register (76 FR 57073). Publication of 
the NOI began a 30-day scoping period which ended on October 17, 2011.
    Public Scoping Meetings were held on October 3 and 6, 2011. Scoping 
comments were accepted until October 21, 2011. The BLM considered these 
comments in developing the Draft EIS.
    On April 13, 2012, the BLM published a Notice of Availability for 
the Draft EIS and CDCA Plan Amendment in the Federal Register. The 90-
day public comment period for the Draft EIS ended on July 17, 2012. 
During the public review period, the BLM hosted two public meetings on 
May 14, 2012, to solicit input, in Desert Center, CA and Joshua Tree, 
CA. Comments on the Draft CDCA Plan Amendment/Draft EIS received from 
the public and internal BLM review were considered and incorporated as 
appropriate into the Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment and Final EIS. Public 
comments resulted in the addition of clarifying text, but did not 
significantly change the analysis or analyzed alternatives.
    The Final EIS considers four no action/no development alternatives, 
four solar facility development alternatives, and four transmission 
line alternatives.
    These alternatives are:
    No Action/No Development alternatives:

 Alternative 1: No Action (No Plan Amendment)
 Alternative 2: No Project Alternative (with Plan Amendent to 
Find the Site Suitable for Solar)
 Alternative 3: No Project Alternative (with Plan Amendment to 
Find the Site Unsuitable for Solar)
 Alternative A: No Gen-Tie
    Generation Plant Development Alternatives:
 Alternative 4: Proposed Solar Project
 Alternative 5: Solar Project Excluding Wildlife Habitat 
Management Area (WHMA)
 Alternative 6: Reduced Footprint Solar Project
 Alternative 7: High-Profile Reduced Footprint Solar Project
    Transmission Line Alternatives:
 Alternative B: Proposed Gen-Tie (Shared Towers with Desert 
Sunlight Project)
 Alternative C: Separate Transmission Towers within the Same 
Right-of-Way as the Desert Sunlight Project
 Alternative D: Cross-Valley Alignment
 Alternative E: New Cross-Valley Alignment.

    The BLM will select one transmission line alternative and one 
generation plant alternative. The BLM has identified Alternative 7 as 
the preferred alternative for the generation plan and Alternative B as 
the preferred alternative for the transmission line. Instructions for 
filing a protest with the BLM Director regarding the Desert Harvest 
Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment may be found in the ``Dear Reader'' Letter 
of the Final EIS and at 43 CFR 1610.5-2. All protests must be in 
writing and mailed to the appropriate address, which you can find in 
the ADDRESSES section above.

[[Page 67663]]

Emailed and faxed protests will not be accepted as valid protests 
unless the protesting party also provides the original letter by either 
regular or overnight mail postmarked by the close of the protest 
period. Under these conditions, the BLM will consider the emailed or 
faxed protest as an advance copy and it will receive full 
consideration. If you wish to provide the BLM with such advance 
notification, please direct faxed protests to the attention of the BLM 
protest coordinator at 202-245-0028, and emails to Brenda_Hudgens-Williams@blm.gov.
    Before including your phone number, email address, or other 
personal identifying information in your protest, you should be aware 
that your entire protest--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us in your protest 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, 40 CFR 1506.10, 43 CFR 1610.2; 43 CFR 
1610.5.

Thomas Pogacnik,
Deputy State Director, California.
[FR Doc. 2012-27627 Filed 11-8-12; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 4310-40-P
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