Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Pan Mine Project, White Pine County, NV, 17713-17714 [2013-06508]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
• Bureau of Land Management

[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 56 (Friday, March 22, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17713-17714]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-06508]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLNVL01000. L51100000.GN0000. LVEMF1201170 241A; NVN-090444; 13-08807; 
MO4500047785; TAS: 14X5017]


Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement for the Proposed Pan Mine Project, White Pine County, NV

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Department of the Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: In compliance 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) Egan 
Field Office, Ely, Nevada has prepared a Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) for the proposed Pan Mine Project and by this notice is 
announcing the opening of the comment period.

DATES: To ensure comments will be considered, the BLM must receive 
written comments on the Pan Mine Project Draft EIS within 45 days 
following the date the Environmental Protection Agency publishes its 
Notice of Availability in the Federal Register. The BLM will announce 
any public meetings or other public involvement activities at least 15 
days in advance through public notices, media releases, and/or 
mailings.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments related to the Pan Mine Project by 
any of the following methods:
     Email: BLM_NV_EYDO_Midway_Pan_EIS@blm.gov.
     Fax: 775-289-1910.
     Mail: BLM Ely District, Egan Field Office, HC 33, Box 
33500, Ely, NV 89301.
    Copies of the Pan Mine Project Draft EIS are available in the Ely 
District Office at the above address and on the Ely District's Web page 
at https://www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/fo/ely_field_office/blm_programs/minerals/mining_projects/pan_mine_project.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information contact Miles 
Kreidler, project lead, telephone: 775-289-1893; address: 702 North 
Industrial Way, Ely, NV 89301; email: mkreidler@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: Midway Gold US, Inc., (Midway) proposes to 
construct and operate an open-pit gold mining operation in the northern 
part of the Pancake Mountain Range, approximately 50 miles west of Ely 
in White Pine County, Nevada. The proposed location is 10 miles south 
of US Route 50 near Newark Valley. The proposed operations and 
associated disturbance would be on approximately 3,204 acres of public 
land managed by the BLM. The proposed power line runs along Highway 50 
and south along a proposed access road to the mine site. An updated 
inventory of lands with wilderness characteristics was completed and 
found no lands with wilderness characteristics in the project area. The 
projected project life of the mine is 25 years: 13 years of mining and 
additional time for associated construction, closure, and post-closure 
monitoring periods. Midway is currently conducting exploration 
activities in this area which were analyzed in 2 environmental 
assessments (EAs): the Castleworth Ventures, Inc. Pan Exploration 
Project EA (May 2004) and the Midway Gold Pan Project Exploration 
Amendment EA (July 2011).
    The Draft EIS describes and analyzes the proposed project site-
specific impacts (including cumulative) on all affected resources. 
There are 3 action alternatives (including the Proposed Action) 
analyzed in addition to the No Action Alternative. The Waste Rock 
Disposal Site Design Alternative would result in a decrease of 79 acres 
of disturbance compared to the Proposed Action. It would also involve a 
more conventional waste rock disposal design and move waste rock away 
from more important greater sage-grouse habitat. The Southwest Power 
Line Alternative was developed to addresses concerns of potential 
impacts to greater sage-grouse from the Proposed Action power line. It 
is marginally further away and is less visible from 2 active greater 
sage-grouse leks. There were 10 other alternatives considered but 
eliminated from further analysis. Mitigation measures are considered to 
minimize environmental impacts and to assure the proposed action does 
not result in unnecessary or undue degradation of public lands.
    On April 16, 2012, a Notice of Intent was published in the Federal 
Register inviting scoping comments on the proposed action. A legal 
notice was prepared by the BLM and published in the Elko Daily Free 
Press, Ely Daily Times, and the Reno Gazette-Journal informing the 
public of the BLM's intention to prepare the Pan Mine EIS. Public 
scoping meetings were held in May 2012 in Ely, Eureka, and Reno, 
Nevada. A total of 26 comments were received. The comments are 
incorporated in a Scoping Summary Report and were considered in the 
preparation of this Draft EIS.
    Concerns raised during scoping include: potential impacts to 
archaeological resources, including damage to Carbonari sites and the 
loss of use of the 1913 alternative route of the Lincoln Highway; 
impacts to population and habitat of greater sage-grouse; impacts to 
wild horses and their habitat; impacts to air quality through point 
(equipment) and non-point (waste rock disposal areas) pollution 
sources; changes to the quantity and quality of

[[Page 17714]]

surface water and groundwater; potential occurrence of acid drainage 
from waste rock disposal areas into surface and groundwater; impacts to 
the sensitive desert landscape, vegetation communities, and vegetative 
food resources for wildlife; short- and long-term impacts on wildlife 
population dynamics and habitats; impacts to general health of the 
rangeland resources; release of pollutants and hazardous materials to 
the environment during operations and following closure; increase in 
light pollution in the areas and direct visual impacts from mine 
facilities; positive and negative socioeconomic impacts to the 
communities of Ely and Eureka, and to White Pine County; and cumulative 
impacts to wildlife, wild horses, cultural, air, water, and vegetation 
resources. The 2 action alternatives were developed to help reduce 
impacts to greater sage-grouse. Mitigation measures have also been 
included to show how impacts on resources could be minimized.
    The BLM has prepared the Draft EIS in conjunction with its three 
Cooperating Agencies: Nevada Department of Wildlife, Eureka County, and 
White Pine County.
    Please note that public comments and information submitted 
including names, street addresses, and email addresses of persons who 
submit comments will be available for public review and disclosure at 
the above address during regular business hours (7:30 a.m. to 4:30 
p.m.), Monday through Friday, except holidays.
    Before including your address, phone number, email 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 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 part 1501 and 43 CFR part 3809.

Jill A. Moore,
Field Manager, Egan Field Office.
[FR Doc. 2013-06508 Filed 3-21-13; 8:45 am]
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