Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the TransWest Express 600-kV Direct Current Transmission Project in Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and Nevada, and Prospective Draft Land Use Plan Amendments, 40163-40167 [2013-16009]
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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 128 / Wednesday, July 3, 2013 / Notices
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estimate time and cost for implementing
recovery measures.
The Act requires the development of
recovery plans for listed species, unless
such a plan would not promote the
conservation of a particular species.
Section 4(f) of the Act requires us to
provide public notice and an
opportunity for public review and
comment during recovery plan
development. We will consider all
information presented during a public
comment period prior to approval of
each new or revised recovery plan. We
and other Federal agencies will take
these comments into account in the
course of implementing approved
recovery plans.
Recovery Plan Components
The Service’s recovery objectives are
to work to reduce threats so that the
interrupted rocksnail and rough
hornsnail may be downlisted to
threatened status, and to prevent further
decline of the Georgia pigtoe’s
Conasauga River population and
prevent extinction of the species as a
whole. Defining reasonable downlisting
or delisting criteria for the Georgia
pigtoe is not possible at this time, given
the current low number of populations
and individuals, lack of information
about the species’ biology, and
magnitude of threats. Therefore, this
recovery plan only establishes
downlisting criteria for the two snails.
Instead of establishing downlisting or
delisting criteria at this time for Georgia
pigtoe, we are identifying preliminary
actions to help us prevent its extinction
until we can obtain further information
on this species and determine recovery
criteria.
Downlisting of the interrupted
rocksnail and rough hornsnail will be
considered when we:
1. Protect and manage at least three
geographically distinct populations for
each species. The populations can
include the existing populations
(Oostanaula for the interrupted
rocksnail, Yellowleaf Creek and Lower
Coosa River for the rough hornsnail), or
can be reintroduced;
2. Achieve demonstrated and
sustainable natural reproduction and
recruitment in each population for each
species as evident by multiple age
classes of individuals, including
naturally recruited juveniles, and
recruitment rates exceeding mortality
rates for a period of 5 years; and
3. Develop and implement habitat and
population monitoring programs for
each population.
The following actions are identified as
necessary to help prevent the extinction
of the Georgia pigtoe:
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1. Maintain and where possible
conduct efforts to improve the
Conasauga River population;
2. Develop and implement a
monitoring plan to help ensure that the
Conasauga River population does not
decline further;
3. Develop a captive propagation
program and establish an ark population
(a secure, maintained captive
population) to help support the
Conasauga River population;
4. Conduct research, such as
identification of an appropriate fish
host, that is important to gain better
understanding of this mussel’s life
history; and
5. Identify, monitor, and where
possible improve potential
reintroduction sites in the species’
historic range.
Request for Public Comments
Public Availability of Comments
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
The authority for this action is section
4(f) of the Endangered Species Act, 16
U.S.C. 1533 (f).
Dated: June 26, 2013.
Mike Oetker,
Acting Regional Director, Southeast Region.
[FR Doc. 2013–16032 Filed 7–2–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–55–P
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Western Area Power Administration
[LLWY920000.L51010000.ER0000–
LVRWK09K1160; WYW177893; COC72929;
UTU87238; N86732]
Notice of Availability of the Draft
Environmental Impact Statement for
the TransWest Express 600-kV Direct
Current Transmission Project in
Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and Nevada,
and Prospective Draft Land Use Plan
Amendments
Bureau of Land Management,
Department of the Interior; and Western
Area Power Administration, Department
of Energy.
ACTION: Notice of Availability.
AGENCIES:
The Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) and Western Area
Power Administration (Western)
announce the availability of the
TransWest Express Transmission Project
Draft Environmental Impact Statement
(DEIS) and draft Land Use Plan
Amendments. The DEIS analyzes the
consequences of granting a right-of-way
(ROW) to TransWest Express, LLC
(TransWest) to construct and operate an
extra-high voltage (EHV) direct current
(DC) transmission system (proposed
Project). The Project would provide the
transmission infrastructure and capacity
to deliver approximately 3,000
megawatts of electric power from
existing and future renewable and other
energy sources in south-central
Wyoming to a substation hub in
southern Nevada. The Project would
consist of an approximately 725-milelong 600-kilovolt (kV), DC transmission
line and two terminals, each containing
an alternating current (AC)/DC
converter station. The northern AC/DC
converter station would be located near
Sinclair, Wyoming, and the southern
AC/DC converter station would be
located near a group of substations in
the Eldorado Valley called Marketplace
Hub, approximately 25 miles south of
Las Vegas, Nevada. A ground electrode
system (required for transmission line
emergency shutdown) would be
installed within 100 miles of each
terminal. The Project would retain an
option for future interconnection with
the Intermountain Power Project (IPP)
transmission system in Millard County,
Utah.
The BLM, through consultation with
other Federal, State, and local
cooperating agencies, has included an
SUMMARY:
We request written comments on the
draft recovery plan. We will consider all
comments we receive by the date
specified in DATES prior to final
approval of the plan.
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Agency Preferred Alternative (APA)
transmission route in the DEIS. The
rationale for selecting the location of
this alternative is described in the
Supplementary Information section of
this Notice of Availability (NOA). The
following discussions of Project segment
lengths across various land ownerships
and jurisdictions are specific to the 760mile-long APA.
The requested ROW width would
generally be 250 feet. As a general
planning goal, the APA has been located
parallel to existing transmission lines
and other utilities, within the Westwide energy corridors designated
pursuant to Section 368 of the Energy
Policy Act of 2005 and other federally
designated utility corridors, unless
precluded by resource or routing
constraints or technical infeasibility.
Approximately 230 miles (30 percent) of
the APA is located within or adjacent to
designated federal utility corridors.
The APA is located in proximity and
parallel to other utilities (transmission
lines, pipelines, roads) over a distance
of 447 miles (57 percent) of the total
length. The lengths of the APA segments
by Federal jurisdiction are:
• Wyoming—BLM Rawlins Field
Office (78 miles).
• Colorado—BLM Little Snake, White
River Field Offices (71 miles).
• Utah—BLM Vernal, Price, Fillmore,
Richfield, Cedar City Field Offices (212
miles); Bureau of Indian Affairs/Tribal
(3 miles); and U.S. Forest Service
(USFS) Uinta, Manti-La-Sal, Fishlake,
and Ashley National Forests (18 miles).
• Nevada—BLM Caliente, Las Vegas
Field Offices (129 miles) and Bureau of
Reclamation (BOR) (6 miles).
• The APA transmission route would
cross 58 miles of State land, and 127
miles of private land.
In Wyoming, the APA crosses 78
miles of Federal, 1 mile of State and 30
miles of private land. In Colorado, the
APA crosses 71 miles of Federal, 7 miles
of State and 12 miles of private land. In
Utah the APA crosses 230 miles of
Federal, 50 miles of State, 3 miles of
Tribal and 123 miles of private land. In
Nevada, the APA crosses 135 miles of
Federal, 14 miles of Tribal and 7 miles
of private land.
Transmission line alternatives were
developed as part of this EIS analysis.
Additional Federal land jurisdictions
crossed by Project alternatives include:
Colorado—BLM Grand Junction Field
Office; Utah—BLM Moab, Richfield, and
St. George Field Offices and Fishlake,
Ashley and Dixie National Forests;
Nevada—National Park Service (NPS)
and the Department of Energy (DOE).
These alternatives cross State and
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private lands in addition to the Federal
lands.
The DEIS includes draft amendments
of USFS Land and Resource
Management Plans (Forest Plans) and
BLM land use plans (Management
Framework Plans and Resource
Management Plans) that would be
needed for the Project under each of the
alternatives. The BLM and USFS draft
amendments are described in the
Supplementary Information section of
this NOA. Additionally, based on
information learned through the EIS
process, the USFS may determine that
more plan amendments are required to
fulfill the intent of standards and
guidelines in the areas affected.
Depending on the alternative selected in
the Record of Decision (ROD), the NPS
may consider applications for segments
of the Project within Lake Mead
National Recreation Area and across the
Deer Lodge Road that provides access to
Dinosaur National Monument.
By this notice, and the Notice of
Intent to Prepare an EIS, published
January 4, 2011 (see below), the BLM is
providing notice to the public of
potential amendments to land use plans
and Forest Plans, as required by 43 Code
of Federal Regulations (CFR) 1610.2(c)
and 36 CFR 219.8. The impacts of these
potential amendments are analyzed in
the DEIS together with the impacts of
the various Project alternatives. Your
input is important and will be
considered in the environmental
analysis process. All comment
submissions must include the
commenter’s name and street address.
Comments including the names and
addresses of the commenter will be
available for public inspection at the
locations listed below during normal
business hours (7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.),
Monday through Friday, except Federal
holidays. While you may ask us in your
comment to withhold from public
review your personal identifying
information, we cannot guarantee that
we will be able to do so.
The DEIS is now available for
public review. The BLM and Western
request that comments be structured so
that they are substantive and contain
sufficient detail to allow the agencies to
address them in the Final EIS. To be
considered in the Final EIS, written
comments on the Draft EIS must be
received within 90 days after
Environmental Protection Agency’s
(EPA) publication in the Federal
Register of a Notice of Availability of
this Draft EIS. The BLM and Western
will consider timely filed comments and
respond to them in the Final EIS.
DATES:
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All public meetings or other
opportunities for public involvement
related to the TransWest Express
Transmission Project will be announced
to the public by the BLM at least 15 days
in advance through public notices,
media news releases, Web site
announcements, or mailings.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the DEIS have
been sent to affected Federal, State, and
local governments, public libraries in
the Project area, and to interested
parties that previously requested a copy.
The DEIS and supporting documents
will be available electronically on the
following BLM Web site: https://
www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/info/NEPA/hdd/
transwest.html. A list of the locations
where copies of the DEIS is available for
public inspection can be found in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section
below. A limited number of paper and
cd copies of the document will be
available as supplies last. To request a
copy, contact Sharon Knowlton, Project
Manager, BLM Wyoming State Office,
P.O. Box 20678, Cheyenne, Wyoming
82003.
Written comments may be submitted
by the following methods:
• Email:
TransWest_WYMail@blm.gov.
• Mail: Bureau of Land Management,
TransWest Express Project, P.O. Box
20678, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82003.
• Courier or Hand Delivery: Bureau of
Land Management, TransWest Express
Project, 5353 Yellowstone Road,
Cheyenne, Wyoming 82009.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Sharon Knowlton, Project Manager,
Bureau of Land Management, Wyoming
State Office, P.O. Box 20678, Cheyenne,
Wyoming 82003, or by telephone at
(307) 775–6124, or by FAX at (307) 775–
6203. Any persons wishing to be added
to a mailing list of interested parties
may write or call the Project Manager,
at this address or phone number.
Persons who use telecommunications
devices for the deaf may call the Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–
800–877–8339 to contact Ms. Knowlton
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.
For information about Western’s
involvement, contact Steve Blazek,
Western National Environmental Policy
Act (NEPA) Document Manager:
telephone 702–962–7265; email:
sblazek@wapa.gov; address: Western
Area Power Administration, P.O. Box
281213, Lakewood, Colorado 80228–
8213.
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For general information on the DOE’s
NEPA review procedures or on the
status of a NEPA review, contact Carol
M. Borgstrom, Director of NEPA policy
and Compliance, GC–54, U.S.
Department of Energy, 1000
Independence Avenue SW.,
Washington, DC 20585; telephone 202–
586–4600 or toll free at 1–800–472–
2756.
In
November 2007, National Grid filed a
ROW application with the BLM to
construct and operate an EHV
transmission line between Wyoming
and delivery points in the Southwestern
U.S. Subsequently, TransWest Express
LLC (TransWest), a subsidiary of the
Anschutz Corporation, acquired the
Project from National Grid and filed an
amended application to the BLM in
September 2008. TransWest submitted
amended applications to the BLM in
2008 and 2010 to reflect changes and
refinements in the proposed Project.
In April 2010, BLM and Western
entered into a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) in which BLM
and Western agreed to act as joint lead
agencies for the EIS. The BLM’s status
as a joint lead agency is based on a
potential Federal action to grant a utility
ROW across BLM lands. Western’s
status as a joint lead agency is based on
a potential Federal action to provide
Federal funds for the Project.
In September 2011, Western and
TransWest executed a Development
Agreement in which Western and
TransWest agreed to jointly fund the
development phase of the Project, each
responsible for 50 percent of the
development costs, if Western decides
to participate in the Project.
Cooperating agencies currently
include Federal, State, Tribal and local
agencies along all the alternative routes.
The lead agencies recognize over 50
cooperating agencies supporting the
Project EIS. Two regions of the NPS are
now cooperators to the Project. On
January 11, 2011, the BLM and Western
published in the Federal Register (76
FR 379) their Notice of Intent to Prepare
an EIS in compliance with NEPA and in
accordance with the Federal Land
Policy and Management Act of 1976, 43
CFR Subpart 1610, and BLM’s ROW
regulations at 43 CFR Part 2800.
To allow the public an opportunity to
review the proposal and Project
information, the BLM held public
meetings from January through March
2011 in: Rawlins, Rock Springs, and
Baggs, Wyoming; Craig, Rangely, and
Grand Junction, Colorado; Castledale,
Duchesne, Nephi, Delta, Richfield,
Milford, Moab, Cedar City, St. George,
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Pine Valley, Central, and Enterprise,
Utah; and Caliente, Overton, Henderson,
and Las Vegas, Nevada. Issues and
potential impacts to specific resources
were identified during scoping and
preparation of the DEIS.
The following issues were identified
in the scoping process:
• Selection of corridor alternatives;
• Potential private and public land
use conflicts;
• Impacts and mitigation to fish,
wildlife, vegetation, special status
species and habitat;
• Public health and safety;
• Impacts to areas with Special
Management designations;
• Cumulative impacts;
• Socioeconomic impacts; and
• Noxious weed control and
reclamation.
In response to scoping comments,
TransWest made short segment
adjustments in its Proposed Action in
southern Wyoming and central Utah.
Through the DEIS impact analysis
process, and discussions with
cooperating agencies, approximately
805 miles were removed from further
consideration. Approximately 500 miles
of new alternative transmission route
segments were added in southern
Wyoming and northwestern Colorado to
address visual resource, wildlife, and
historic trail concerns; in central Utah to
address special management area
concerns, wildlife concerns, effects on
private lands, and visual resources; in
southwestern Utah to address special
management area concerns; and in
southern Nevada to utilize an existing
utility corridor. Some alternative
corridors that were presented in scoping
were removed from further analysis due
to increased length of the line and
because they had as much or greater
environmental impact as alternatives
already being considered.
In addition to the proposed action, the
DEIS considers a No Action alternative.
For this EIS, the No Action alternative
means that the ROW application for the
TransWest Project would be denied by
the BLM and Western would not
participate in the Project. The DEIS
includes a discussion of two system
design options. The first design option
would be to construct and operate a DC
transmission line from Wyoming to IPP
in Millard County, Utah, and then
construct an AC transmission line from
IPP to the Marketplace Hub, south of
Las Vegas, Nevada. The transmission
line ROW requirements would be
similar to the APA, except that an AC/
DC converter station and ground
electrode system would not be required
at the southern terminus and a new AC
converter station would be added. The
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second design option is a phased
construction alternative. The first phase
would consist of constructing the 600
kV DC transmission line from Wyoming
to IPP, and then utilizing the existing
transmission system from IPP to
southern California. The second phase
would consist of converting the AC
transmission line to DC service between
Wyoming and IPP, constructing the DC
transmission line between IPP and the
Marketplace Hub, constructing the
northern and southern AC/DC converter
stations, and installing the ground
electrode stations. The AC substations
would be decommissioned.
The BLM, in coordination with the
USFS, other Federal, State, and local
governments and agencies, developed
the APA through a comparative
evaluation of routing opportunities and
constraints and the relative potential
impacts among the various alternative
segments. The alternative segments
were subdivided into four geographic
regions (Southern Wyoming and
Northwestern Colorado; Northwestern
Colorado, Eastern and Central Utah;
Central and Southwestern Utah,
Southern Nevada; Southern Nevada-Las
Vegas metropolitan area).
The various alternative segments
within regions were compared with
each other in accordance with standard
criteria. The primary criteria used to
select the APA: (1) Maximize the use of
designated utility corridors; (2)
minimize requirements to amend
resource plans; (3) avoid and minimize
resource impacts regulated by law (for
example, the Endangered Species Act);
(4) avoid and minimize proximity to
private residences and residential areas;
(5) avoid and minimize resource
impacts to reduce the magnitude and
duration of adverse (residual) impacts;
(6) minimize the use of private lands;
and (7) minimize transmission system
construction, operation and
maintenance expense. The process for
identifying the DEIS APA began at the
local level, through draft document
reviews by Federal and State resource
specialists, and other cooperating
agency staff. The BLM State Directors
and the USFS Regional Forester
contributed to the process. The APA
represents an effort to balance land
ownership, land management
objectives, and resource effects among
the large number of jurisdictions to be
crossed by the Project. The APA is a
recommendation derived from currently
available information, and is not a
decision. The BLM and Western are
inviting DEIS reviewers to offer
comments on the APA, as well as the
other route and facility alternatives
presented in the document.
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The DEIS analyzes the potential
environmental consequences of granting
a ROW to TransWest to construct a
transmission line from Sinclair,
Wyoming, to its terminus at the
Marketplace Hub south of Las Vegas,
Nevada. The approximately 760-mile
APA is discussed below, by region.
Region I (Southern Wyoming,
Northwestern Colorado). The APA
transmission line route would extend
approximately 170 miles from the
vicinity of Sinclair, Carbon County,
Wyoming, to the vicinity of U.S.
Highway 40 southwest of Maybell in
western Moffat County, Colorado. The
major environmental and social
considerations for recommending this
route include: limiting impacts to the
Cherokee Trail in southern Wyoming,
reducing visual impacts to motorists on
Wyoming Highway 789, Colorado
Highway 13, and backcountry recreation
areas; avoiding agricultural and
residential lands near Baggs and the
Little Snake River Valley; avoiding or
minimizing impacts to Dinosaur
National Monument; and responding to
local government concerns. Three
additional route alternatives were
evaluated in this region.
Region II (Northwestern Colorado,
Eastern Utah, Central Utah). The APA
transmission line route would extend
approximately 270 miles from the
vicinity of the eastern Utah border near
Vernal to the vicinity of the IPP near
Delta, Millard County, Utah. The major
environmental and social considerations
for recommending this route include:
avoiding agricultural lands and
residential areas in the vicinity of
Vernal, Roosevelt, and Duchesne;
avoiding or minimizing impacts to
Inventoried Roadless Areas on National
Forest Lands; Areas of Critical
Environmental Concern on BLM lands;
high density cultural resource areas; the
Old Spanish Trail; Dinosaur National
Monument, and sage-grouse habitat.
Five additional route alternatives were
evaluated in this region.
Region III (Central Utah, Southwest
Utah, Southern Nevada). The APA
transmission line route would extend
approximately 285 miles from the
vicinity of the IPP, Millard County,
Utah, to the vicinity of Apex on
Interstate 15, northeast of Las Vegas,
Nevada. The major environmental and
social considerations for recommending
this route include: locating transmission
facilities in existing utility corridors;
avoiding or minimizing impacts to:
military training and operations areas,
Inventoried Roadless Areas (Dixie
National Forest); designated historic
sites (Mountain Meadows Massacre Site
in Utah); the Old Spanish Trail; Areas
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of Critical Environmental Concern; and
desert tortoise and sage-grouse habitat.
Three additional route alternatives were
evaluated in this region.
Region IV (Southern Nevada—Apex
to the Marketplace Hub. The APA
transmission line route would extend
approximately 40 miles from Apex on
Interstate 15 to the Marketplace Hub in
the Eldorado Valley, southeast of Las
Vegas. The major environmental and
social considerations for recommending
this route include: locating Project
transmission line facilities within
existing transmission line corridors in
Las Vegas Valley densely populated
areas; minimizing impacts to, or
avoiding Lake Mead Recreation Area;
residential areas in and near Boulder
City. Two additional route alternatives
were evaluated in this region.
The BLM, Western and cooperating
agencies worked together to develop
routes that would conform to existing
Federal land use plans. However, this
objective was not reached for a number
of the alternative routes analyzed in the
DEIS. Plan amendments that would be
necessary to implement each of the
evaluated alternatives were identified
by affected agencies and analyzed in
Chapter 4 of the DEIS. The specific land
use plan amendments that are actually
needed will depend upon which route
is selected in the agencies’ ROD if the
BLM makes a decision to approve the
ROW application. In the Final EIS, the
BLM and Western will identify the
APA, and BLM will identify the
requisite proposed plan amendments
necessary to implement that alternative.
Each of the proposed BLM plan
amendments would: (1) Expand an
existing utility corridor; (2) create a new
utility corridor while allowing for
exceptions to other resource stipulations
if avoidance measures or impact
minimization are not feasible within the
designated corridor; or (3) create a onetime exception through a ROW
exclusion area. Depending on the route
alternative, potential plan amendments
include the following:
• Region I. One or two plan
amendments would be required. The
BLM Rawlins and Little Snake Field
Office plans may be affected.
• Region II. One or up to four plan
amendments would be required. The
BLM White River, Vernal, Price, and
Salt Lake Field Offices, and the Fishlake
National Forest plans may be affected.
• Region III. None or one plan
amendment would be required. The
BLM Caliente Field Office plan may be
affected.
• Region IV. None or one plan
amendment would be required. The
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BLM Las Vegas Field Office plan may be
affected.
The APA identified in the DEIS
would involve five plan amendments
across the four regions: the BLM
Rawlins, Little Snake, Vernal, Salt Lake,
and Las Vegas Field Offices; no
amendments for Forest Plans are
identified for the APA. Other BLM or
USFS management plans could be
amended depending upon the specifics
of the route that is selected in the ROD
if the BLM makes a decision to approve
the ROW application. Proposed
amendments to plans that are
potentially affected by the various
alternatives are identified and analyzed
in the DEIS.
Copies of the DEIS are available for
public inspection during normal
business hours at the following
locations:
• BLM, Wyoming State Office, Public
Room, 5353 Yellowstone Road,
Cheyenne, Wyoming 82009;
• BLM, Rawlins Field Office, 1300
North Third Street, Rawlins, Wyoming
82301;
• BLM, Rock Springs Field Office,
280 Highway 191 North, Rock Springs,
Wyoming 82901;
• BLM, Colorado State Office, Public
Reading Room, 2850 Youngfield Street,
Lakewood, Colorado 80215–7093;
• BLM, Little Snake Field Office, 455
Emerson Street, Craig, Colorado 81625;
• BLM, White River Field Office, 220
East Market Street, Meeker, Colorado
81641;
• BLM, Grand Junction Office, 2815 H
Road, Grand Junction, Colorado 81506;
• BLM, Utah State Office, Public
Reading Room, 440 West 200 South,
Suite 500, Salt Lake City, Utah 84101–
1345;
• BLM, Cedar City Field Office, 176
East DL Sargent Drive, Cedar City, Utah
84721;
• BLM, Fillmore Field Office, 95 East
500 North, Fillmore, Utah 84631;
• BLM, Moab Field Office, 92 East
Dogwood, Moab, Utah 84532;
• BLM, Price Field Office, 125 South
600 West, Price, Utah 84501;
• BLM, Richfield Field Office, 150
East 900 North, Richfield, Utah 84701;
• BLM, St. George Field Office, 345
East Riverside Drive, St. George, Utah
84790;
• BLM, Vernal Field Office, 170
South 500 East, Vernal, Utah 84078;
• BLM, Nevada State Office, Public
Reading Room, 1340 Financial Blvd.,
Reno Nevada 89502;
• BLM, Egan Field Office, 702 North
Industrial Way, Ely, Nevada 89301;
• BLM, Caliente Field Office, U.S.
Highway 93, Building #1, Caliente,
Nevada 89008;
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• BLM, Las Vegas Field Office, 4701
North Torrey Pines Drive, Las Vegas,
Nevada 89130; and
• USFS (Lead Forest Office) Dixie
National Forest, 1789 North
Wedgewood Lane, Cedar City, Utah
84721.
The BLM will utilize and coordinate
the NEPA comment process to satisfy
the public involvement process for
Section 106 of the National Historic
Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 470f), as
provided for in 36 CFR 800.2(d)(3).
Ongoing consultations with Native
American Tribes will continue in
accordance with policy, and Tribal
concerns, including impacts on Indian
trust assets, will be given due
consideration. Federal, State, and local
agencies, along with other stakeholders
that may be interested or affected by the
BLM’s decision on this Project, are
invited to participate.
Dated: May 31, 2013.
Mark A. Gabriel,
Administrator, Western Area Power
Administration.
Dated: June 3, 2013.
Donald A. Simpson,
BLM Wyoming State Director.
[FR Doc. 2013–16009 Filed 7–2–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[LLCON06000–L16100000–DQ0000]
Notice of Change of Locations for
Resource Advisory Council Meetings
for the Dominguez-Escalante National
Conservation Area Advisory Council
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Public Meeting
Change of Locations.
AGENCY:
In accordance with the
Federal Land Policy and Management
Act of 1976 and the Federal Advisory
Committee Act of 1972, notice is hereby
given that the U.S. Department of the
Interior, Bureau of Land Management
(BLM) Dominguez-Escalante National
Conservation Area (NCA) Advisory
Council (Council) meeting scheduled for
July 17, 2013, has been changed from
the Two Rivers Convention Center, 159
Main Street, Grand Junction, CO to the
John McConnell Math & Science Center,
2660 Unaweep Avenue, Grand Junction,
CO. In addition, the meeting on August
19 at the Mesa County Courthouse
Annex, 544 Rood, Grand Junction, CO
has been changed from Training Room
A to the Multi-Purpose Room.
emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
17:48 Jul 02, 2013
Jkt 229001
The meetings will be held on
July 17, 2013 and August 19, 2013. The
meetings begin at 3 p.m. and will
normally adjourn at 6 p.m. Any
adjustments to the meetings will be
advertised on the Dominguez-Escalante
NCA Resource Management Plan (RMP)
Web site, https://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/
nca/denca/denca_rmp.html.
ADDRESSES: The meeting on July 17 will
be held at the John McConnell Math &
Science Center, 2660 Unaweep Avenue,
Grand Junction, CO. The meeting on
August 19 will be held at the Mesa
County Courthouse Annex, MultiPurpose Room, 544 Rood, Grand
Junction, CO 81501.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Collin Ewing, Advisory Council
Designated Federal Official, 2815 H
Road, Grand Junction, CO 81506. Phone:
(970) 244–3049. Email: cewing@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, seven 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 10member Council advises the Secretary
of the Interior, through the BLM, on a
variety of planning and management
issues associated with the RMP process
for the Dominguez-Escalante NCA and
Dominguez Canyon Wilderness.
Topics of discussion during the
meetings may include informational
presentations from various resource
specialists working on the RMP, as well
as Council reports on the following
topics: recreation, fire management,
land-use planning process, invasive
species management, travel
management, wilderness, land exchange
criteria, cultural resource management
and other resource management topics
of interest to the Council raised during
the planning process.
These meetings are anticipated to
occur monthly, and may occur as
frequently as every two weeks during
intensive phases of the planning
process. Dates, times and agendas for
additional meetings may be determined
at future Council meetings, and will be
published in the Federal Register,
announced through local media and on
the BLM’s Web site for the DominguezEscalante planning effort, www.blm.gov/
co/st/en/nca/denca/denca_rmp.html.
These meetings are open to the public.
The public may present written
comments to the Council. Each formal
Council meeting will have time
DATES:
PO 00000
Frm 00079
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
40167
allocated at the middle and end of each
meeting to hear public comments.
Depending on the number of persons
wishing to comment and time available,
the time for individual, oral comments
may be limited at the discretion of the
chair.
Dated: June 28, 2013.
Leigh D. Espy,
BLM Colorado Deputy State Director of
Resources and Fire.
[FR Doc. 2013–16109 Filed 7–2–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–JB–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[LLNVS00560.L58530000.ES0000.241A; N–
90819; 13–08807; MO# 4500050340; TAS:
14X5232]
Notice of Realty Action: Classification
for Lease and Subsequent Conveyance
for Recreation and Public Purposes of
Public Land for a Fire Station (N–
90819) in Clark County, NV
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Realty Action.
AGENCY:
In accordance with Section 7
of the Taylor Grazing Act and Executive
Order Number 6910, the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) has examined and
found suitable for classification for lease
and subsequent conveyance under the
provisions of the Recreation and Public
Purposes (R&PP) Act, as amended,
approximately 2.5 acres of public land
in the City of Las Vegas, Clark County,
Nevada. The City of Las Vegas proposes
to use the land for a fire station.
DATES: Interested parties may submit
written comments regarding the
proposed classification of the land for
lease and subsequent conveyance of the
land, and the environmental
assessment, until August 19, 2013.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to
the BLM Las Vegas Field Manager, 4701
N. Torrey Pines Drive, Las Vegas, NV
89130, or email: rrury@blm.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Rebecca L. Rury, 702–515–5087, or
rrury@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 City
of Las Vegas has filed an application to
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\03JYN1.SGM
03JYN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 128 (Wednesday, July 3, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40163-40167]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-16009]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Western Area Power Administration
[LLWY920000.L51010000.ER0000-LVRWK09K1160; WYW177893; COC72929;
UTU87238; N86732]
Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact
Statement for the TransWest Express 600-kV Direct Current Transmission
Project in Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and Nevada, and Prospective Draft
Land Use Plan Amendments
AGENCIES: Bureau of Land Management, Department of the Interior; and
Western Area Power Administration, Department of Energy.
ACTION: Notice of Availability.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Western Area Power
Administration (Western) announce the availability of the TransWest
Express Transmission Project Draft Environmental Impact Statement
(DEIS) and draft Land Use Plan Amendments. The DEIS analyzes the
consequences of granting a right-of-way (ROW) to TransWest Express, LLC
(TransWest) to construct and operate an extra-high voltage (EHV) direct
current (DC) transmission system (proposed Project). The Project would
provide the transmission infrastructure and capacity to deliver
approximately 3,000 megawatts of electric power from existing and
future renewable and other energy sources in south-central Wyoming to a
substation hub in southern Nevada. The Project would consist of an
approximately 725-mile-long 600-kilovolt (kV), DC transmission line and
two terminals, each containing an alternating current (AC)/DC converter
station. The northern AC/DC converter station would be located near
Sinclair, Wyoming, and the southern AC/DC converter station would be
located near a group of substations in the Eldorado Valley called
Marketplace Hub, approximately 25 miles south of Las Vegas, Nevada. A
ground electrode system (required for transmission line emergency
shutdown) would be installed within 100 miles of each terminal. The
Project would retain an option for future interconnection with the
Intermountain Power Project (IPP) transmission system in Millard
County, Utah.
The BLM, through consultation with other Federal, State, and local
cooperating agencies, has included an
[[Page 40164]]
Agency Preferred Alternative (APA) transmission route in the DEIS. The
rationale for selecting the location of this alternative is described
in the Supplementary Information section of this Notice of Availability
(NOA). The following discussions of Project segment lengths across
various land ownerships and jurisdictions are specific to the 760-mile-
long APA.
The requested ROW width would generally be 250 feet. As a general
planning goal, the APA has been located parallel to existing
transmission lines and other utilities, within the West-wide energy
corridors designated pursuant to Section 368 of the Energy Policy Act
of 2005 and other federally designated utility corridors, unless
precluded by resource or routing constraints or technical
infeasibility. Approximately 230 miles (30 percent) of the APA is
located within or adjacent to designated federal utility corridors.
The APA is located in proximity and parallel to other utilities
(transmission lines, pipelines, roads) over a distance of 447 miles (57
percent) of the total length. The lengths of the APA segments by
Federal jurisdiction are:
Wyoming--BLM Rawlins Field Office (78 miles).
Colorado--BLM Little Snake, White River Field Offices (71
miles).
Utah--BLM Vernal, Price, Fillmore, Richfield, Cedar City
Field Offices (212 miles); Bureau of Indian Affairs/Tribal (3 miles);
and U.S. Forest Service (USFS) Uinta, Manti-La-Sal, Fishlake, and
Ashley National Forests (18 miles).
Nevada--BLM Caliente, Las Vegas Field Offices (129 miles)
and Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) (6 miles).
The APA transmission route would cross 58 miles of State
land, and 127 miles of private land.
In Wyoming, the APA crosses 78 miles of Federal, 1 mile of State
and 30 miles of private land. In Colorado, the APA crosses 71 miles of
Federal, 7 miles of State and 12 miles of private land. In Utah the APA
crosses 230 miles of Federal, 50 miles of State, 3 miles of Tribal and
123 miles of private land. In Nevada, the APA crosses 135 miles of
Federal, 14 miles of Tribal and 7 miles of private land.
Transmission line alternatives were developed as part of this EIS
analysis. Additional Federal land jurisdictions crossed by Project
alternatives include: Colorado--BLM Grand Junction Field Office; Utah--
BLM Moab, Richfield, and St. George Field Offices and Fishlake, Ashley
and Dixie National Forests; Nevada--National Park Service (NPS) and the
Department of Energy (DOE). These alternatives cross State and private
lands in addition to the Federal lands.
The DEIS includes draft amendments of USFS Land and Resource
Management Plans (Forest Plans) and BLM land use plans (Management
Framework Plans and Resource Management Plans) that would be needed for
the Project under each of the alternatives. The BLM and USFS draft
amendments are described in the Supplementary Information section of
this NOA. Additionally, based on information learned through the EIS
process, the USFS may determine that more plan amendments are required
to fulfill the intent of standards and guidelines in the areas
affected. Depending on the alternative selected in the Record of
Decision (ROD), the NPS may consider applications for segments of the
Project within Lake Mead National Recreation Area and across the Deer
Lodge Road that provides access to Dinosaur National Monument.
By this notice, and the Notice of Intent to Prepare an EIS,
published January 4, 2011 (see below), the BLM is providing notice to
the public of potential amendments to land use plans and Forest Plans,
as required by 43 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 1610.2(c) and 36
CFR 219.8. The impacts of these potential amendments are analyzed in
the DEIS together with the impacts of the various Project alternatives.
Your input is important and will be considered in the environmental
analysis process. All comment submissions must include the commenter's
name and street address. Comments including the names and addresses of
the commenter will be available for public inspection at the locations
listed below during normal business hours (7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.),
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. While you may ask us in
your comment to withhold from public review your personal identifying
information, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
DATES: The DEIS is now available for public review. The BLM and Western
request that comments be structured so that they are substantive and
contain sufficient detail to allow the agencies to address them in the
Final EIS. To be considered in the Final EIS, written comments on the
Draft EIS must be received within 90 days after Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA) publication in the Federal Register of a
Notice of Availability of this Draft EIS. The BLM and Western will
consider timely filed comments and respond to them in the Final EIS.
All public meetings or other opportunities for public involvement
related to the TransWest Express Transmission Project will be announced
to the public by the BLM at least 15 days in advance through public
notices, media news releases, Web site announcements, or mailings.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the DEIS have been sent to affected Federal,
State, and local governments, public libraries in the Project area, and
to interested parties that previously requested a copy. The DEIS and
supporting documents will be available electronically on the following
BLM Web site: https://www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/info/NEPA/hdd/transwest.html.
A list of the locations where copies of the DEIS is available for
public inspection can be found in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section
below. A limited number of paper and cd copies of the document will be
available as supplies last. To request a copy, contact Sharon Knowlton,
Project Manager, BLM Wyoming State Office, P.O. Box 20678, Cheyenne,
Wyoming 82003.
Written comments may be submitted by the following methods:
Email: TransWest_WYMail@blm.gov.
Mail: Bureau of Land Management, TransWest Express
Project, P.O. Box 20678, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82003.
Courier or Hand Delivery: Bureau of Land Management,
TransWest Express Project, 5353 Yellowstone Road, Cheyenne, Wyoming
82009.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sharon Knowlton, Project Manager,
Bureau of Land Management, Wyoming State Office, P.O. Box 20678,
Cheyenne, Wyoming 82003, or by telephone at (307) 775-6124, or by FAX
at (307) 775-6203. Any persons wishing to be added to a mailing list of
interested parties may write or call the Project Manager, at this
address or phone number. Persons who use telecommunications devices for
the deaf may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-
800-877-8339 to contact Ms. Knowlton 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.
For information about Western's involvement, contact Steve Blazek,
Western National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Document Manager:
telephone 702-962-7265; email: sblazek@wapa.gov; address: Western Area
Power Administration, P.O. Box 281213, Lakewood, Colorado 80228-8213.
[[Page 40165]]
For general information on the DOE's NEPA review procedures or on
the status of a NEPA review, contact Carol M. Borgstrom, Director of
NEPA policy and Compliance, GC-54, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000
Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585; telephone 202-586-4600
or toll free at 1-800-472-2756.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In November 2007, National Grid filed a ROW
application with the BLM to construct and operate an EHV transmission
line between Wyoming and delivery points in the Southwestern U.S.
Subsequently, TransWest Express LLC (TransWest), a subsidiary of the
Anschutz Corporation, acquired the Project from National Grid and filed
an amended application to the BLM in September 2008. TransWest
submitted amended applications to the BLM in 2008 and 2010 to reflect
changes and refinements in the proposed Project.
In April 2010, BLM and Western entered into a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) in which BLM and Western agreed to act as joint
lead agencies for the EIS. The BLM's status as a joint lead agency is
based on a potential Federal action to grant a utility ROW across BLM
lands. Western's status as a joint lead agency is based on a potential
Federal action to provide Federal funds for the Project.
In September 2011, Western and TransWest executed a Development
Agreement in which Western and TransWest agreed to jointly fund the
development phase of the Project, each responsible for 50 percent of
the development costs, if Western decides to participate in the
Project.
Cooperating agencies currently include Federal, State, Tribal and
local agencies along all the alternative routes. The lead agencies
recognize over 50 cooperating agencies supporting the Project EIS. Two
regions of the NPS are now cooperators to the Project. On January 11,
2011, the BLM and Western published in the Federal Register (76 FR 379)
their Notice of Intent to Prepare an EIS in compliance with NEPA and in
accordance with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, 43
CFR Subpart 1610, and BLM's ROW regulations at 43 CFR Part 2800.
To allow the public an opportunity to review the proposal and
Project information, the BLM held public meetings from January through
March 2011 in: Rawlins, Rock Springs, and Baggs, Wyoming; Craig,
Rangely, and Grand Junction, Colorado; Castledale, Duchesne, Nephi,
Delta, Richfield, Milford, Moab, Cedar City, St. George, Pine Valley,
Central, and Enterprise, Utah; and Caliente, Overton, Henderson, and
Las Vegas, Nevada. Issues and potential impacts to specific resources
were identified during scoping and preparation of the DEIS.
The following issues were identified in the scoping process:
Selection of corridor alternatives;
Potential private and public land use conflicts;
Impacts and mitigation to fish, wildlife, vegetation,
special status species and habitat;
Public health and safety;
Impacts to areas with Special Management designations;
Cumulative impacts;
Socioeconomic impacts; and
Noxious weed control and reclamation.
In response to scoping comments, TransWest made short segment
adjustments in its Proposed Action in southern Wyoming and central
Utah. Through the DEIS impact analysis process, and discussions with
cooperating agencies, approximately 805 miles were removed from further
consideration. Approximately 500 miles of new alternative transmission
route segments were added in southern Wyoming and northwestern Colorado
to address visual resource, wildlife, and historic trail concerns; in
central Utah to address special management area concerns, wildlife
concerns, effects on private lands, and visual resources; in
southwestern Utah to address special management area concerns; and in
southern Nevada to utilize an existing utility corridor. Some
alternative corridors that were presented in scoping were removed from
further analysis due to increased length of the line and because they
had as much or greater environmental impact as alternatives already
being considered.
In addition to the proposed action, the DEIS considers a No Action
alternative. For this EIS, the No Action alternative means that the ROW
application for the TransWest Project would be denied by the BLM and
Western would not participate in the Project. The DEIS includes a
discussion of two system design options. The first design option would
be to construct and operate a DC transmission line from Wyoming to IPP
in Millard County, Utah, and then construct an AC transmission line
from IPP to the Marketplace Hub, south of Las Vegas, Nevada. The
transmission line ROW requirements would be similar to the APA, except
that an AC/DC converter station and ground electrode system would not
be required at the southern terminus and a new AC converter station
would be added. The second design option is a phased construction
alternative. The first phase would consist of constructing the 600 kV
DC transmission line from Wyoming to IPP, and then utilizing the
existing transmission system from IPP to southern California. The
second phase would consist of converting the AC transmission line to DC
service between Wyoming and IPP, constructing the DC transmission line
between IPP and the Marketplace Hub, constructing the northern and
southern AC/DC converter stations, and installing the ground electrode
stations. The AC substations would be decommissioned.
The BLM, in coordination with the USFS, other Federal, State, and
local governments and agencies, developed the APA through a comparative
evaluation of routing opportunities and constraints and the relative
potential impacts among the various alternative segments. The
alternative segments were subdivided into four geographic regions
(Southern Wyoming and Northwestern Colorado; Northwestern Colorado,
Eastern and Central Utah; Central and Southwestern Utah, Southern
Nevada; Southern Nevada-Las Vegas metropolitan area).
The various alternative segments within regions were compared with
each other in accordance with standard criteria. The primary criteria
used to select the APA: (1) Maximize the use of designated utility
corridors; (2) minimize requirements to amend resource plans; (3) avoid
and minimize resource impacts regulated by law (for example, the
Endangered Species Act); (4) avoid and minimize proximity to private
residences and residential areas; (5) avoid and minimize resource
impacts to reduce the magnitude and duration of adverse (residual)
impacts; (6) minimize the use of private lands; and (7) minimize
transmission system construction, operation and maintenance expense.
The process for identifying the DEIS APA began at the local level,
through draft document reviews by Federal and State resource
specialists, and other cooperating agency staff. The BLM State
Directors and the USFS Regional Forester contributed to the process.
The APA represents an effort to balance land ownership, land management
objectives, and resource effects among the large number of
jurisdictions to be crossed by the Project. The APA is a recommendation
derived from currently available information, and is not a decision.
The BLM and Western are inviting DEIS reviewers to offer comments on
the APA, as well as the other route and facility alternatives presented
in the document.
[[Page 40166]]
The DEIS analyzes the potential environmental consequences of
granting a ROW to TransWest to construct a transmission line from
Sinclair, Wyoming, to its terminus at the Marketplace Hub south of Las
Vegas, Nevada. The approximately 760-mile APA is discussed below, by
region.
Region I (Southern Wyoming, Northwestern Colorado). The APA
transmission line route would extend approximately 170 miles from the
vicinity of Sinclair, Carbon County, Wyoming, to the vicinity of U.S.
Highway 40 southwest of Maybell in western Moffat County, Colorado. The
major environmental and social considerations for recommending this
route include: limiting impacts to the Cherokee Trail in southern
Wyoming, reducing visual impacts to motorists on Wyoming Highway 789,
Colorado Highway 13, and backcountry recreation areas; avoiding
agricultural and residential lands near Baggs and the Little Snake
River Valley; avoiding or minimizing impacts to Dinosaur National
Monument; and responding to local government concerns. Three additional
route alternatives were evaluated in this region.
Region II (Northwestern Colorado, Eastern Utah, Central Utah). The
APA transmission line route would extend approximately 270 miles from
the vicinity of the eastern Utah border near Vernal to the vicinity of
the IPP near Delta, Millard County, Utah. The major environmental and
social considerations for recommending this route include: avoiding
agricultural lands and residential areas in the vicinity of Vernal,
Roosevelt, and Duchesne; avoiding or minimizing impacts to Inventoried
Roadless Areas on National Forest Lands; Areas of Critical
Environmental Concern on BLM lands; high density cultural resource
areas; the Old Spanish Trail; Dinosaur National Monument, and sage-
grouse habitat. Five additional route alternatives were evaluated in
this region.
Region III (Central Utah, Southwest Utah, Southern Nevada). The APA
transmission line route would extend approximately 285 miles from the
vicinity of the IPP, Millard County, Utah, to the vicinity of Apex on
Interstate 15, northeast of Las Vegas, Nevada. The major environmental
and social considerations for recommending this route include: locating
transmission facilities in existing utility corridors; avoiding or
minimizing impacts to: military training and operations areas,
Inventoried Roadless Areas (Dixie National Forest); designated historic
sites (Mountain Meadows Massacre Site in Utah); the Old Spanish Trail;
Areas of Critical Environmental Concern; and desert tortoise and sage-
grouse habitat. Three additional route alternatives were evaluated in
this region.
Region IV (Southern Nevada--Apex to the Marketplace Hub. The APA
transmission line route would extend approximately 40 miles from Apex
on Interstate 15 to the Marketplace Hub in the Eldorado Valley,
southeast of Las Vegas. The major environmental and social
considerations for recommending this route include: locating Project
transmission line facilities within existing transmission line
corridors in Las Vegas Valley densely populated areas; minimizing
impacts to, or avoiding Lake Mead Recreation Area; residential areas in
and near Boulder City. Two additional route alternatives were evaluated
in this region.
The BLM, Western and cooperating agencies worked together to
develop routes that would conform to existing Federal land use plans.
However, this objective was not reached for a number of the alternative
routes analyzed in the DEIS. Plan amendments that would be necessary to
implement each of the evaluated alternatives were identified by
affected agencies and analyzed in Chapter 4 of the DEIS. The specific
land use plan amendments that are actually needed will depend upon
which route is selected in the agencies' ROD if the BLM makes a
decision to approve the ROW application. In the Final EIS, the BLM and
Western will identify the APA, and BLM will identify the requisite
proposed plan amendments necessary to implement that alternative. Each
of the proposed BLM plan amendments would: (1) Expand an existing
utility corridor; (2) create a new utility corridor while allowing for
exceptions to other resource stipulations if avoidance measures or
impact minimization are not feasible within the designated corridor; or
(3) create a one-time exception through a ROW exclusion area. Depending
on the route alternative, potential plan amendments include the
following:
Region I. One or two plan amendments would be required.
The BLM Rawlins and Little Snake Field Office plans may be affected.
Region II. One or up to four plan amendments would be
required. The BLM White River, Vernal, Price, and Salt Lake Field
Offices, and the Fishlake National Forest plans may be affected.
Region III. None or one plan amendment would be required.
The BLM Caliente Field Office plan may be affected.
Region IV. None or one plan amendment would be required.
The BLM Las Vegas Field Office plan may be affected.
The APA identified in the DEIS would involve five plan amendments
across the four regions: the BLM Rawlins, Little Snake, Vernal, Salt
Lake, and Las Vegas Field Offices; no amendments for Forest Plans are
identified for the APA. Other BLM or USFS management plans could be
amended depending upon the specifics of the route that is selected in
the ROD if the BLM makes a decision to approve the ROW application.
Proposed amendments to plans that are potentially affected by the
various alternatives are identified and analyzed in the DEIS.
Copies of the DEIS are available for public inspection during
normal business hours at the following locations:
BLM, Wyoming State Office, Public Room, 5353 Yellowstone
Road, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82009;
BLM, Rawlins Field Office, 1300 North Third Street,
Rawlins, Wyoming 82301;
BLM, Rock Springs Field Office, 280 Highway 191 North,
Rock Springs, Wyoming 82901;
BLM, Colorado State Office, Public Reading Room, 2850
Youngfield Street, Lakewood, Colorado 80215-7093;
BLM, Little Snake Field Office, 455 Emerson Street, Craig,
Colorado 81625;
BLM, White River Field Office, 220 East Market Street,
Meeker, Colorado 81641;
BLM, Grand Junction Office, 2815 H Road, Grand Junction,
Colorado 81506;
BLM, Utah State Office, Public Reading Room, 440 West 200
South, Suite 500, Salt Lake City, Utah 84101-1345;
BLM, Cedar City Field Office, 176 East DL Sargent Drive,
Cedar City, Utah 84721;
BLM, Fillmore Field Office, 95 East 500 North, Fillmore,
Utah 84631;
BLM, Moab Field Office, 92 East Dogwood, Moab, Utah 84532;
BLM, Price Field Office, 125 South 600 West, Price, Utah
84501;
BLM, Richfield Field Office, 150 East 900 North,
Richfield, Utah 84701;
BLM, St. George Field Office, 345 East Riverside Drive,
St. George, Utah 84790;
BLM, Vernal Field Office, 170 South 500 East, Vernal, Utah
84078;
BLM, Nevada State Office, Public Reading Room, 1340
Financial Blvd., Reno Nevada 89502;
BLM, Egan Field Office, 702 North Industrial Way, Ely,
Nevada 89301;
BLM, Caliente Field Office, U.S. Highway 93, Building
1, Caliente, Nevada 89008;
[[Page 40167]]
BLM, Las Vegas Field Office, 4701 North Torrey Pines
Drive, Las Vegas, Nevada 89130; and
USFS (Lead Forest Office) Dixie National Forest, 1789
North Wedgewood Lane, Cedar City, Utah 84721.
The BLM will utilize and coordinate the NEPA comment process to
satisfy the public involvement process for Section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 470f), as provided for in 36 CFR
800.2(d)(3). Ongoing consultations with Native American Tribes will
continue in accordance with policy, and Tribal concerns, including
impacts on Indian trust assets, will be given due consideration.
Federal, State, and local agencies, along with other stakeholders that
may be interested or affected by the BLM's decision on this Project,
are invited to participate.
Dated: May 31, 2013.
Mark A. Gabriel,
Administrator, Western Area Power Administration.
Dated: June 3, 2013.
Donald A. Simpson,
BLM Wyoming State Director.
[FR Doc. 2013-16009 Filed 7-2-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-22-P
