Notice of Availability of the Record of Decision and Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the Ruby Pipeline Project in Oregon, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming, 69873-69874 [2013-28030]
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69873
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 225 / Thursday, November 21, 2013 / Notices
on BLM-managed public lands, and on
lands managed by other Federal
agencies.
Estimated Annual Responses: 913.
Estimated Annual Burden Hours:
5,409.
Estimated Annual Non-Hour Costs:
$77,735.
The estimated annual burdens to
respondents are itemized in the
following table:
B.
Number of
responses
A.
Type of response
C.
Hours per
response
D.
Total
hours
43 CFR subpart 3202 Lessee Qualifications ..............................................................................
43 CFR subpart 3203 Nomination of Lands for Competitive Leasing Form 3203–1 .................
43 CFR subpart 3204 Noncompetitive Leasing Other Than Direct Use Leases ........................
43 CFR subpart 3205 Direct Use Leasing ..................................................................................
43 CFR subpart 3206 Lease Issuance .......................................................................................
43 CFR subpart 3207 Lease Terms and Extensions ..................................................................
43 CFR subpart 3210 Lease Consolidation ................................................................................
43 CFR subpart 3212 Lease Suspensions and Royalty Rate Reductions .................................
43 CFR subpart 3213 Lease Relinquishment, Termination, Cancellation, and Reinstatement
43 CFR subpart 3213 Lease Reinstatement ...............................................................................
43 CFR subpart 3217 Cooperative Agreements .........................................................................
43 CFR subpart 3251 Notice of Intent to Conduct Geothermal Exploration Activities Form
3200–9 .....................................................................................................................................
43 CFR subpart 3252 Geothermal Sundry Notice Form 3260–3 ...............................................
43 CFR subpart 3253 Reports: Exploration Operations .............................................................
43 CFR subpart 3256 Exploration Operations Relief and Appeals ............................................
43 CFR subpart 3261 Geothermal Drilling Permit Form 3260–2 ...............................................
43 CFR subpart 3264 Geothermal Well Completion Report Form 3260–4 ................................
43 CFR subpart 3272 Utilization Plans and Facility Construction Permits .................................
43 CFR subpart 3273 Site License Application ..........................................................................
43 CFR subpart 3273 Relinquishment, Assignment, or Transfer of a Site License ...................
43 CFR subpart 3274 Commercial Use Permit ..........................................................................
43 CFR subpart 3276 Monthly Report of Geothermal Operations Form 3260–5 ......................
43 CFR subpart 3281 Unit Agreements ......................................................................................
43 CFR subpart 3282 Participating Area ....................................................................................
43 CFR subpart 3283 Unit Agreement Modifications .................................................................
75
80
50
10
155
50
50
10
10
5
10
1
1
4
10
1
1
1
40
40
1
40
75
80
200
100
155
50
50
400
400
5
400
12
100
12
10
60
12
10
10
22
10
120
10
10
10
8
8
8
8
8
10
10
10
1
10
10
10
10
10
96
800
96
80
480
120
100
100
22
100
1200
100
100
100
Totals ....................................................................................................................................
913
........................
5,409
Jean Sonneman,
Bureau of Land Management, Information
Collection Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2013–27931 Filed 11–20–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–84–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[LLNV930000 L51010000.ER0000 241A;
14–08807; MO# 4500058789]
Notice of Availability of the Record of
Decision and Final Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement for
the Ruby Pipeline Project in Oregon,
Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
AGENCY:
In accordance with the
National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (NEPA), as amended, and the
Federal Land Policy and Management
Act of 1976 (FLPMA), as amended, the
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has
prepared a Record of Decision (ROD)
and Final Supplemental Environmental
Impact Statement (EIS) for the Ruby
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
17:17 Nov 20, 2013
Jkt 232001
Pipeline Project (Project) and by this
notice is announcing their availability.
ADDRESSES: A list of locations where
copies of the ROD and Final
Supplemental EIS are available can be
found under SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Mark Mackiewicz, PMP, Project
Manager at 435–636–3616, BLM Price
Field Office, 125 South 600 West, Price,
UT 84501; email mmackiew@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 BLM
has issued the ROD concurrent with the
Final Supplemental EIS, as allowed
under 40 CFR 1506.10(b).
The ROD documents the BLM’s
decision to reissue the right-of-way
granted for the Project. The BLM will
not require additional post-construction
mitigation or changes to the grant issued
on July 12, 2010. All elements of the
PO 00000
Frm 00060
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
July 12, 2010, ROD and subsequent
decisions remain in full force and effect,
including all stipulations, monitoring,
and mitigation measures. The ROD is
based on the analyses contained in the
Final EIS, the Draft Supplemental EIS,
and the Final Supplemental EIS for the
Project. It also relies on the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) Revision
to the June 8, 2010, Ruby Pipeline
Biological Opinion (BiOp). The Revised
BiOp was published on July 5, 2013,
and is posted on the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) Web
site (www.ferc.gov). The ROD, Final
Supplemental EIS, and Revised BiOp
were developed in response to an order
from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals.
The project has been constructed and
is currently in operation. In 2011, the
Center for Biological Diversity,
Defenders of Wildlife, and the Summit
Lake Paiute Tribe, among other entities,
filed petitions for review of the 2010
BiOp and the BLM’s ROD in the 9th
U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Case Nos.
10–72356, 10–72552, 10–72762, 10–
72768, and 10–72775 (consolidated). In
October 2012, the court denied most of
the petitioners’ claims, including all
claims brought under the National
E:\FR\FM\21NON1.SGM
21NON1
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
69874
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 225 / Thursday, November 21, 2013 / Notices
Historic Preservation Act, FLPMA, and
the Clean Water Act, but found the 2010
BiOp and BLM ROD to be inadequate.
In a published opinion, the court
vacated the 2010 BiOp and remanded
the matter to the FWS. The court held
that the FWS’ consideration of Ruby’s
Endangered Species Act (ESA)
Conservation Action Plan (CAP) as
cumulative effects in the 2010 BiOp was
arbitrary and capricious. The court also
found that the 2010 BiOp did not
adequately consider whether
groundwater withdrawals associated
with hydrostatic testing and dust
abatement would impact listed fish that
occur in surface waters. The court
vacated the BLM’s ROD because it relied
on the 2010 BiOp and remanded the
matter to the BLM.
In an unpublished opinion, the court
found that the Final EIS for the Project
did not provide sufficient quantified or
detailed data about the cumulative loss
of sagebrush steppe vegetation and
habitat and did not provide information
on how much acreage sagebrush steppe
used to occupy, or what percentage has
been destroyed. Thus, the court
remanded the ROD to the BLM for
further analysis of cumulative impacts
to sagebrush steppe vegetation and
habitat. The court subsequently stayed
vacature of the 2010 BiOp until the FWS
issued the Revised BiOp and stayed
vacature of the ROD until the BLM
issues a new ROD.
The 2010 BiOp found that the
proposed action was not likely to
jeopardize the continuing existence of
any of the listed species or result in
destruction or adverse modification of
designated critical habitats. The
findings of the Revised BiOp are
consistent with those reached in the
2010 BiOp.
The FWS also affirmed the accuracy
of the incidental take statement found in
the 2010 BiOp and incorporated it by
reference. Those conclusions were
drawn without consideration of or
reliance on the ESA CAP. The
conservation recommendations
described in the 2010 BiOp were
reviewed by the FWS, were determined
to stand as written, and were
incorporated by reference. The court did
not rule that the discussion of the
conservation agreement or groundwater
extraction in the Final EIS was deficient
or in violation of NEPA, so these topics
are not analyzed in the Supplemental
EIS.
In the Final EIS, Draft Supplemental
EIS, and Final Supplemental EIS, the
BLM provided quantified and detailed
data regarding the cumulative loss of
sagebrush steppe vegetation and habitat,
including information on how much
VerDate Mar<15>2010
17:17 Nov 20, 2013
Jkt 232001
acreage sagebrush steppe used to
occupy, and what percentage has been
lost. The Ruby Pipeline Project’s direct
and indirect impacts remain the same as
those discussed in the Final EIS. The
Final Supplemental EIS thoroughly
discusses the cumulative impacts to
sagebrush steppe habitat within the
cumulative impact area and summarizes
the substantial mitigation required by
the BLM’s July 12, 2010, ROD
(and FERC’s Certificate). The mitigation
measures required by the July 12, 2010,
ROD are intended to address the
significant long-term impacts to
sagebrush steppe habitat related to the
Project. All elements of the July 12,
2010, ROD and subsequent BLM
decisions remain in full force and effect,
including all stipulations, monitoring,
and mitigation measures. Those same
stipulations, monitoring, and mitigation
measures are required by this ROD. The
BLM concludes that those mitigation
measures are adequate and additional
mitigation measures are not required.
The BLM published a Notice of
Availability of the Draft Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement for the
Ruby Pipeline Project on July 5, 2013
(78 FR 40496). The release of the Draft
Supplemental EIS initiated a formal 45day public comment period that ended
on August 19, 2013.
The BLM received 31 comment
submissions on the Draft Supplemental
EIS from the public, agencies, tribes,
organizations, and businesses during the
comment period. Substantive comments
were considered during preparation of
this Final Supplemental EIS. Comments
resulted in the addition of clarifying
text, but did not significantly change the
analysis or the proposed decisions.
Filing an Appeal: Instructions for
filing an appeal of this Decision are
described in the ROD.
Copies of the ROD and Final
Supplemental EIS for the Ruby Pipeline
Project are available for public
inspection at the following BLM offices:
• Kemmerer Field Office, 312 Highway
189 North, Kemmerer, WY
• Salt Lake Field Office, 2370 South
2300 West, Salt Lake City, UT
• Elko District Office, 3900 East Idaho
Street, Elko, NV
• Winnemucca District Office, 5100
East Winnemucca Boulevard,
Winnemucca, NV
• Lakeview District Office, 1301 South
G Street, Lakeview, OR
• Klamath Falls Resource Area Office,
2795 Anderson Avenue, Suite 25,
Klamath Falls, OR
• Surprise Field Office, 602 Cressler
Street, Cedarville, CA
• Additional locations where printed
copies of the ROD/Final
PO 00000
Frm 00061
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Supplemental EIS can be viewed can
be found on the Project Web site
(https://www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/info/
nepa/ruby_pipeline_project.html) or
by contacting the project manager.
Authority: 40 CFR 1502.9, 43 CFR 2880.
Marci L. Todd,
Associate State Director, Nevada.
[FR Doc. 2013–28030 Filed 11–20–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–HC–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[LLNMA00000.L12200000.DF0000]
Notice of Public Meeting, Albuquerque
District Resource Advisory Council
Meeting, New Mexico
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Public Meeting.
AGENCY:
In accordance with the
Federal Land Policy and Management
Act and the Federal Advisory
Committee Act of 1972, the U.S.
Department of the Interior, Bureau of
Land Management (BLM), Albuquerque
District Resource Advisory Council
(RAC), will meet as indicated below.
DATES: The meeting date is on December
17, 2013, from 9 a.m.–4 p.m.
ADDRESSES: The meeting will be at the
BLM Albuquerque District Office, 435
Montano Rd., Albuquerque, NM. The
public may send written comments to
the RAC, 435 Montano Rd.,
Albuquerque, NM 87107.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Chip Kimball, BLM Albuquerque
District Office, 435 Montano Rd.,
Albuquerque, NM 87107, 505–761–
8734. Persons who use a
telecommunications device for the deaf
(TDD) may call the Federal Information
Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–8229
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 10member RAC advises the Secretary of
the Interior, through the BLM, on a
variety of planning and management
issues associated with public land
management in New Mexico.
Planned agenda items include new
member introductions and orientation,
election of new officers, discussions on
and development of subcommittees,
Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks fee
discussions, updates by the Socorro and
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\21NON1.SGM
21NON1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 225 (Thursday, November 21, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69873-69874]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-28030]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[LLNV930000 L51010000.ER0000 241A; 14-08807; MO 4500058789]
Notice of Availability of the Record of Decision and Final
Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the Ruby Pipeline
Project in Oregon, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (NEPA), as amended, and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act
of 1976 (FLPMA), as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has
prepared a Record of Decision (ROD) and Final Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Ruby Pipeline Project
(Project) and by this notice is announcing their availability.
ADDRESSES: A list of locations where copies of the ROD and Final
Supplemental EIS are available can be found under SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Mackiewicz, PMP, Project Manager
at 435-636-3616, BLM Price Field Office, 125 South 600 West, Price, UT
84501; email mmackiew@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 BLM has issued the ROD concurrent with
the Final Supplemental EIS, as allowed under 40 CFR 1506.10(b).
The ROD documents the BLM's decision to reissue the right-of-way
granted for the Project. The BLM will not require additional post-
construction mitigation or changes to the grant issued on July 12,
2010. All elements of the July 12, 2010, ROD and subsequent decisions
remain in full force and effect, including all stipulations,
monitoring, and mitigation measures. The ROD is based on the analyses
contained in the Final EIS, the Draft Supplemental EIS, and the Final
Supplemental EIS for the Project. It also relies on the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service's (FWS) Revision to the June 8, 2010, Ruby Pipeline
Biological Opinion (BiOp). The Revised BiOp was published on July 5,
2013, and is posted on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's
(FERC) Web site (www.ferc.gov). The ROD, Final Supplemental EIS, and
Revised BiOp were developed in response to an order from the 9th U.S.
Circuit Court of Appeals.
The project has been constructed and is currently in operation. In
2011, the Center for Biological Diversity, Defenders of Wildlife, and
the Summit Lake Paiute Tribe, among other entities, filed petitions for
review of the 2010 BiOp and the BLM's ROD in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court
of Appeals, Case Nos. 10-72356, 10-72552, 10-72762, 10-72768, and 10-
72775 (consolidated). In October 2012, the court denied most of the
petitioners' claims, including all claims brought under the National
[[Page 69874]]
Historic Preservation Act, FLPMA, and the Clean Water Act, but found
the 2010 BiOp and BLM ROD to be inadequate.
In a published opinion, the court vacated the 2010 BiOp and
remanded the matter to the FWS. The court held that the FWS'
consideration of Ruby's Endangered Species Act (ESA) Conservation
Action Plan (CAP) as cumulative effects in the 2010 BiOp was arbitrary
and capricious. The court also found that the 2010 BiOp did not
adequately consider whether groundwater withdrawals associated with
hydrostatic testing and dust abatement would impact listed fish that
occur in surface waters. The court vacated the BLM's ROD because it
relied on the 2010 BiOp and remanded the matter to the BLM.
In an unpublished opinion, the court found that the Final EIS for
the Project did not provide sufficient quantified or detailed data
about the cumulative loss of sagebrush steppe vegetation and habitat
and did not provide information on how much acreage sagebrush steppe
used to occupy, or what percentage has been destroyed. Thus, the court
remanded the ROD to the BLM for further analysis of cumulative impacts
to sagebrush steppe vegetation and habitat. The court subsequently
stayed vacature of the 2010 BiOp until the FWS issued the Revised BiOp
and stayed vacature of the ROD until the BLM issues a new ROD.
The 2010 BiOp found that the proposed action was not likely to
jeopardize the continuing existence of any of the listed species or
result in destruction or adverse modification of designated critical
habitats. The findings of the Revised BiOp are consistent with those
reached in the 2010 BiOp.
The FWS also affirmed the accuracy of the incidental take statement
found in the 2010 BiOp and incorporated it by reference. Those
conclusions were drawn without consideration of or reliance on the ESA
CAP. The conservation recommendations described in the 2010 BiOp were
reviewed by the FWS, were determined to stand as written, and were
incorporated by reference. The court did not rule that the discussion
of the conservation agreement or groundwater extraction in the Final
EIS was deficient or in violation of NEPA, so these topics are not
analyzed in the Supplemental EIS.
In the Final EIS, Draft Supplemental EIS, and Final Supplemental
EIS, the BLM provided quantified and detailed data regarding the
cumulative loss of sagebrush steppe vegetation and habitat, including
information on how much acreage sagebrush steppe used to occupy, and
what percentage has been lost. The Ruby Pipeline Project's direct and
indirect impacts remain the same as those discussed in the Final EIS.
The Final Supplemental EIS thoroughly discusses the cumulative impacts
to sagebrush steppe habitat within the cumulative impact area and
summarizes the substantial mitigation required by the BLM's July 12,
2010, ROD (and FERC's Certificate). The mitigation measures required by
the July 12, 2010, ROD are intended to address the significant long-
term impacts to sagebrush steppe habitat related to the Project. All
elements of the July 12, 2010, ROD and subsequent BLM decisions remain
in full force and effect, including all stipulations, monitoring, and
mitigation measures. Those same stipulations, monitoring, and
mitigation measures are required by this ROD. The BLM concludes that
those mitigation measures are adequate and additional mitigation
measures are not required.
The BLM published a Notice of Availability of the Draft
Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the Ruby Pipeline
Project on July 5, 2013 (78 FR 40496). The release of the Draft
Supplemental EIS initiated a formal 45-day public comment period that
ended on August 19, 2013.
The BLM received 31 comment submissions on the Draft Supplemental
EIS from the public, agencies, tribes, organizations, and businesses
during the comment period. Substantive comments were considered during
preparation of this Final Supplemental EIS. Comments resulted in the
addition of clarifying text, but did not significantly change the
analysis or the proposed decisions.
Filing an Appeal: Instructions for filing an appeal of this
Decision are described in the ROD.
Copies of the ROD and Final Supplemental EIS for the Ruby Pipeline
Project are available for public inspection at the following BLM
offices:
Kemmerer Field Office, 312 Highway 189 North, Kemmerer, WY
Salt Lake Field Office, 2370 South 2300 West, Salt Lake City,
UT
Elko District Office, 3900 East Idaho Street, Elko, NV
Winnemucca District Office, 5100 East Winnemucca Boulevard,
Winnemucca, NV
Lakeview District Office, 1301 South G Street, Lakeview, OR
Klamath Falls Resource Area Office, 2795 Anderson Avenue,
Suite 25, Klamath Falls, OR
Surprise Field Office, 602 Cressler Street, Cedarville, CA
Additional locations where printed copies of the ROD/Final
Supplemental EIS can be viewed can be found on the Project Web site
(https://www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/info/nepa/ruby_pipeline_project.html) or
by contacting the project manager.
Authority: 40 CFR 1502.9, 43 CFR 2880.
Marci L. Todd,
Associate State Director, Nevada.
[FR Doc. 2013-28030 Filed 11-20-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-HC-P
