Notice of Intent To Prepare a Draft Environment Impact Statement for the Proposed Lone Star Ore Body Development Project in Graham County, Arizona, 212-213 [2014-30864]
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Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 2 / Monday, January 5, 2015 / Notices
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army, Corps of
Engineers
Notice of Intent To Prepare a Draft
Environment Impact Statement for the
Proposed Lone Star Ore Body
Development Project in Graham
County, Arizona
AGENCY:
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
DoD.
ACTION:
Notice of Intent.
The U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers, Los Angeles District (Corps)
is examining the environmental
consequences associated with FreeportMcMoRan Safford Inc.’s (FMSI)
application for a Department of the
Army permit under section 404 of the
Clean Water Act for the proposed
development of the mineral resources
associated with the Lone Star ore body
for the purpose of producing copper (the
Lone Star Project). The proposed
development would include the
construction of mining facilities,
including an open pit mine and
attendant development rock stockpiles
and heap leach facilities, which will
allow continued mining at the Safford
Mine Facility using conventional openpit mining, heap leaching techniques,
and solution extraction/electrowinning
(SX/EW) processing, and utilizing as
much of the existing Safford Mine
Facility infrastructure and processing
facilities as practicable. The
construction of the proposed facilities
would discharge fill materials into
approximately 90.27 acres of waters of
the United States (U.S.). The primary
federal environmental concerns are the
proposed discharges of fill material into
waters of the U.S. and the potential for
significant adverse environmental
effects resulting from such activities.
Therefore, to address these concerns in
accordance with the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the
Corps is requiring preparation of an
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
prior to consideration of any permit
action. The action must comply with the
section 404(b)(1) Guidelines (40 CFR
part 230) and not be contrary to the
public interest to be granted a Corps
permit. The Corps may ultimately make
a determination to permit or deny the
above project, or permit or deny
modified versions of the above project.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Questions about the proposed action or
the scoping of the Draft EIS can be
answered by Michael Langley, Corps
Senior Project Manager, at (602) 230–
6953. Comments regarding scoping of
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:33 Jan 02, 2015
Jkt 235001
the Draft EIS shall be addressed to: U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles
District, Arizona Regulatory Branch,
ATTN: SPL–2014–00065–MWL, 3636
North Central Avenue, Suite 900,
Phoenix, Arizona 85012–1939, or
michael.w.langley@usace.army.mil.
Comment letters sent via electronic mail
shall include the commenter’s physical
address and the project title ‘‘Lone Star
Ore Body Development Project’’ shall be
included in the subject line.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Project Site and Background
Information: The Lone Star copper ore
body proposed for development is
located within the boundary of the
existing FMSI Safford Mine Facility,
north of the City of Safford, Graham
County, Arizona. FMSI owns and
manages approximately 36,050 acres of
privately held lands within and
surrounding the Safford Mine Facility,
which has been in operation for almost
7 years. The Safford Mine Facility is
located within the Safford Mining
District, and lands within the district
have been used for mining activities by
various entities for more than a century.
FMSI (formerly Phelps Dodge Safford
Inc.) first began development of an
underground copper mining operation
in the district in the 1960s, and later
purchased other copper mining
operations in the vicinity.
Between 1994 and 1996, FMSI
initiated discussions to obtain
authorization from the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) and the Corps to
develop open pit copper mining
operations in the district, and in May
1996, formally initiated NEPA review of
these proposals through submission of a
Mine Plan of Operations (MPO) to the
BLM. NEPA review of the project,
termed the Dos Pobres/San Juan Project
(DP/SJ Project) after the ore bodies
proposed for development, involved the
publication of a Draft Environmental
Impact Statement (DEIS) in September
1998, a Final Environmental Impact
Statement (FEIS) in December 2003, and
a BLM Record of Decision (ROD; No.
1793 [AZ–040] AZA–31133) in June
2004. As a component of the NEPA
review, the Corps completed a section
404(b)(1) Alternatives Analysis in
October 1997 and issued a section 404
Individual Permit (No. 964–0202–MB)
for impacts to waters of the U.S. from
development of the DP/SJ Project on
September 27, 2004.
The Safford Mine Facility is currently
an open-pit copper mining operation
consisting of two pits: The Dos Pobres
Pit and the San Juan Pit. The handling,
processing, and support infrastructure
for mineral resources recovered from the
PO 00000
Frm 00007
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
two pits is integrated into a single
system consisting of a three-stage
crushing system, two drum
agglomerators, a single heap leach pad,
SX/EW processing facility, and support
facilities. Each of the pits has an
associated development rock stockpile:
For Dos Pobres immediately west of the
pit, and for San Juan immediately south
of the pit. A clay borrow pit is located
in the southeastern portion of the
Safford Mine Facility.
2. Proposed Action: FMSI has
proposed the development of the
mineral resources associated with the
Lone Star ore body, located on FMSI’s
privately owned lands and proximate to
the existing Safford Mine Facility.
Development of the Lone Star copper
ore body (the Lone Star Project) was
considered as a Reasonably Foreseeable
Future Action (RFFA) and was included
in the NEPA review of cumulative
impacts for the 2003 FEIS. The
applicant has designed the proposed
Lone Star Project to make use of as
much of the existing Safford Mine
Facility infrastructure as is practicable.
Although the location of the open pit for
the Lone Star Project is tied to the
physical location of the mineral
resource, the locations of the remaining
project elements have been optimized to
continue using existing infrastructure
wherever possible. New elements
anticipated as necessary for the
development of the Lone Star Project
include the open pit, a heap leach
stockpile and associated solution
management systems, development rock
stockpiles, the ore haulage/conveyance
route between the pit and crusher,
additional power distribution
infrastructure, an expanded clay borrow
source, and additional stormwater
management facilities.
The Lone Star Project proposes
discharges to waters of the U.S. for the
development and operation of the heap
leach stockpile, the development rock
stockpiles, the haul road, and for the
expansion of the clay borrow pit.
Continued use of the existing facilities
including the existing crushing
facilities, SX/EW facilities, the majority
of the existing support infrastructure for
the current leach pad, and the mine
access road are not anticipated to
require the discharge of fill to waters of
the U.S. Construction and operation of
the remaining Lone Star Project
elements including the open pit and
power distribution infrastructure are not
anticipated to require the discharge of
additional fill to waters of the U.S.
3. Issues: There are several potential
environmental issues that will be
addressed in the Draft EIS. Additional
issues may be identified during the
E:\FR\FM\05JAN1.SGM
05JAN1
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 2 / Monday, January 5, 2015 / Notices
scoping process. Issues initially
identified for evaluation in the Draft EIS
include:
a. Visual/aesthetics impacts from
landform alterations,
b. air quality impacts from
construction and operation of the
facility,
c. cultural resources (prehistoric and
historic resources),
d. surface water hydrology and
quality,
e. groundwater hydrology and quality,
f. potential land use incompatibility,
g. noise impacts from construction
and operation,
h. socioeconomic effects,
i. soils and geology resources,
j. transportation network impacts,
k. environmental justice
l. biological impacts
m. impacts to waters of the U.S., and
n. cumulative impacts.
4. Alternatives: Alternatives to the
proposed action are being developed for
evaluation in the EIS. The Draft EIS will
include a co-equal level of analysis of
the No-Action and project alternatives
considered. Alternatives will be further
formulated and developed during the
scoping process.
5. Scoping: The Corps will conduct a
public scoping meeting in an open
house format for the proposed Lone Star
Ore Body Development Project Draft EIS
to receive public comment and to assess
public concerns regarding the
appropriate scope and preparation of
the Draft EIS. Participation in the public
meeting by federal, state, local, and
tribal agencies and other interested
organizations is encouraged. The
meeting will be held on February 4,
2015, 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. (Arizona
Time Zone) at the Manor House
Convention Center, 415 E. U.S. Highway
70, Safford, Arizona 85546.
Representatives from the Corps and
Freeport-McMoRan Safford Inc. will
provide a presentation for attendees at
7:00 p.m. Comments on the proposed
action, alternatives, or any additional
concerns should be submitted in
writing. Written and electronic
comment letters will be accepted
through February 20, 2015.
The Corps also anticipates formally
consulting with the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service under section 7 of the
Endangered Species Act and with the
State Historic Preservation Officer and
appropriate Tribal Historic Preservation
Officers under section 106 of the
National Historic Preservation Act.
6. Availability of the Draft EIS: The
Draft EIS is expected to be published
and circulated in the fourth quarter of
2015, and a public meeting will be held
after its publication.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:33 Jan 02, 2015
Jkt 235001
Dated: December 12, 2014.
David J. Castanon,
Division Chief, Los Angeles District, U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers.
[FR Doc. 2014–30864 Filed 1–2–15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720–58–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Project No. 719–033]
Trinity Conservancy, Inc.; Notice of
Application for Amendment of License
and Soliciting Comments, Motions To
Intervene, and Protests
Take notice that the following
hydroelectric application has been filed
with the Commission and is available
for public inspection:
a. Application Type: Amendment to
modify approved resident fish habitat
and project tailrace plan and
effectiveness monitoring plan
b. Project No: 719–033
c. Date Filed: July 11, 2014
d. Applicant: Trinity Conservancy,
Inc.
e. Name of Project: Trinity
Hydroelectric Project
f. Location: The Trinity Project is
located on Phelps and James Creeks,
tributaries of the Chiwawa River in the
Columbia River Basin, near the city of
Leavenworth, in Chelan County,
Washington.
g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power
Act, 16 U.S.C. 791(a)–825(r)
h. Applicant Contact: Reid L. Brown,
President, Trinity Conservancy, Inc.,
3139 E. Lake Sammamish SE.,
Sammamish, WA 98075, (425) 392–
9214.
i. FERC Contact: B. Peter Yarrington,
telephone (202) 502–6129 or email
peter.yarrington@ferc.gov.
j. Deadline for filing comments,
motions to intervene, protests, and
recommendations is 30 days from the
issuance date of this notice by the
Commission. The Commission strongly
encourages electronic filing. Please file
motions to intervene, protests, or
comments using the Commission’s
eFiling system at https://www.ferc.gov/
docs-filing/efiling.asp. Commenters can
submit brief comments up to 6,000
characters, without prior registration,
using the eComment system at https://
www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/
ecomment.asp. You must include your
name and contact information at the end
of your comments. For assistance,
please contact FERC Online Support at
FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov, (866)
PO 00000
Frm 00008
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
213
208–3676 (toll free), or (202) 502–8659
(TTY). In lieu of electronic filing, please
send a paper copy to: Secretary, Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, 888
First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426.
Please include the project number (P–
719–033) on any comments, motions to
intervene, protests, or recommendations
filed.
k. Description of Request: Trinity
Conservancy, Inc. (license) requests
amendment of the Trinity Project’s
resident fish habitat and project tailrace
plan and effectiveness monitoring plan,
which was approved in a Commission
order issued April 22, 2008.1 The
Trinity Project uses water from Phelps
Creek, then returns it via the project
tailrace to the Chiwawa River, several
hundred yards above where the historic
natural channel of Phelps Creek meets
the Chiwawa River. The April 22, 2008
order approved two alternatives for the
tailrace plan, both involving routing of
water through a short section of pipe to
a new 858-foot open tailrace channel
that would follow natural contours to a
confluence with Phelps Creek above
where it meets the Chiwawa River. The
licensee now requests, based on
consultation with resource agencies, an
amendment of the tailrace plan which
would utilize 680 feet of primarily
buried pipe for the first section of the
new tailrace, leading to a shorter open
reach. The change would reduce water
loss and provide enhanced salmonid
habitat in the area where the tailrace
would join Phelps Creek. The licensee
also requests approval of minor
modifications to the effectiveness
monitoring plan.
l. Locations of the Application: A
copy of the application is available for
inspection and reproduction at the
Commission’s Public Reference Room,
located at 888 First Street NE., Room
2A, Washington, DC 20426, or by calling
(202) 502–8371. This filing may also be
viewed on the Commission’s Web site at
https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/
elibrary.asp. Enter the docket number
excluding the last three digits in the
docket number field to access the
document. You may also register online
at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/
esubscription.asp to be notified via
email of new filings and issuances
related to this or other pending projects.
For assistance, call 1–866–208–3676 or
email FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov, for
TTY, call (202) 502–8659. A copy is also
available for inspection and
1 Order Modifying and Approving Resident Fish
Habitat and Project Tailrace Plan and Effectiveness
Monitoring Plan per Article 401, Appendix A
Condition 1, and Appendix B Condition 6 (123
FERC ¶ 62,062).
E:\FR\FM\05JAN1.SGM
05JAN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 2 (Monday, January 5, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 212-213]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-30864]
[[Page 212]]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers
Notice of Intent To Prepare a Draft Environment Impact Statement
for the Proposed Lone Star Ore Body Development Project in Graham
County, Arizona
AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.
ACTION: Notice of Intent.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles District (Corps)
is examining the environmental consequences associated with Freeport-
McMoRan Safford Inc.'s (FMSI) application for a Department of the Army
permit under section 404 of the Clean Water Act for the proposed
development of the mineral resources associated with the Lone Star ore
body for the purpose of producing copper (the Lone Star Project). The
proposed development would include the construction of mining
facilities, including an open pit mine and attendant development rock
stockpiles and heap leach facilities, which will allow continued mining
at the Safford Mine Facility using conventional open-pit mining, heap
leaching techniques, and solution extraction/electrowinning (SX/EW)
processing, and utilizing as much of the existing Safford Mine Facility
infrastructure and processing facilities as practicable. The
construction of the proposed facilities would discharge fill materials
into approximately 90.27 acres of waters of the United States (U.S.).
The primary federal environmental concerns are the proposed discharges
of fill material into waters of the U.S. and the potential for
significant adverse environmental effects resulting from such
activities. Therefore, to address these concerns in accordance with the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Corps is requiring
preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) prior to
consideration of any permit action. The action must comply with the
section 404(b)(1) Guidelines (40 CFR part 230) and not be contrary to
the public interest to be granted a Corps permit. The Corps may
ultimately make a determination to permit or deny the above project, or
permit or deny modified versions of the above project.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the proposed action or
the scoping of the Draft EIS can be answered by Michael Langley, Corps
Senior Project Manager, at (602) 230-6953. Comments regarding scoping
of the Draft EIS shall be addressed to: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
Los Angeles District, Arizona Regulatory Branch, ATTN: SPL-2014-00065-
MWL, 3636 North Central Avenue, Suite 900, Phoenix, Arizona 85012-1939,
or michael.w.langley@usace.army.mil. Comment letters sent via
electronic mail shall include the commenter's physical address and the
project title ``Lone Star Ore Body Development Project'' shall be
included in the subject line.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Project Site and Background Information: The Lone Star copper
ore body proposed for development is located within the boundary of the
existing FMSI Safford Mine Facility, north of the City of Safford,
Graham County, Arizona. FMSI owns and manages approximately 36,050
acres of privately held lands within and surrounding the Safford Mine
Facility, which has been in operation for almost 7 years. The Safford
Mine Facility is located within the Safford Mining District, and lands
within the district have been used for mining activities by various
entities for more than a century. FMSI (formerly Phelps Dodge Safford
Inc.) first began development of an underground copper mining operation
in the district in the 1960s, and later purchased other copper mining
operations in the vicinity.
Between 1994 and 1996, FMSI initiated discussions to obtain
authorization from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Corps to
develop open pit copper mining operations in the district, and in May
1996, formally initiated NEPA review of these proposals through
submission of a Mine Plan of Operations (MPO) to the BLM. NEPA review
of the project, termed the Dos Pobres/San Juan Project (DP/SJ Project)
after the ore bodies proposed for development, involved the publication
of a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) in September 1998, a
Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) in December 2003, and a BLM
Record of Decision (ROD; No. 1793 [AZ-040] AZA-31133) in June 2004. As
a component of the NEPA review, the Corps completed a section 404(b)(1)
Alternatives Analysis in October 1997 and issued a section 404
Individual Permit (No. 964-0202-MB) for impacts to waters of the U.S.
from development of the DP/SJ Project on September 27, 2004.
The Safford Mine Facility is currently an open-pit copper mining
operation consisting of two pits: The Dos Pobres Pit and the San Juan
Pit. The handling, processing, and support infrastructure for mineral
resources recovered from the two pits is integrated into a single
system consisting of a three-stage crushing system, two drum
agglomerators, a single heap leach pad, SX/EW processing facility, and
support facilities. Each of the pits has an associated development rock
stockpile: For Dos Pobres immediately west of the pit, and for San Juan
immediately south of the pit. A clay borrow pit is located in the
southeastern portion of the Safford Mine Facility.
2. Proposed Action: FMSI has proposed the development of the
mineral resources associated with the Lone Star ore body, located on
FMSI's privately owned lands and proximate to the existing Safford Mine
Facility. Development of the Lone Star copper ore body (the Lone Star
Project) was considered as a Reasonably Foreseeable Future Action
(RFFA) and was included in the NEPA review of cumulative impacts for
the 2003 FEIS. The applicant has designed the proposed Lone Star
Project to make use of as much of the existing Safford Mine Facility
infrastructure as is practicable. Although the location of the open pit
for the Lone Star Project is tied to the physical location of the
mineral resource, the locations of the remaining project elements have
been optimized to continue using existing infrastructure wherever
possible. New elements anticipated as necessary for the development of
the Lone Star Project include the open pit, a heap leach stockpile and
associated solution management systems, development rock stockpiles,
the ore haulage/conveyance route between the pit and crusher,
additional power distribution infrastructure, an expanded clay borrow
source, and additional stormwater management facilities.
The Lone Star Project proposes discharges to waters of the U.S. for
the development and operation of the heap leach stockpile, the
development rock stockpiles, the haul road, and for the expansion of
the clay borrow pit. Continued use of the existing facilities including
the existing crushing facilities, SX/EW facilities, the majority of the
existing support infrastructure for the current leach pad, and the mine
access road are not anticipated to require the discharge of fill to
waters of the U.S. Construction and operation of the remaining Lone
Star Project elements including the open pit and power distribution
infrastructure are not anticipated to require the discharge of
additional fill to waters of the U.S.
3. Issues: There are several potential environmental issues that
will be addressed in the Draft EIS. Additional issues may be identified
during the
[[Page 213]]
scoping process. Issues initially identified for evaluation in the
Draft EIS include:
a. Visual/aesthetics impacts from landform alterations,
b. air quality impacts from construction and operation of the
facility,
c. cultural resources (prehistoric and historic resources),
d. surface water hydrology and quality,
e. groundwater hydrology and quality,
f. potential land use incompatibility,
g. noise impacts from construction and operation,
h. socioeconomic effects,
i. soils and geology resources,
j. transportation network impacts,
k. environmental justice
l. biological impacts
m. impacts to waters of the U.S., and
n. cumulative impacts.
4. Alternatives: Alternatives to the proposed action are being
developed for evaluation in the EIS. The Draft EIS will include a co-
equal level of analysis of the No-Action and project alternatives
considered. Alternatives will be further formulated and developed
during the scoping process.
5. Scoping: The Corps will conduct a public scoping meeting in an
open house format for the proposed Lone Star Ore Body Development
Project Draft EIS to receive public comment and to assess public
concerns regarding the appropriate scope and preparation of the Draft
EIS. Participation in the public meeting by federal, state, local, and
tribal agencies and other interested organizations is encouraged. The
meeting will be held on February 4, 2015, 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
(Arizona Time Zone) at the Manor House Convention Center, 415 E. U.S.
Highway 70, Safford, Arizona 85546. Representatives from the Corps and
Freeport-McMoRan Safford Inc. will provide a presentation for attendees
at 7:00 p.m. Comments on the proposed action, alternatives, or any
additional concerns should be submitted in writing. Written and
electronic comment letters will be accepted through February 20, 2015.
The Corps also anticipates formally consulting with the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service under section 7 of the Endangered Species Act and
with the State Historic Preservation Officer and appropriate Tribal
Historic Preservation Officers under section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act.
6. Availability of the Draft EIS: The Draft EIS is expected to be
published and circulated in the fourth quarter of 2015, and a public
meeting will be held after its publication.
Dated: December 12, 2014.
David J. Castanon,
Division Chief, Los Angeles District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
[FR Doc. 2014-30864 Filed 1-2-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720-58-P
