Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Haiwee Geothermal Leasing Area, California, and the Proposed Amendment to the California Desert Conservation Area Plan, 4338-4339 [2020-01178]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
• Bureau of Land Management

[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 16 (Friday, January 24, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4338-4339]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-01178]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[(LLCAD01000.L13400000.DO0000.20X) MO#4500140922]


Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact 
Statement for the Haiwee Geothermal Leasing Area, California, and the 
Proposed Amendment to the California Desert Conservation Area Plan

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969, as amended (NEPA), and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act 
of 1976, as amended (FLPMA), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has 
prepared a Final Amendment to the California Desert Conservation Area 
(CDCA) Plan and a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the 
Haiwee Geothermal Leasing Area (HGLA), Inyo County, California, and by 
this notice is announcing its availability. The proposed action is to 
amend the CDCA Plan to allow for geothermal leasing within 
approximately 22,805 acres. The proposed action also responds to three 
geothermal lease applications for 4,460 acres of public lands within 
the HGLA.

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

ADDRESSES: The Final EIS and Proposed Land Use Plan Amendment is 
available on the internet at https://go.usa.gov/xEnvy. Hard copies of 
the Final EIS and Proposed Land Use Plan Amendment are available for 
public inspection at the BLM-Ridgecrest Field Office at 300 South 
Richmond Road, Ridgecrest, CA 93555, and at the California Desert 
District Office, 22835 Calle San Juan De Los Lagos, Moreno Valley, CA 
92553. Hard copies of the Final EIS and Proposed Land Use Plan 
Amendment have been sent to affected Federal, State, local, and tribal 
government agencies and to other stakeholders. All protests must be in 
writing and filed with the BLM Director, either as a hard copy or 
electronically via the BLM's ePlanning project website listed 
previously. To submit a protest electronically, go to the ePlanning 
project website and follow the protest instructions highlighted at the 
top of the home page. If submitting a protest in hard copy, it must be 
mailed to one of the following addresses:
    Regular Mail: BLM Director (210), Attention: Protest Coordinator, 
P.O. Box 71383, Washington, DC 20024-1383.
    Overnight Delivery: BLM Director (210), Attention: Protest 
Coordinator, 20 M Street SE, Room 2134LM, Washington, DC 20003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Greg Miller, Assistant District 
Manager--Resources, telephone: 951-697-5216; address: 22835 Calle San 
Juan De Los Lagos, Moreno Valley, CA 92553; email:

[[Page 4339]]

[email protected]. Persons who use a telecommunications device for the 
deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339 
to contact Mr. Miller during normal business hours. FRS is available 24 
hours a day, 7 days a week, to leave a message or question. You will 
receive a reply during normal business hours.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The HGLA Draft EIS and Draft Proposed 
Amendment to the CDCA published in May 2012 and public meetings were 
held in June 2012. An Administrative Draft Final EIS was prepared in 
December 2013 that included public comments and responses to comments, 
updates to the alternatives descriptions, and internal review comments. 
As a result of the review of the comments, the BLM conducted a more 
detailed study to address projected water use by geothermal facilities 
should they be allowed in the HGLA. Argonne National Laboratories 
conducted the study and provided BLM a report in January 2016. 
Additionally, new land use designations approved with the Desert 
Renewable Energy Conservation Plan amendment to the CDCA Plan in 
September of 2016 required analysis of a new alternative that 
considered the new land use designations. Based on these two 
developments, the BLM has prepared a CDCA Plan Amendment and Draft 
Supplemental EIS for the project. The Draft Supplemental EIS published 
on April 19, 2019, for a 90-day public comment period. The Draft 
Supplemental EIS analyzed the Proposed Action and two action 
alternatives, in addition to the No Action Alternative.
    The BLM received three geothermal lease applications for 4,460 
acres of public lands within the HGLA in 2002. In addition, the BLM 
identified approximately 18,345 acres of public lands, also within the 
Haiwee Proposed Project Area and adjacent to the three geothermal lease 
applications, which will be considered for competitive geothermal 
leasing under 43 CFR 3203.10(e). The proposed action is to amend the 
CDCA Plan to allow project area lands to be leased under the authority 
of the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970, as amended (30 U.S.C. 1001 et 
seq.). The leasing of public lands for geothermal resources will 
require an amendment to the CDCA Plan, which is authorized by FLPMA 
Section 202 (43 U.S.C. 1712) and 43 CFR 1610.5-5. Total acreage being 
considered for geothermal leasing is approximately 22,805 acres.
    The Draft Supplemental EIS/EIR and Draft Land Use Plan Amendment 
was available for a 90-day public comment period. The BLM received 
seven comment letters during the comment period. The BLM considered and 
incorporated, as appropriate, public comments on the Draft EIS, Draft 
Supplemental EIS, and Draft Land Use Plan Amendment and internal agency 
review into the proposed plan amendment. Public comments resulted in 
the addition of clarifying text but did not significantly change 
proposed land use plan decisions. A response to substantive comments is 
included as an appendix to the Final EIS and Proposed Land Use Plan 
Amendment. The BLM has selected Alternative A, Allow Geothermal Leasing 
in the Entire HGLA, as the Agency Proposed Alternative in the Final EIS 
and Proposed Land Use Plan Amendment. Instructions for filing a protest 
with the Director of the BLM regarding the Final EIS and Proposed Land 
Use Plan Amendment may be found online at https://www.blm.gov/programs/planning-and-nepa/public-participation/filing-a-plan-protest and at 43 
CFR 1610.5-2. All protests must be made in writing and mailed to the 
appropriate address, as set forth in the ADDRESSES section listed 
earlier or submitted electronically through the BLM ePlanning project 
website as described earlier. Protests submitted electronically by any 
means other than through the ePlanning project website protest section 
will be invalid unless a protest is also submitted in hard copy. 
Protests submitted by fax will also be invalid unless also submitted 
either through the ePlanning project website protest section or in hard 
copy.
    Before including your phone number, email address, or other 
personal identifying information in your protest, you should be aware 
that your entire protest--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us to withhold your personal identifying information from public 
review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 43 CFR 1610.2)

Joe Stout,
Acting State Director.
[FR Doc. 2020-01178 Filed 1-23-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4310-40-P