Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for an Easement to Cross Under Lake Oahe, North Dakota for a Fuel-Carrying Pipeline Right-Of-Way for a Portion of the Dakota Access Pipeline, 55843-55844 [2020-19993]
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 176 / Thursday, September 10, 2020 / Notices
authority. Several recommendations
were included in a report to the sponsor
for potential further consideration
through other USACE programs.
Dated: September 4, 2020.
Karen J. Baker,
Programs Director, North Atlantic Division.
[FR Doc. 2020–19994 Filed 9–9–20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720–58–P
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army, Corps of
Engineers
Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Environmental Impact Statement for an
Easement to Cross Under Lake Oahe,
North Dakota for a Fuel-Carrying
Pipeline Right-Of-Way for a Portion of
the Dakota Access Pipeline
Department of the Army, U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
AGENCY:
This notice advises the public
that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
(Corps), as lead agency, will prepare an
environmental impact statement (EIS)
pursuant to court order to evaluate
granting an easement to Dakota Access,
LLC to cross federal land administered
by Corps for the Oahe Dam and
Reservoir Project on the Missouri River.
This notice opens the public scoping
phase and invites interested parties to
identify issues and reasonable
alternatives to the proposed action that
should be considered in the EIS.
DATES: To ensure consideration during
the EIS process, written comments on
the scope of the EIS must be received no
later than October 26, 2020. Due to the
ongoing coronavirus (COVID–19)
pandemic, virtual scoping meetings will
be held in lieu of in-person scoping
meetings. Virtual scoping meetings will
be held on October 15 and 16, 2020.
Additional information is included
under ‘‘Public Scoping.’’
ADDRESSES: Scoping comments can be
submitted by mail or email. Please do
not submit comments on USB, hard
drive, or other portable storage devices.
Scoping comments can be mailed to:
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha
District, ATTN: CENWO–PM–A–C
(DAPL NOI), 1616 Capitol Avenue,
Omaha, NE 68102.
Scoping comments can also be
emailed to: NWO-DAPL-EIS@
usace.army.mil.
If emailing comments, please use
‘‘Scoping Comments, Dakota Access
Pipeline Crossing’’ as the subject of your
email.
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Heath Kruger, U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers at (402)-995–2036 or by email
at: NWO-DAPL-EIS@usace.army.mil.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On July
25, 2016, the Corps granted permission
to applicant Dakota Access, LLC, under
Section 14 of the Rivers and Harbors Act
of 1899, 33 U.S.C. 408 (408 permission),
for a proposed pipeline crossing under
Lake Oahe approximately 0.5 miles
upstream of the northern boundary of
the Standing Rock Reservation. The
approximately 1,172-mile pipeline
connects the Bakken and Three Forks
oil production areas in North Dakota to
an existing crude oil market near
Patoka, Illinois.
The 408 permission was supported by
a Finding of No Significant Impact
(FONSI) based on an Environmental
Assessment (EA), as contemplated
under the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA). This EA/FONSI was
completed on July 25, 2016, the date
that the Corps granted the 408
permission. On February 8, 2017, the
Corps granted an easement, with
conditions, to cross federal property
administered by the Corps at Lake Oahe,
North Dakota. The Corps granted the
easement under the Mineral Leasing Act
(MLA), 30 U.S.C. 185. The easement
allowed for the installation,
construction, operation, maintenance,
repair, replacement and termination of a
thirty-inch diameter horizontal
directional drill buried oil pipeline for
the purpose of transporting crude oil,
and related facilities, at or under Lake
Oahe Project in North Dakota, with a 50foot wide width plus the ground
occupied by the pipeline and related
facilities. Operation of the pipeline
began on June 1, 2017.
On March 25, 2020, the District Court
for the District of Columbia ordered the
Corps to prepare an EIS for this portion
of the pipeline because the pipeline’s
‘‘effects on the quality of the human
environment are likely to be highly
controversial.’’ Standing Rock Sioux
Tribe v. U.S. Army Corps of Eng’rs, No.
1: 16-cv-01534, Memorandum Opinion
(D.D.C. March 25, 2020), ECF No. 496.
The proposed crossing of Corpsadministered federal property requires
the grant of a right-of-way (easement)
under the MLA. Comments are invited
to assist in identifying the scope of
potentially affected environmental,
social, and economic issues relevant to
the potential grant of an easement and
determining if there are reasonable
alternatives to be considered in the EIS.
Consistent with the Court’s decision,
Dakota Access, LLC seeks an easement
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55843
from the Corps for the original proposed
project whose construction was
completed on June 1, 2017. A decision
on whether to authorize the pipeline to
cross Lake Oahe at the proposed
location would be based on: (1) The July
25, 2016, EA/FONSI; (2) the Corps’
August 31, 2018, analysis on remand
from a decision by the District Court;
and (3) additional analysis developed
through this EIS.
Scoping Process: As the lead federal
agency, the Corps will also coordinate
with the public, other state and local
agencies, and Tribes in order to evaluate
the range of actions, alternatives, and
impacts of the proposed project.
Consistent with the Council on
Environmental Quality (CEQ’s) NEPA
implementing regulations, we anticipate
that an EIS will analyze the following
possible alternatives:
(1) No action alternative, where the
Corps would not grant an easement and
would require restoration of the Corpsadministered federal lands to prepipeline construction conditions;
(2) The Corps would not grant an
easement and would take no further
action;
(3) The Corps would grant the
requested easement with the same
conditions as the vacated easement; and
(4) The Corps would grant the
requested easement with additional
conditions beyond those in the vacated
easement.
As part of this notice, the Corps
requests input on any additional
potential alternatives.
Public Scoping: This notice also
serves to inform the public that virtual
public scoping meeting will be held
during the 45-day scoping period.
Virtual scoping meetings will be held on
October 15 and 16, 2020 from 6:00 p.m.
to 9:00 p.m. central time on each day.
The meeting information can be
accessed at https://go.usa.gov/xG2Pt.
The Corps will use the comments
received to assist in identifying the
significant issues which should be
addressed in the EIS.
Public Comment Availability: Before
including your address, telephone
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 in your comment that
your personal identifying information
be withheld from public review, the
E:\FR\FM\10SEN1.SGM
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55844
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 176 / Thursday, September 10, 2020 / Notices
Corps cannot guarantee that this will
occur.
D. Peter Helmlinger,
Brigadier General, U.S. Army, Division
Commander.
[FR Doc. 2020–19993 Filed 9–9–20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720–58–P
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
[Docket No.: ED–2020–SCC–0147]
Agency Information Collection
Activities; Submission to the Office of
Management and Budget for Review
and Approval; Comment Request;
National Assessment of Educational
Progress (NAEP) 2021 Materials
Update
Department of Education (ED).
Notice.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
In accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, ED is
proposing a revision to an existing
information collection.
DATES: Interested persons are invited to
submit comments on or before October
13, 2020.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and
recommendations for proposed
information collection requests should
be sent within 30 days of publication of
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/
do/PRAMain. Find this particular
information collection request by
selecting ‘‘Department of Education’’
under ‘‘Currently Under Review,’’ then
check ‘‘Only Show ICR for Public
Comment’’ checkbox.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
specific questions related to collection
activities, please contact Carrie Clarady,
202–245–6347.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Department of Education (ED), in
accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C.
3506(c)(2)(A)), provides the general
public and Federal agencies with an
opportunity to comment on proposed,
revised, and continuing collections of
information. This helps the Department
assess the impact of its information
collection requirements and minimize
the public’s reporting burden. It also
helps the public understand the
Department’s information collection
requirements and provide the requested
data in the desired format. ED is
soliciting comments on the proposed
information collection request (ICR) that
is described below. The Department of
Education is especially interested in
public comment addressing the
following issues: (1) Is this collection
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necessary to the proper functions of the
Department; (2) will this information be
processed and used in a timely manner;
(3) is the estimate of burden accurate;
(4) how might the Department enhance
the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and (5) how
might the Department minimize the
burden of this collection on the
respondents, including through the use
of information technology. Please note
that written comments received in
response to this notice will be
considered public records.
Title of Collection: National
Assessment of Educational Progress
(NAEP) 2021 Materials Update.
OMB Control Number: 1850–0928.
Type of Review: A revision of an
existing information collection.
Respondents/Affected Public:
Individuals or Households.
Total Estimated Number of Annual
Responses: 329,909.
Total Estimated Number of Annual
Burden Hours: 180,233.
Abstract: The National Assessment of
Educational Progress (NAEP),
conducted by the National Center for
Education Statistics (NCES), is a
federally authorized survey of student
achievement at grades 4, 8, and 12 in
various subject areas, such as
mathematics, reading, writing, science,
U.S. history, civics, geography,
economics, technology and engineering
literacy (TEL), and the arts. The
National Assessment of Educational
Progress Authorization Act (Pub. L.
107–279 Title III, section 303) requires
the assessment to collect data on
specified student groups and
characteristics, including information
organized by race/ethnicity, gender,
socio-economic status, disability, and
limited English proficiency. It requires
fair and accurate presentation of
achievement data and permits the
collection of background, noncognitive,
or descriptive information that is related
to academic achievement and aids in
fair reporting of results. The intent of
the law is to provide representative
sample data on student achievement for
the nation, the states, and
subpopulations of students and to
monitor progress over time. The request
to conduct NAEP 2021, including
operational assessments and pilot tests:
Operational national/state/TUDA
Digitally Based Assessments (DBA) in
mathematics and reading at grades 4
and 8, and Puerto Rico in mathematics
at grades 4 and 8; and operational
national DBA in U.S. history and civics
at grade 8 was approved in April 2020,
with a further update to the materials
approved in July 2020. This request is
to conduct NAEP operational
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assessments in 2021 and will follow the
traditional NAEP design which assesses
each student in 60-minutes for one
cognitive subject. Given the COVID–19
outbreak, NAEP requires personal
protective equipment for field staff and
must plan for additional sessions given
that students may attend school on a
staggered schedule. NAEP was not able
to secure additional funding from
Congress to cover the additional costs
for personal protective equipment,
necessary increases in field staff, and
other operational costs that would be
required to assess the full sample. As
such, this Amendment reflects the
elimination of the national-only
assessments (grade 8 U.S. History and
Civics, and age 17 Long-Term Trend), a
smaller sample of students within each
state for reading and mathematics, and
the elimination of TUDAs from the 2021
sample. This Amendment also includes
the addition of an online version of the
student questionnaires that will be
available to sampled students who are
remote and not able to be assessed inperson, as well as the addition of some
questionnaire items on teacher, student,
and school experiences conditioned by
the COVID–19 pandemic. The final
Materials Update #3 is scheduled for
October of 2020. The NAEP results will
be reported to the public through the
Nation’s Report Card as well as other
online NAEP tools.
Dated: September 4, 2020.
Stephanie Valentine,
PRA Coordinator, Strategic Collections and
Clearance, Governance and Strategy Division,
Office of Chief Data Officer, Office of
Planning, Evaluation and Policy
Development.
[FR Doc. 2020–19965 Filed 9–9–20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
[Docket No.: ED–2020–SCC–0094]
Agency Information Collection
Activities; Submission to the Office of
Management and Budget for Review
and Approval; Comment Request;
Report of Dispute Resolution Under
Part C of the Individuals With
Disabilities Education Act
Office of Special Education and
Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), ED.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
In accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, ED is
proposing an extension of an existing
information collection.
DATES: Interested persons are invited to
submit comments on or before October
13, 2020.
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\10SEN1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 176 (Thursday, September 10, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55843-55844]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-19993]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers
Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for
an Easement to Cross Under Lake Oahe, North Dakota for a Fuel-Carrying
Pipeline Right-Of-Way for a Portion of the Dakota Access Pipeline
AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This notice advises the public that the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers (Corps), as lead agency, will prepare an environmental impact
statement (EIS) pursuant to court order to evaluate granting an
easement to Dakota Access, LLC to cross federal land administered by
Corps for the Oahe Dam and Reservoir Project on the Missouri River.
This notice opens the public scoping phase and invites interested
parties to identify issues and reasonable alternatives to the proposed
action that should be considered in the EIS.
DATES: To ensure consideration during the EIS process, written comments
on the scope of the EIS must be received no later than October 26,
2020. Due to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, virtual
scoping meetings will be held in lieu of in-person scoping meetings.
Virtual scoping meetings will be held on October 15 and 16, 2020.
Additional information is included under ``Public Scoping.''
ADDRESSES: Scoping comments can be submitted by mail or email. Please
do not submit comments on USB, hard drive, or other portable storage
devices.
Scoping comments can be mailed to: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
Omaha District, ATTN: CENWO-PM-A-C (DAPL NOI), 1616 Capitol Avenue,
Omaha, NE 68102.
Scoping comments can also be emailed to: [email protected].
If emailing comments, please use ``Scoping Comments, Dakota Access
Pipeline Crossing'' as the subject of your email.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Heath Kruger, U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers at (402)-995-2036 or by email at: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On July 25, 2016, the Corps granted
permission to applicant Dakota Access, LLC, under Section 14 of the
Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, 33 U.S.C. 408 (408 permission), for a
proposed pipeline crossing under Lake Oahe approximately 0.5 miles
upstream of the northern boundary of the Standing Rock Reservation. The
approximately 1,172-mile pipeline connects the Bakken and Three Forks
oil production areas in North Dakota to an existing crude oil market
near Patoka, Illinois.
The 408 permission was supported by a Finding of No Significant
Impact (FONSI) based on an Environmental Assessment (EA), as
contemplated under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). This
EA/FONSI was completed on July 25, 2016, the date that the Corps
granted the 408 permission. On February 8, 2017, the Corps granted an
easement, with conditions, to cross federal property administered by
the Corps at Lake Oahe, North Dakota. The Corps granted the easement
under the Mineral Leasing Act (MLA), 30 U.S.C. 185. The easement
allowed for the installation, construction, operation, maintenance,
repair, replacement and termination of a thirty-inch diameter
horizontal directional drill buried oil pipeline for the purpose of
transporting crude oil, and related facilities, at or under Lake Oahe
Project in North Dakota, with a 50-foot wide width plus the ground
occupied by the pipeline and related facilities. Operation of the
pipeline began on June 1, 2017.
On March 25, 2020, the District Court for the District of Columbia
ordered the Corps to prepare an EIS for this portion of the pipeline
because the pipeline's ``effects on the quality of the human
environment are likely to be highly controversial.'' Standing Rock
Sioux Tribe v. U.S. Army Corps of Eng'rs, No. 1: 16-cv-01534,
Memorandum Opinion (D.D.C. March 25, 2020), ECF No. 496.
The proposed crossing of Corps-administered federal property
requires the grant of a right-of-way (easement) under the MLA. Comments
are invited to assist in identifying the scope of potentially affected
environmental, social, and economic issues relevant to the potential
grant of an easement and determining if there are reasonable
alternatives to be considered in the EIS.
Consistent with the Court's decision, Dakota Access, LLC seeks an
easement from the Corps for the original proposed project whose
construction was completed on June 1, 2017. A decision on whether to
authorize the pipeline to cross Lake Oahe at the proposed location
would be based on: (1) The July 25, 2016, EA/FONSI; (2) the Corps'
August 31, 2018, analysis on remand from a decision by the District
Court; and (3) additional analysis developed through this EIS.
Scoping Process: As the lead federal agency, the Corps will also
coordinate with the public, other state and local agencies, and Tribes
in order to evaluate the range of actions, alternatives, and impacts of
the proposed project. Consistent with the Council on Environmental
Quality (CEQ's) NEPA implementing regulations, we anticipate that an
EIS will analyze the following possible alternatives:
(1) No action alternative, where the Corps would not grant an
easement and would require restoration of the Corps-administered
federal lands to pre-pipeline construction conditions;
(2) The Corps would not grant an easement and would take no further
action;
(3) The Corps would grant the requested easement with the same
conditions as the vacated easement; and
(4) The Corps would grant the requested easement with additional
conditions beyond those in the vacated easement.
As part of this notice, the Corps requests input on any additional
potential alternatives.
Public Scoping: This notice also serves to inform the public that
virtual public scoping meeting will be held during the 45-day scoping
period. Virtual scoping meetings will be held on October 15 and 16,
2020 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. central time on each day. The meeting
information can be accessed at https://go.usa.gov/xG2Pt. The Corps will
use the comments received to assist in identifying the significant
issues which should be addressed in the EIS.
Public Comment Availability: Before including your address,
telephone 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 in your comment that
your personal identifying information be withheld from public review,
the
[[Page 55844]]
Corps cannot guarantee that this will occur.
D. Peter Helmlinger,
Brigadier General, U.S. Army, Division Commander.
[FR Doc. 2020-19993 Filed 9-9-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720-58-P
