Gulf of Mexico, Outer Continental Shelf, Oil and Gas Lease Sale 261, 58310-58311 [2023-18345]

Download as PDF 58310 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 164 / Friday, August 25, 2023 / Notices at https://www.boem.gov/ for information regarding any changes. Elizabeth A. Klein, Director, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. [FR Doc. 2023–18342 Filed 8–24–23; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4340–98–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Ocean Energy Management [Docket No. BOEM–2023–0045] Gulf of Mexico, Outer Continental Shelf, Oil and Gas Lease Sale 261 Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), Interior. ACTION: Notice of availability of a record of decision. AGENCY: BOEM announces the availability of the Record of Decision (ROD) for Gulf of Mexico (GOM) Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Lease Sale 261 (GOM Lease Sale 261). This ROD identifies the selected alternative for GOM Lease Sale 261, which is analyzed in the Gulf of Mexico OCS Oil and Gas Lease Sales 259 and 261: Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (GOM Lease Sales 259 and 261 Supplemental EIS). ADDRESSES: The ROD and associated information are available on BOEM’s website at https://www.boem.gov/oilgas-energy/leasing/lease-sale-261. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Helen Rucker, Supervisor, Environmental Assessment Section Unit 1, Office of Environment, BOEM New Orleans Office, by telephone at 504– 736–2421, or by email at helen.rucker@ boem.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: BOEM must hold GOM Lease Sale 261 on or before September 30, 2023, pursuant to section 50264(e) of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA, Pub. L. 117–169), which was signed into law on August 16, 2022. However, the IRA does not affect BOEM’s discretion regarding other aspects of its normal leasing process, including decisions regarding the scope of the lease sale and the terms of the resulting leases. GOM Lease Sale 261 will provide qualified bidders the opportunity to bid on unleased blocks in the Gulf of Mexico OCS in order to explore for, develop, and produce oil and natural gas. BOEM evaluated five alternatives in the GOM Lease Sales 259 and 261 Supplemental EIS, which BOEM completed as part of its normal leasing process to inform the decisionmaker on possible lease sale impacts, ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1 SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:23 Aug 24, 2023 Jkt 259001 mitigations, and other action alternatives. The ROD for Lease Sale 261 is the second ROD that relies on the analysis in the GOM Lease Sales 259 and 261 Supplemental EIS. BOEM reviewed new and relevant information since the GOM Lease Sales 259 and 261 Supplemental EIS was issued and verified that the GOM Lease Sales 259 and 261 Supplemental EIS adequately addresses the potential environmental effects of the proposed lease sale. There are no new circumstances, information, or changes in the proposed lease sale or its potential impacts that require supplementation of the GOM Lease Sales 259 and 261 Supplemental EIS. After careful consideration, the U.S. Department of the Interior (Interior) decided to offer for lease a subset of the OCS blocks analyzed as Alternative D in the GOM Lease Sales 259 and 261 Supplemental EIS. Therefore, BOEM will hold GOM Lease Sale 261 as a GOM regionwide lease sale encompassing all three planning areas, i.e., the Western Planning Area, Central Planning Area, and a small portion of the Eastern Planning Area, with the following exclusions: (1) whole and portions of blocks made unavailable for leasing by Presidential withdrawal in the September 8, 2020, Memorandum on the Withdrawal of Certain Areas of the United States Outer Continental Shelf from Leasing Disposition; (2) blocks that are adjacent to or beyond the United States Exclusive Economic Zone in the area known as the northern portion of the Eastern Gap; (3) whole and partial blocks within the boundary of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary as of the July 14, 2008, Memorandum on Modification of the Withdrawal of Areas of the United States Outer Continental Shelf from Leasing Disposition; (4) whole and partial blocks that were previously subject to the Topographic Features Stipulation; (5) whole and partial blocks that were previously subject to the Live Bottom (Pinnacle Trend) Stipulation; (6) whole and partial blocks that were previously subject to the Blocks South of Baldwin County, Alabama, Stipulation; (7) whole blocks that contain banks that are adjacent to blocks previously included in the Topographic Features Stipulation (currently Garden Banks 181); (8) whole and partial blocks identified as either Wind Energy Area Options (Areas A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, J, K, L, and N) or final Wind Energy PO 00000 Frm 00077 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 Areas (Areas I and M); 1 (9) depthrestricted, segregated block portions (Block 299, Main Pass Area, South and East Addition); (10) whole and partial BOEM-designated Significant Sediment Resource Area blocks; and (11) whole and partial blocks between the 100meter and 400-meter isobaths across the northern GOM on the OCS, eastward from the Mexican border with Texas and westward from the eastern edge of the Central Planning Area. The excluded blocks are identified by their block number in the Final Notice of Sale for GOM Lease Sale 261. The lease sale area encompasses approximately 12,395 OCS blocks covering approximately 67.3 million acres. The unleased OCS blocks that BOEM will offer for lease are listed in the document entitled ‘‘Lease Sale Area,’’ which is included in the Final Notice of Sale package for GOM Lease Sale 261 available on BOEM’s website. See ADDRESSES caption above. As part of the decision to hold GOM Lease Sale 261, BOEM adopted all practicable means to avoid or minimize environmental harm at the lease sale stage. In addition, any subsequent postlease activities (e.g., exploration and development plans), which may be expected as a result of GOM Lease Sale 261, will undergo additional environmental review and may include additional project-specific mitigation measures applied as conditions of individual plan approvals. The various mitigation measures adopted for the lease sale, and those that may be applied during post-lease reviews, are summarized below. Lease Stipulations—Because the OCS blocks that otherwise were previously subject to the Topographic Features Stipulation; Live Bottom (Pinnacle Trend) Stipulation; and Blocks South of Baldwin County, Alabama, Stipulation have all been removed from leasing under the chosen alternative, these stipulations will not be applied to any leases issued as a result of GOM Lease Sale 261. Eight lease stipulations have been adopted as lease terms where applicable, and they will be enforceable as part of the leases issued. The GOM Lease Sale 259 and 261 Supplemental EIS describes these lease stipulations, which are included in the Final Notice of Sale Package. These lease stipulations include the following: Military Areas; Evacuation; Coordination; Protected Species; United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea Royalty Payment; Agreement between the United States of 1 https://www.boem.gov/sites/default/files/ documents//Draft%20Area%20ID%20 Memo%20GOM%20508.pdf. E:\FR\FM\25AUN1.SGM 25AUN1 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 164 / Friday, August 25, 2023 / Notices America and the United Mexican States Concerning Transboundary Hydrocarbon Reservoirs in the Gulf of Mexico; Restrictions Due to Rights-ofUse and Easements for Floating Production Facilities; and Royalties on All Produced Gas. The Final Notice of Sale package includes a document describing these stipulations in detail. See ADDRESSES caption above. Post-Lease Measures—Appendix B of the Gulf of Mexico OCS Oil and Gas Lease Sales: 2017–2022; Gulf of Mexico Lease Sales 249, 250, 251, 252, 253, 254, 256, 257, 259, and 261—Final Multisale Environmental Impact Statement provides a list and description of standard post-lease conditions of approval that BOEM or the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement may require as a result of their plan and permit reviews for oil and gas activities in the Gulf of Mexico OCS region. The decision to hold GOM Lease Sale 261 meets the purpose of and need for the proposed action, as identified in the GOM Lease Sales 259 and 261 Supplemental EIS, and provides for orderly resource development with protection of human, marine, and coastal environments while also ensuring that the public receives a fair market value for these resources and that free-market competition is maintained. Authority: 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq. (National Environmental Policy Act) and 40 CFR parts 1505 and 1506. Elizabeth A. Klein, Director, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. [FR Doc. 2023–18345 Filed 8–24–23; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4340–98–P DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1 Notice of Lodging of Proposed Consent Decree Under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (‘‘CERCLA’’) On August 21, 2023, the Department of Justice lodged a proposed consent decree with the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey in the lawsuit entitled United States of America v. TCI Pacific Communications, LLC, Civil Action No. 2:23–cv–06076. The United States seeks reimbursement of response costs under section 107 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (‘‘CERCLA’’) in connection with the Barth Smelting Corporation Site located in the City of Newark, Essex County, VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:23 Aug 24, 2023 Jkt 259001 New Jersey. Under the proposed consent decree, the Settling Defendant (TCI Pacific Communications, LLC) agrees to pay the United States $950,000 to resolve the United States’ claim for past response costs arising from a removal action by the Environmental Protection Agency to address lead-contaminated soil at the Site. The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on the proposed consent decree. Comments should be addressed to the Assistant Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, Environmental Enforcement Section, and should refer to United States of America v. TCI Pacific Communications, LLC, Civil Action No. 2:23–cv–06076, D.J. Ref. No. 90–11–3– 12493. All comments must be submitted no later than thirty (30) days after the publication date of this notice. Comments may be submitted either by email or by mail: To submit comments: Send them to: By email ....... pubcomment-ees.enrd@ usdoj.gov. Assistant Attorney General, U.S. DOJ—ENRD, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC 20044–7611. By mail ......... During the public comment period, the consent decree may be examined and downloaded at this Justice Department website: https:// www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. We will provide a paper copy of the consent decree upon written request and payment of reproduction costs. Please mail your request and payment to: Consent Decree Library, U.S. DOJ— ENRD, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC 20044–7611. Please enclose a check or money order for $4.25 (25 cents per page reproduction cost), for the consent decree with appendix payable to the United States Treasury. Henry S. Friedman, Assistant Section Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment and Natural Resources Division. [FR Doc. 2023–18295 Filed 8–24–23; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4410–15–P PO 00000 Frm 00078 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 58311 DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE Office of Justice Programs [OJP (OJJDP) Docket No. 1814] Meeting of the Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. ACTION: Notice of meeting. AGENCY: The Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention announces its next meeting. DATES: Tuesday September 19, 2023 at 9:00 a.m.–2:30 p.m. CT. ADDRESSES: The meeting will take place at the DoubleTree Hotel & Suites Houston Galleria located at 5353 Westheimer Road, Houston, TX 77056. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Visit the website for the Coordinating Council at www.juvenilecouncil.gov or contact Maegen Barnes, Project Manager/ Federal Contractor, by telephone (732) 948–8862, email at Maegen.Currie@ usdoj.gov; or Julie Herr, Designated Federal Official (DFO), OJJDP, by telephone at (202) 598–6885, email at Julie.Herr@usdoj.gov. Please note that the above phone numbers are not toll free. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (‘‘Council’’), established by statute in the Juvenile and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 section 206(a) (34 U.S.C. 11116(a)), will meet to carry out its advisory functions. Information regarding this meeting will be available on the Council’s web page at www.juvenilecouncil.gov. In light of space constraints, this meeting will be open to the public via online video conference only. Prior registration is required (see below). In addition, meeting documents will be viewable via this website including meeting announcements, agendas, minutes and reports. Although designated agency representatives may attend in lieu of members, the Council’s formal membership consists of the following secretaries and/or agency officials; Attorney General (Chair), Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (Vice Chair), Secretary of Health and Human Services, Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, Secretary of the Interior, Secretary of Labor, Secretary of Education, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, SUMMARY: E:\FR\FM\25AUN1.SGM 25AUN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 164 (Friday, August 25, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58310-58311]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-18345]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

[Docket No. BOEM-2023-0045]


Gulf of Mexico, Outer Continental Shelf, Oil and Gas Lease Sale 
261

AGENCY: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability of a record of decision.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: BOEM announces the availability of the Record of Decision 
(ROD) for Gulf of Mexico (GOM) Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and 
Gas Lease Sale 261 (GOM Lease Sale 261). This ROD identifies the 
selected alternative for GOM Lease Sale 261, which is analyzed in the 
Gulf of Mexico OCS Oil and Gas Lease Sales 259 and 261: Final 
Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (GOM Lease Sales 259 and 
261 Supplemental EIS).

ADDRESSES: The ROD and associated information are available on BOEM's 
website at https://www.boem.gov/oil-gas-energy/leasing/lease-sale-261.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Helen Rucker, Supervisor, 
Environmental Assessment Section Unit 1, Office of Environment, BOEM 
New Orleans Office, by telephone at 504-736-2421, or by email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: BOEM must hold GOM Lease Sale 261 on or 
before September 30, 2023, pursuant to section 50264(e) of the 
Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA, Pub. L. 117-169), which was 
signed into law on August 16, 2022. However, the IRA does not affect 
BOEM's discretion regarding other aspects of its normal leasing 
process, including decisions regarding the scope of the lease sale and 
the terms of the resulting leases. GOM Lease Sale 261 will provide 
qualified bidders the opportunity to bid on unleased blocks in the Gulf 
of Mexico OCS in order to explore for, develop, and produce oil and 
natural gas. BOEM evaluated five alternatives in the GOM Lease Sales 
259 and 261 Supplemental EIS, which BOEM completed as part of its 
normal leasing process to inform the decision-maker on possible lease 
sale impacts, mitigations, and other action alternatives.
    The ROD for Lease Sale 261 is the second ROD that relies on the 
analysis in the GOM Lease Sales 259 and 261 Supplemental EIS. BOEM 
reviewed new and relevant information since the GOM Lease Sales 259 and 
261 Supplemental EIS was issued and verified that the GOM Lease Sales 
259 and 261 Supplemental EIS adequately addresses the potential 
environmental effects of the proposed lease sale. There are no new 
circumstances, information, or changes in the proposed lease sale or 
its potential impacts that require supplementation of the GOM Lease 
Sales 259 and 261 Supplemental EIS.
    After careful consideration, the U.S. Department of the Interior 
(Interior) decided to offer for lease a subset of the OCS blocks 
analyzed as Alternative D in the GOM Lease Sales 259 and 261 
Supplemental EIS.
    Therefore, BOEM will hold GOM Lease Sale 261 as a GOM regionwide 
lease sale encompassing all three planning areas, i.e., the Western 
Planning Area, Central Planning Area, and a small portion of the 
Eastern Planning Area, with the following exclusions: (1) whole and 
portions of blocks made unavailable for leasing by Presidential 
withdrawal in the September 8, 2020, Memorandum on the Withdrawal of 
Certain Areas of the United States Outer Continental Shelf from Leasing 
Disposition; (2) blocks that are adjacent to or beyond the United 
States Exclusive Economic Zone in the area known as the northern 
portion of the Eastern Gap; (3) whole and partial blocks within the 
boundary of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary as of the 
July 14, 2008, Memorandum on Modification of the Withdrawal of Areas of 
the United States Outer Continental Shelf from Leasing Disposition; (4) 
whole and partial blocks that were previously subject to the 
Topographic Features Stipulation; (5) whole and partial blocks that 
were previously subject to the Live Bottom (Pinnacle Trend) 
Stipulation; (6) whole and partial blocks that were previously subject 
to the Blocks South of Baldwin County, Alabama, Stipulation; (7) whole 
blocks that contain banks that are adjacent to blocks previously 
included in the Topographic Features Stipulation (currently Garden 
Banks 181); (8) whole and partial blocks identified as either Wind 
Energy Area Options (Areas A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, J, K, L, and N) or 
final Wind Energy Areas (Areas I and M); \1\ (9) depth-restricted, 
segregated block portions (Block 299, Main Pass Area, South and East 
Addition); (10) whole and partial BOEM-designated Significant Sediment 
Resource Area blocks; and (11) whole and partial blocks between the 
100-meter and 400-meter isobaths across the northern GOM on the OCS, 
eastward from the Mexican border with Texas and westward from the 
eastern edge of the Central Planning Area.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ https://www.boem.gov/sites/default/files/documents//Draft%20Area%20ID%20Memo%20GOM%20508.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The excluded blocks are identified by their block number in the 
Final Notice of Sale for GOM Lease Sale 261. The lease sale area 
encompasses approximately 12,395 OCS blocks covering approximately 67.3 
million acres. The unleased OCS blocks that BOEM will offer for lease 
are listed in the document entitled ``Lease Sale Area,'' which is 
included in the Final Notice of Sale package for GOM Lease Sale 261 
available on BOEM's website. See ADDRESSES caption above.
    As part of the decision to hold GOM Lease Sale 261, BOEM adopted 
all practicable means to avoid or minimize environmental harm at the 
lease sale stage. In addition, any subsequent post-lease activities 
(e.g., exploration and development plans), which may be expected as a 
result of GOM Lease Sale 261, will undergo additional environmental 
review and may include additional project-specific mitigation measures 
applied as conditions of individual plan approvals. The various 
mitigation measures adopted for the lease sale, and those that may be 
applied during post-lease reviews, are summarized below.
    Lease Stipulations--Because the OCS blocks that otherwise were 
previously subject to the Topographic Features Stipulation; Live Bottom 
(Pinnacle Trend) Stipulation; and Blocks South of Baldwin County, 
Alabama, Stipulation have all been removed from leasing under the 
chosen alternative, these stipulations will not be applied to any 
leases issued as a result of GOM Lease Sale 261. Eight lease 
stipulations have been adopted as lease terms where applicable, and 
they will be enforceable as part of the leases issued. The GOM Lease 
Sale 259 and 261 Supplemental EIS describes these lease stipulations, 
which are included in the Final Notice of Sale Package. These lease 
stipulations include the following: Military Areas; Evacuation; 
Coordination; Protected Species; United Nations Convention on the Law 
of the Sea Royalty Payment; Agreement between the United States of

[[Page 58311]]

America and the United Mexican States Concerning Transboundary 
Hydrocarbon Reservoirs in the Gulf of Mexico; Restrictions Due to 
Rights-of-Use and Easements for Floating Production Facilities; and 
Royalties on All Produced Gas. The Final Notice of Sale package 
includes a document describing these stipulations in detail. See 
ADDRESSES caption above.
    Post-Lease Measures--Appendix B of the Gulf of Mexico OCS Oil and 
Gas Lease Sales: 2017-2022; Gulf of Mexico Lease Sales 249, 250, 251, 
252, 253, 254, 256, 257, 259, and 261--Final Multisale Environmental 
Impact Statement provides a list and description of standard post-lease 
conditions of approval that BOEM or the Bureau of Safety and 
Environmental Enforcement may require as a result of their plan and 
permit reviews for oil and gas activities in the Gulf of Mexico OCS 
region.
    The decision to hold GOM Lease Sale 261 meets the purpose of and 
need for the proposed action, as identified in the GOM Lease Sales 259 
and 261 Supplemental EIS, and provides for orderly resource development 
with protection of human, marine, and coastal environments while also 
ensuring that the public receives a fair market value for these 
resources and that free-market competition is maintained.
    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq. (National Environmental Policy 
Act) and 40 CFR parts 1505 and 1506.

Elizabeth A. Klein,
Director, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
[FR Doc. 2023-18345 Filed 8-24-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4340-98-P
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