Bureau of Reclamation – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Bureau of Reclamation is extending the public comment period for the scoping process to June 28, 2012. We published the notice of intent in the Federal Register on March 28, 2012 (77 FR 18858). The public review was originally scheduled to end on May 29, 2012.

The Bureau of Reclamation and the San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors Water Authority have made available for public review and comment the joint draft environmental impact statement/environmental impact report (Draft EIS/EIR) for the Water Transfer Program, 2014- 2038. The proposed new transfer program would provide for the transfer and/or exchange of up to 150,000 acre-feet of substitute water from the San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors Water Authority to several potential users over a 25-year timeframe (water service years 2014- 2038).

The Bureau of Reclamation intends to submit a request for renewal of an existing approved information collection to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB): Diversions, Return Flow, and Consumptive Use of Colorado River Water in the Lower Colorado River Basin (OMB Control Number 1006-0015).

The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group (AMWG) makes recommendations to the Secretary of the Interior concerning Glen Canyon Dam operations and other management actions to protect resources downstream of Glen Canyon Dam, consistent with the Grand Canyon Protection Act. The AMWG meets two to three times a year.

Following consultation with the General Services Administration, notice is hereby given that the Secretary of the Interior is renewing the charter for the Yakima River Basin Conservation Advisory Group (CAG). The purpose of the CAG is to provide recommendations to the Secretary of the Interior and the State of Washington on the structure and implementation of the Yakima River Basin Water Conservation Program. The basin conservation program is structured to provide economic incentives with cooperative Federal, State, and local funding to stimulate the identification and implementation of structural and nonstructural cost-effective water conservation measures in the Yakima River basin. Improvements in the efficiency of water delivery and use will result in improved streamflows for fish and wildlife and improve the reliability of water supplies for irrigation.

The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), in cooperation with the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology), the joint lead agency, is notifying the public that they have prepared a final programmatic environmental impact statement pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act and have made it available to the public for review.

The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) intends to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) on the Pojoaque Basin Regional Water System. Reclamation will serve as the lead Federal agency. The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission, New Mexico Office of the State Engineer, County of Santa Fe, and the Pueblos of Namb[eacute], Pojoaque, San Ildefonso, and Tesuque will be invited to participate as cooperating agencies for the EIS. Other entities will be considered as necessary during the EIS process. The proposed Pojoaque Basin Regional Water System will divert, treat, and distribute potable water to the Pueblo and non-Pueblo residents of the Pojoaque Basin. The Regional Water System will consist of surface water diversion and water treatment facilities at San Ildefonso Pueblo on the Rio Grande and storage tanks, transmission and distribution pipelines, and aquifer storage and recovery well fields that will supply up to 4,000 acre-feet of water annually to customers within the Pojoaque Basin.

The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group (AMWG) makes recommendations to the Secretary of the Interior concerning Glen Canyon Dam operations and other management actions to protect resources downstream of Glen Canyon Dam, consistent with the Grand Canyon Protection Act. The AMWG meets two to three times a year.

The Department of the Interior, through the Bureau of Reclamation and the National Park Service, is extending the public scoping period for the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Adoption of a Long-term Experimental and Management Plan (LTEMP) for the Operation of Glen Canyon Dam to January 31, 2012. The Notice to Solicit Comments and Hold Public Scoping Meetings was published in the Federal Register on October 17, 2011 (76 FR 64104). The public scoping period was originally scheduled to end on Friday, December 30, 2011.

The Bureau of Reclamation intends to submit a request for renewal (with revisions) of an existing approved information collection to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB): Use Authorization Application (Form 7-2540), OMB Control Number: 1006-0003.

The Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Windy Gap Firming Project is available for public review. The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) has evaluated comments and has identified Alternative 2 as the Preferred Alternative. The Preferred Alternative includes construction of Chimney Hollow Reservoir, pre-positioning of Colorado-Big Thompson (C-BT) water in the new reservoir, and a new pipeline to convey water to the reservoir from existing C-BT facilities.

The Water Resources Planning Act of 1965 and the Water Resources Development Act of 1974 require an annual determination of a discount rate for Federal water resources planning. The discount rate for Federal water resources planning for fiscal year 2012 is 4 percent. Discounting is to be used to convert future monetary values to present values.

The Department of the Interior (Department), through the Bureau of Reclamation and the National Park Service, provided notice on July 6, 2011, that the Department intends to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) and conduct public scoping meetings for the adoption of a Long-term Experimental and Management Plan (LTEMP) for the operation of Glen Canyon Dam. This Federal Register notice provides specific information on upcoming public scoping meetings and identifies the relevant comment period.

The Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Advisory Council (Council) was established by the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Act of 1974 (Pub. L. 93-320) (Act) to receive reports and advise Federal agencies on implementing the Act. In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the Bureau of Reclamation announces that the Council will meet as detailed below. The meeting of the Council is open to the public.

To meet the requirements of the Central Valley Project Improvement Act of 1992 (CVPIA) and subsequent Department of the Interior administrative review process, the Bureau of Reclamation developed and published the Criteria for Developing Refuge Water Management Plans (Refuge Criteria). Several entities have each developed a Refuge Water Management Plan (Refuge Plan), which Reclamation has evaluated and preliminarily determined to meet the requirements of these Refuge Criteria (see list in Supplementary Information below). Willow Creek Mutual Water Company Refuge Plan was developed in accordance with the Refuge Criteria applicable to the conservation easements that have been acquired by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Reclamation is publishing this notice in order to allow the public to review the plans and comment on the preliminary determinations. Public comment on Reclamation's preliminary (i.e., draft) determination is invited at this time.

The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) and the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) have made available for public review and comment the joint draft environmental impact statement/ environmental impact report (Draft EIS/EIR) for the Joint Operations Center (JOC) Relocation Project. The proposed new JOC would provide the special needs, essential services, and requisite office space for the combined occupancy of Reclamation, DWR, and the National Weather Service (NWS) that are lacking at the existing Interim JOC on El Camino. Special needs are defined as two control centers, a flood operations center, backup power supplies, primary and backup communication systems, intense computer infrastructure, and physical and cyber security systems. The new JOC also must meet State essential service criteria, described further below.

Following consultation with the General Services Administration, notice is hereby given that the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) is renewing the charter for the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group. The purpose of the Adaptive Management Work Group is to advise and to provide recommendations to the Secretary with respect to the operation of Glen Canyon Dam and the exercise of other authorities pursuant to applicable Federal law.

The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), the lead Federal agency, and the California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG), the lead State agency, have prepared a joint Final EIS/EIR for the proposed Nimbus Fish Hatchery Weir Replacement Project (Project). The purpose of the Project is to create and maintain a reliable system of collecting adult fish for use in the Nimbus Fish Hatchery (Hatchery).

The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group (AMWG) makes recommendations to the Secretary of the Interior concerning Glen Canyon Dam operations and other management actions to protect resources downstream of Glen Canyon Dam, consistent with the Grand Canyon Protection Act. The AMWG meets two to three times a year.

The Bureau of Reclamation has forwarded the following Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval: Recreation Visitor Use Surveys. The ICR describes the nature of the information collection and its expected cost burden.

On December 10, 2009, Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) Ken Salazar announced that the development of a Long-Term Experimental and Management Plan (LTEMP) for Glen Canyon Dam was needed. The Secretary emphasized the inclusion of stakeholders, particularly those in the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP), in the development of the LTEMP. The Department of the Interior (Department), through the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) and the National Park Service (NPS), will prepare a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) and conduct public scoping for the adoption of a LTEMP for the operation of Glen Canyon Dam. The Department's decision to develop the LTEMP is a component of its efforts to continue to comply with the ongoing requirements and obligations established by the Grand Canyon Protection Act of 1992 (Pub. L. 102-575) (GCPA). Reclamation and the NPS will co-lead this effort because Reclamation has primary responsibility for operation of Glen Canyon Dam and the NPS has primary responsibility for Grand Canyon National Park and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area.

The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) has prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Madera Irrigation District Water Supply Enhancement Project (MID WSEP). Reclamation proposes to approve the banking of up to 55,000 acre-feet per year of Central Valley Project (CVP) water outside the MID service area and the alteration of Reclamation-owned facilities. The total banking capacity of the MID WSEP is 250,000 acre-feet. Portions of the 24.2 Canal, Section 8 Canal, Main Number 1 Canal, Cottonwood Creek, and Gravelly Ford Canal would be enlarged, extended, or improved. The MID WSEP would be completed in two phases. Phase 1 would involve recharge-related facilities only. Phase 2 would involve supplemental recharge facilities and facilities for recovery of banked water. The Final EIS addresses both phases.

This notice provides information regarding the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) approval of the Buy American waiver requested by the Deschutes River Conservancy (DRC) to purchase foreign-produced ductile iron flanges also known as bolt rings used to connect high- density polyethylene (HDPE) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipe as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) grant for Three Sisters Irrigation District (TSID) Phase IIIMain Canal piping project located in Sisters, Oregon. These ductile iron flanges are not available in the United States and are necessary for the construction of the TSID project and associated construction schedule. The DRC and TSID engineers conducted market research for the domestic ductile iron flange production industry and determined there is currently no domestic availability for ductile iron flanges for use with HDPE and PVC pipe.

The Bureau of Reclamation (we, our, or us) has forwarded the following Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval: Certification Summary Form and Reporting Summary Form for Acreage Limitation. The ICR describes the nature of the information collection and its expected cost and burden.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the Bureau of Reclamation announces that the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Advisory Council (Council) will meet as detailed below. The meeting of the Council is open to the public.