Department of Agriculture June 13, 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with Section 202 of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Council on Environmental Quality's regulations implementing the NEPA (40 CFR 1500- 1508), and applicable agency guidance, a Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) has been prepared on the leasing of geothermal resources in 11 Western States and Alaska. The Department of the Interior, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Department of Agriculture, the Forest Service (FS) are co-lead agencies for the PEIS, and the Department of Energy (DOE) is a cooperating Federal agency. In accordance with the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (Pub. L. 109-58, August 8, 2005), the agencies' goal is to make geothermal leasing decisions on pending lease applications submitted prior to January 1, 2005, and to facilitate geothermal leasing decisions on other existing and future lease applications and nominations for geothermal leasing on Federal lands. The planning area encompasses about 530 million acres of land with the potential for geothermal development in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.