Department of the Interior October 7, 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document provides notice that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) intends to prepare a Resource Management Plan (RMP) amendment to address offering the sale of public land within Mineral County, Nevada not currently identified for disposal.

Under Section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Kemmerer Field Office, announces its intent to prepare an EIS on the potential impacts of a proposed natural gas development project consisting primarily of conventional gas well development, in the Moxa Arch area, Wyoming. The proposed additional wells would fill in or ``infill'' among existing wells drilled and developed under the Expanded Moxa Arch Area Natural Gas Development Project EIS and Record of Decision (ROD) (1997). Drilling is proposed to occur over a 10-year period and the life- of-project is anticipated to be 40 years. The project area is located west of Green River, east of Lyman and Opal, and south of the Fontenelle Reservoir.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will file the plat of survey of the lands described below in the BLM-Eastern States, Springfield, Virginia, 30 calendar days from the date of publication in the Federal Register.

This notice advises the public that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) intends to prepare a Supplement to the Draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and its implementing regulations, for the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge (Refuge) located in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. The Refuge has decided to draft a new preferred alternative (Alternative E) in the form of a Supplement to the Draft CCP and EIS. All current alternatives in the Draft CCP and EIS (Alternatives A through D) will remain and will be considered in preparing the Final CCP and EIS. The Service is furnishing this notice in compliance with the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, as amended (16 U.S.C. 668dd et seq.), and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, to advise other agencies and the public of our intentions.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) proposes to amend regulations published in the Federal Register on Friday, June 30, 2000 (65 FR 40953). The existing regulations allowed certain Alaska Native veterans another opportunity to apply for a Native allotment under the repealed Native Allotment Act of 1906. This proposed rulemaking would delete the requirement that veteran applicants must post the land by marking all corners of the ground with their name and address prior to filing an application with the BLM. Enforcement of the posting rule for allotments adjudicated under the 1906 Act was previously waived by an Assistant Secretary. Therefore, the posting requirement is deemed unnecessary for Native veteran allotment cases.

Under the provisions of 30 U.S.C. 188(d) and (e), and 43 CFR 3108.2-3(a) and (b)(1), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) received a petition for reinstatement of oil and gas lease WYW136681 from Redstone Resources, Inc., Preston Reynolds & Co., Inc., and CH4 Energy, LLC for lands in Campbell County, Wyoming. The petition was filed on time and was accompanied by all the rentals due since the date the lease terminated under the law.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM or ``we'') is issuing this interim final rule to amend regulations for the leasing of hydrocarbons, except coal, gilsonite and oil shale, in special tar sand areas. In this rule, BLM amends our regulations to respond to provisions of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 that allow separate oil and gas leases and tar sand leases in special tar sand areas, specify several oil and gas leasing practices that apply to tar sand leases, increase the maximum size for combined hydrocarbon leases and tar sand leases, and set the minimum acceptable bid for tar sand leases at $2.00 per acre. The law requiring these changes also requires that this rule be published as a final rule within 45 days of enactment. This is an interim final rule. Although the rule is effective upon publication, there is a 60-day comment period that starts on the date of publication. After the comment period, we will review the comments and may issue a further final rule making any necessary changes.

The Bureau of Land Management-Eastern States (BLM-ES) is temporarily closing the Maryland Point property formerly known as the Maryland Point Naval Observatory. This closure complies with the requirements of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act to provide for the safety of the public. The authority for this closure is found in 43 CFR 8364.1. The closure is necessary to protect the public from hazardous materials and conditions remaining from past military use.

This notice advises the public that we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), have prepared a draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement on the Translocation of Southern Sea Otters (draft SEIS), which is available for public review. The draft SEIS evaluates options for continuing, revising, or terminating the southern sea otter translocation program (52 FR 29754; August 11, 1987). The document describes the proposed action and other alternatives under consideration and discloses the direct, indirect, and cumulative environmental effects of each of the alternatives.