Department of the Interior September 29, 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), the Federal lead agency, and the San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority (Authority), the State lead agency, have prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and a Final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the continuation of the Grassland Bypass Project until December 31, 2019 (Project). Reclamation proposes to enter a Use Agreement with the Authority for the continued use of a portion of the San Luis Drain after 2009 to convey subsurface agricultural irrigation water to Mud Slough (North). The Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board would need to revise their Basin Plan Amendment to delay compliance with selenium objectives for 2010 and amend the existing Waste Discharge Requirements for the Project in order to allow for anticipated drainage discharge into Mud Slough, and the Authority and the California Department of Fish and Game will need to amend their existing Memorandum of Understanding for the portion of Mud Slough North in the State's China Island Wildlife Area. Reclamation and the Authority would need to remove existing and future sediments from the affected portion of the San Luis Drain.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce our 12-month finding on a petition to revise critical habitat for Eriogonum pelinophilum (clay-loving wild buckwheat) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). After a thorough review of all available scientific and commercial information, we find that revisions to critical habitat for E. pelinophilum are warranted but precluded by other priorities. Given this finding, we intend to initiate rulemaking when we complete the higher priorities and we have the necessary resources to do so.