Department of the Interior May 1, 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the availability of a ``Draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan and Environmental Assessment (Draft CCP/EA) for Cat Island National Wildlife Refuge in West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana, for public review and comment. In this Draft CCP/EA, we describe the alternative we propose to use to manage this refuge for the 15 years following approval of the final CCP.

The Western Area Power Administration (Western) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), joint lead agencies, announce the availability of the Upper Great Plains Wind Energy Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (Final PEIS) (DOE/EIS-0408). The Final PEIS evaluates issues and environmental impacts associated with wind energy development within Western's Upper Great Plains Customer Service Region (UGP Region) and upon the Service's landscape-level grassland and wetland easements. The area covered by the PEIS encompasses all or parts of the states of Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota that fall within the UGP Region boundaries. In response to an increase in wind energy development, Western and the Service have interests in streamlining their procedures for conducting environmental reviews of wind energy applications by implementing standardized evaluation procedures and identifying measures to address potential environmental impacts associated with wind energy projects in the UGP Region. The U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Rural Utility Services (RUS), have participated as cooperating agencies. The Final PEIS and related project information is available on the project Web site at https:// plainswindeis.anl.gov.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), intend to prepare a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) for the Pacific Gas and Electric Company's (PG&E) (Applicant) proposed Eagle Conservation Plan (ECP) and request for a 30-year programmatic eagle take permit for take of bald eagles and golden eagles under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (Eagle Act). The ECP, which serves as the foundation of the permit application, is a comprehensive plan that addresses take of the eagles associated with PG&E's existing infrastructure and operations and maintenance (O&M) activities throughout the Plan Area, which encompasses about two-thirds of the State of California. We provide this notice to (1) describe the proposed action; (2) advise other Federal and state agencies, potentially affected tribal interests, and the public of our intent to prepare an EIS; (3) announce the initiation of a 60-day public scoping period; and (4) obtain suggestions and information on the scope of issues and possible alternatives to be included in the EIS. We also announce plans for a public scoping meeting and the opening of a public comment period. We request data, comments, new information, or suggestions from the public, governmental agencies, the scientific community, tribes, industry, or any other interested party.

ONRR is amending its regulations governing the valuation, for royalty purposes, of oil produced from Indian leases. This rule will expand and clarify the major portion valuation requirement found in the existing regulations for oil production. This rule represents the recommendations of the Indian Oil Valuation Negotiated Rulemaking Committee (Committee). This rule also changes the form filing requirements necessary to claim a transportation allowance for oil produced from Indian leases.